I believe there is nothing more extraordinary than the ordinary.

I was born in Canada, but Ireland raised me — a schoolgirl in the West, writing under the covers at night and secretly entering every writing competition I could find. Some I lost, a few I placed in, and every single one taught me to keep going. And keep going. And keep going some more.

I went to a wonderful all-girls convent school where creative writing was treasured as much as any exam answer. My teachers planted the seed of a dream. But like so many of the women I write about, I turned out to be a bit of a late bloomer.

For more than ten years I taught English and Philosophy. Then my twin girls arrived, life got gloriously busy, and the pages went into a drawer. The urge to write never left me, though. One day I took a deep breath, scrunched my eyes shut, put pen to paper and promised myself I wouldn't lift it again until I'd written the words The End.

"I love real people, real stories, and the moment someone finds the courage to move onwards and upwards."

That first novel led to a contract with my dream publisher, Bookouture, and I've been pinching myself ever since. Today I write warm, uplifting, laugh-out-loud stories about friendship, love and second chances — many of them set in the fictional village of Innisfree, where the lakes shimmer, the castle stands proud and everyone knows your business before you do.

My ideas come from people. I love to chat (my family would say a little too much), and my ears perk up whenever I hear about someone who has landed in an unexpected place and has to find their way home to themselves. I research every location in person — nothing beats standing on the shore of an Irish lake to know exactly how it should feel on the page.

These days I split my time between London, Ireland and Cyprus with my very patient husband and our very, very chatty twin daughters. When I'm not writing, I'm reading, eating, wandering, or listening in on other people's conversations — strictly for research, of course.

Thank you for being here. If my books give you a few hours of escape, a laugh, a little cry and a whole lot of hope, then I've done what I set out to do.

With love, Colleen x