Ann Chapman

Already the author of three published books on Heritage roses and the women they were named after, Ann Chapman turns her hand to a new genre – the murder mystery. A Kind of Catharsis is the first in a series of crime mysteries situated in Invercargill, New Zealand where she grew up.

As an acknowledged expert writer, and speaker on old roses, she retains her passion for them and overlooks the garden from her writing desk. She brings her garden into her writing, a vase of roses alongside her coffee and computer. In between writing her novel she also writes for the local newspaper, the Ōtaki Mail which she co-owns. She has spoken at international rose conferences as well as many local ones and is a frequent contributor to the Heritage Roses NZ Journal.

Ann has had many careers before turning her hand to writing when in her sixties. She was a nurse, specialising in operating theatre work, a public relations officer for the Nurses’ Organisation, a heritage rose nursery owner. While working among the roses she was also an elected representative on the local district council for 18 years and Deputy Mayor for nine years as well as an elected member of the local district health board for 19 years. She has sat on various Boards while working in the nursery and writing her books. Her mantra during her time in public service was “Fīat jūstitia ruat cælum - Let justice be done, tho’ the heavens may fall”. They often did!

After being made redundant, she and her husband started a rose nursery building it up to be one of the more significant boutique roses nurseries in New Zealand. It was called Trinity Farm to capture three strands of the operation – horses, roses, and a pear orchard. It was while there that she stared her first book, 'Women in my Rose Garden'. It was the evening strolls around the garden, glass of wine in hand, where she and her husband would interrogate their roses that the idea of writing about these women was formed. Since then she has attended many writing workshops on poetry, memoirs, and crime, run by the renowned author and poet, Renée. She has published two other books on roses and women, ‘Missionaries, Wives and Roses’, and ‘The Roses of Myths, Legends and Literature’.

She has worked in community organisations and was instrumental in setting up the Ōtaki Community Health Trust 25 years ago. Ann is a retired Justice of the Peace and in 2007 was made of Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to local government and the community.

She recently celebrated 50 years of marriage and has two children and two grandsons who all live within an hour’s drive.