I always read stories to my daughters, as I did to my grandson, and when my girls were small I joined a correspondence course on 'How to write children's stories.' I found this quite restricting however, as I wanted to write about dragons and pixies and goblins, and at that time books on magic and fantasy were not 'in'. But I continued anyway. My daughters liked them and it wasn't my intention to submit my stories for publication. They were simply for our own enjoyment.

Nevertheless, the writing bug had started to bite and over the years I still jotted down short pieces of prose and even some poetry, not that I would have shown these poor efforts to anyone!

When our girls left home to continue their education at college, I did three things which have had a great influence on my life. I went back to college to take O and A Levels. I became a volunteer reader with the Hull & District Talking Magazine for the Blind www.hulltalkingmagazine.org.uk and I joined a creative writing group run by Daphne Glazer and held at the Spring Street Theatre, home of the famous Hull Truck.

My further education reminded me of what I liked best, reading and writing, and I badly wanted to write like Shakespeare or Dickens! I am still a volunteer reader, and now an editor with the Talking Magazine and it was here that I honed my skills speaking into a microphone, and I am pleased to say that some of my novels are on audio, so our blind and partially sighted listeners know my stories too.

Daphne's workshop spurred me on. Here I found like-minded people who wanted to write and in spite of rejection slips, still continued writing. Daphne gave us all encouragement and advice and said, what I know to be true, that writing becomes an obsession.

I wrote short stories and sent them off to magazines. All of them I now realise were totally unsuitable, and all came back with an unfailing regularity with a polite 'Thank you, but no thank you.'

In 1989 came inspiration for my first novel, THE HUNGRY TIDE. For most of our married life we have lived just a few short miles from the East Yorkshire coast, and in that particular year, the village of Mappleton was in danger of falling into the sea as so many other villages have done, even since Roman times. Here's a good story, I thought, how did those long gone people in the past cope with losing their homes to the sea?

The story took hold and grew and grew, until at last I realised that I was writing a novel and was completely hooked by the characters, their problems and life in the early nineteenth century. It was indeed a complete obsession. These characters came to live at our house. They ate at our table and slept in our bed. I walked the crumbling cliff tops, usually muttering to myself and clutching an oozing lump of boulder clay in my hand. I trawled along the old streets of Hull or stood gazing down at the Humber estuary and the river Hull, imagining how my characters might have lived.

Two and a half years later the novel was finished, and coincidence, luck, call it what you will, Heather Russell, a friend in Newcastle, telephoned to say that she had just seen the announcement of a new writing competition. THE CATHERINE COOKSON FICTION PRIZE.

'Send your manuscript,' Heather implored. 'Do it now,' said Peter, and although at first I dithered, I finally plucked up courage to enter my novel, along with four hundred and ninety nine other hopeful novelists!

Now here is where my story and writing career comes into the realms of fantasy. It won! The prize was mine. The decision by the five judges was unanimous! 'The novel contains many of the best qualities of Catherine Cookson's own work,' said Paul Scherer, Managing Director of Transworld Publishers.

Can you imagine floating ten feet off the ground? That was how I felt for weeks, months even. Here was I, a first time novelist winning this first prestigious prize!

The launch and publication of THE HUNGRY TIDE was held the following year in September 1993 on board R.S. HISPANIOLA on the Victoria Embankment, and the prize was presented by Joanna Trollope. TV cameras and a bevy of top journalists were in attendance, the red carpet was rolled out and the champagne flowed. Locally there was great excitement as the news hit the media and photographs of me with a big smile on my face appeared in local, Yorkshire and national newspapers.

Now in 2006 with my 12th book NOBODY'S CHILD about to be launched and number 13 in the early working stages, I can only muse on that dreaming child with a story in her head who could never have imagined that the story could come true.

'A good book is the best of friends, the same today and for ever.'
Martin Farquhar Tupper (1810-89) British writer.

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About me