2. What is your nickname?
I answer to anything starting with K that is vaguely within the ballpark of my name: Kirsten, Kirstie, Kristy, Krissie, Kris. I was born in the era of K names.
3. What is your greatest fear?
I don’t like fast cars. I was run over by a speeding car when I was younger and fast cars and screeching brakes still make me shudder.
4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
I tell problem-solving stories with endearing and thoughtful characters.
5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Funny, kind, wordy, interested, imaginative.
6. What book character would you be and why?
Pete the Cat. I love his positivity.
7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
I would go to the years when my grandmothers were in midlife and hang out with them, also my mother as a young mum. I would love to see that dynamic and talk to them as younger women.
8. What would your 10-year-old self say to you now?
Has diabetes been cured yet? They said a cure was just around the corner…
9. Who is your greatest influence?
My own children (who are now grown) and the children I teach are the greatest influence on me. I love finding out what interests them and what they would like to learn about. In professional terms, the writers I most admire are Joy Cowley and Michael Rosen.
10. What/who made you start writing?
Not being able to find the right book made me start writing. I wanted a book to teach self-portraits as part of an art lesson, so I wrote one. It ended up being borrowed by other teachers. I wrote a lot of class books after that, always with a lesson (or a child) in mind.
11. What is your favourite word and why?
Apothecary. I love that it’s a little bit hard to say and a little bit magical.
12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
If I could take a series, it would be the journals I’ve kept over the years with all my reflections, things
I’ve learned, memories and life events.
