I've always wanted to write since I was a child. I made up a little magazine and pretended I was the editor. Then as I grew up, life got in the way and I put it on hold. A magazine called Secrets, part of the D C Thomson Group, published my first seven short stories. That was when I was in my twenties. Then again life got in the way.
I went to work abroad in France, Belgium and Switzerland. I never did learn to ski but I know some interesting phrases in French, which haven't been of much use to me in life so far, but you never know. For many years I worked at Gatwick Airport officially as a Customer Relations Officer looking after irate passengers, but a lot of my time seemed to have been spent dashing up and down departure corridors as plane seats to exotic far away destinations became available at the last moment.
I also worked on the front desk of a nursing home, a very varied job which involved a variety of tasks, including being Santa's helper at the children's Christmas party, (Santa had forgotten his glasses and couldn't read the labels on the presents) and a spell on the catwalk, modelling at a charity event.
All the time I was sending out stories, which came back sporting rejection slips with alarming regularity.
Then the Millennium happened and I decided it was now or never. Just three months into the new millennium I had The Call. Heartline accepted my first novel Never Say Goodbye, writing as Clare Tyler. They accepted and published a second The Peacock House before they folded. My third novel, The Mimosa Summer, which I was writing for Heartline was accepted by My Weekly Story Collection.
After winning and being placed in several short story competitions I decided to return to short stories. I now write regularly for the women's fiction magazines including Woman's Weekly, My Weekly, The Lady and The People's Friend and have been published in Norway and Sweden, New Zealand and Australia.
One day I hope to crack the novel writing market again.
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margaretsromanceworld.blogspot.com
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