Hello and welcome,
I am an Australian children’s author. I write books about everyday kids, animals and adventures, mysteries and magic. Sometimes I write about far away places and people. My books are written for kids of all ages. I write to find out who people are and where they are going.
Feel free to browse around and check out my latest books and links. And visit my writing blog From Hook to Book.
Best wishes, Chris

How do you research a place that no longer exists?
My WIP begins in a tiny Scottish coal mining village gone from existence some fifty years plus. A common enough story in Scotland. Mighty bings that once dominated the backdrop of such villages have all been removed and little remains as evidence of the hundreds of [...]

…the release of two new titles from Gilt Edge Publishing NZ.
The Barnyard Dance is a rhyming, rollicking yarn full of fun and brought vividly to life by Richard Hoit’s bright full colour images.
Cora and the Firestorm is the dramatic story of a lioness racing a firestorm to get back to her cubs. Superb illustrations by [...]

Passports… check
Tickets… check
Excitement… double and triple check (with so much brimming about.)
After months of planning, I’m all set to fly to Scotland to begin a research trip for my WIP – an historical novel. Without giving too much away, the story begins in a tiny mining village in Lanarkshire in the early nineteen hundreds before [...]

Batty has just been released by Blake Education in their exciting new Gigglers Blue series. Gigglers are short easy-to read stories full of fun and humour and very popular with kids of all reading levels.
Batty is my very own “vampire” book – only not scary, but funny.
Q:Why didn’t the girl go out with the vampire?
A: Because he was [...]

Has been a long time coming…
And I’m THRILLED to finally say, I have one. So thrilled, I have to share.
I sort-of had my own room for quite a long time, but it was the dining room – an extension of the lounge. A lovely, bright and inspiring aspect to be sure, and a space I [...]

2010 – Wow!
Already the first month of the year has flown past and here we are in February. I have several projects on the go: a manuscript to redraft for a publisher; a short story tugging me towards completion; and my novel is only a breath or two away from a full first draft. (Well a few short chapters [...]
Latest Books

Cora and the Firestorm
Gilt Edge Publishing (2010)
Cora the lioness must leave her young cubs alone while she goes hunting. One day she is caught in a terrible firestorm. Will she survive, and will her cubs be safe?

The Barnyard Dance
Gilt Edge Publishing (2010)
When Drummer Dixie and his band play, all the animals come to the barnyard dance. Is it safe to let everyone in?

Batty
Blake Education (2010)
"Please let me come to your party. I've travelled such a long, long way." Batty peeped up at Oliver and squeezed out a tiny tear. "Pleeeeeaase?" "Oh, ok," said Oliver. "But don't you dare bite anyone. I don't want any of my friends turning into vampires."
Coming Soon
A Fair Fight
Gilt Edge Publishing
Due 2010
Manic Mountain
Gilt Edge Publishing
Due 2010





