Simon Klapish

I was born and raised in Manchester, UK, and went to university in Plymouth where I studied Applied Biology. Afterwards I took a year off and worked and travelled around Australia until October 1980. The country inspired me and I fell in love with it almost immediately. That changed my life's direction and as soon as I returned to the UK I applied to migrate back to Australia, which I eventually did in 1982. Whilst waiting for my application to be granted I worked in Belfast and Manchester and that experience gave me the gist of what eventually became my first book, Ripples of Revenge, which was published in 2000.

My second book, Chasing Margaret, was inspired after watching the Australian Open Tennis and wondering what my daughter would do if she was a top player, and whether she'd be philanthropic with the money she'd earn. That book remains my best seller and one that I have a soft spot for. It came easily and was published within a year of me starting it.

'Rubbish' followed a year or so later and was my foray into comedy, with a friend and co-writer (Chris Barfoot). We started it as a joke and it became a book we thoroughly enjoyed writing. It satisfied our desire to turn political correctness on its head.

I then wrote a children's book (for ages 8-13), called 'Dancing for an Angel'. That story inspired some of the most amazing reader feedback, especially from people who had unfortunately lost a parent or partner. What surpised me was how the book was used by grief counsellors, which was never something I'd imagined when I was writing it.

I am now working on another thriller and another children/teenage story.