About Cherry
In a Cretan cave
I currently live in Minchinhampton, an old Cotswold village perched on a hill above Stroud in Gloucestershire. One of the great features of the area is the run of commons which stretch across the top of the hill, full of cowslips and orchids in spring, and grazing, free-roaming cattle and horses in summer.
I have lived in many other places – born in Edinburgh, spent my early childhood in Sandwich, Kent, then was at school as a teenager in Birmingham, and later a student at Cambridge. This was followed by periods living on Exmoor, in Bristol and Bath, and by the river Exe in the old port of Topsham, in Devon. Each change of scene, I have found, is significant for the writer’s imagination as well satisfying my natural curiosity to explore new surroundings.
Since the age of four, I knew that I wanted to be a writer, and in my teens began publishing poetry, stories and articles. A poem published in the prestigious Poetry Review contrasted rather sharply with features that I was writing for the teen magazine Jackie at the same time! (Click on the links to read about these!) However, my first novel, written about ponies at the age of ten, and my second at eighteen, chronicling the angst of a long hot summer in France, unsurprisingly didn’t make the bookshop shelves. Since then, I have stayed largely within the realms of what I see as 'creative non-fiction', and found it just as good a medium for expressing creativity and insight. There's also plenty of scope for story-telling within this genre.
I’ve always kept different strands of work going over the years, apart from writing, such as running a vintage clothes shop and later a Russian arts business, plus performing early music and teaching singing. I also love to travel to ancient places and exotic destinations: favourite countries visited over the years include Easter Island, Ethiopia, Kyrgizstan, Syria and Siberia. I also hold Irish nationality, and have recently explored places in Kilkenny and Tipperary where my ancestors were based. Here's one story on my blog about their doings! - 'The Abduction of Mary Max'
Running throughout my whole life is a deep interest in inner journeys; the practice of meditation and wisdom traditions have been a part of my life from an early adult age. You can read about some of these traditions in a blog which I co-write with Rod Thorn - The Soho Tree of Life.'
I have lived in many other places – born in Edinburgh, spent my early childhood in Sandwich, Kent, then was at school as a teenager in Birmingham, and later a student at Cambridge. This was followed by periods living on Exmoor, in Bristol and Bath, and by the river Exe in the old port of Topsham, in Devon. Each change of scene, I have found, is significant for the writer’s imagination as well satisfying my natural curiosity to explore new surroundings.
Since the age of four, I knew that I wanted to be a writer, and in my teens began publishing poetry, stories and articles. A poem published in the prestigious Poetry Review contrasted rather sharply with features that I was writing for the teen magazine Jackie at the same time! (Click on the links to read about these!) However, my first novel, written about ponies at the age of ten, and my second at eighteen, chronicling the angst of a long hot summer in France, unsurprisingly didn’t make the bookshop shelves. Since then, I have stayed largely within the realms of what I see as 'creative non-fiction', and found it just as good a medium for expressing creativity and insight. There's also plenty of scope for story-telling within this genre.
I’ve always kept different strands of work going over the years, apart from writing, such as running a vintage clothes shop and later a Russian arts business, plus performing early music and teaching singing. I also love to travel to ancient places and exotic destinations: favourite countries visited over the years include Easter Island, Ethiopia, Kyrgizstan, Syria and Siberia. I also hold Irish nationality, and have recently explored places in Kilkenny and Tipperary where my ancestors were based. Here's one story on my blog about their doings! - 'The Abduction of Mary Max'
Running throughout my whole life is a deep interest in inner journeys; the practice of meditation and wisdom traditions have been a part of my life from an early adult age. You can read about some of these traditions in a blog which I co-write with Rod Thorn - The Soho Tree of Life.'
