Fisher King
After thirty-seven years working as a nurse, Gill retired in 2017. She lives in Yorkshire but her roots are in Lancashire. Apart from writing, Gill is married with children and grandchildren. She loves travelling, walking Winnie, the family’s cockapoo, and is a novice bridge player.
Gill was a finalist in the Nursing Standard Nurse of the Year Competition in 1994 for setting up a Pre-assessment Service in Orthopaedic Nursing at Leeds General Infirmary.
She did a BA in English at Leeds University as a mature student and also did an MA in Writing for Performance and Publication. In Lockdown, Gill undertook a short course on how to write for children, and is thrilled to see her first children’s book in print. It was inspired by her grandchildren who never take anything for granted and constantly ask questions. CLARA’s GENI-OUS PLAN, is an attempt to answer one of those tricky questions. Since retiring, Gill has been a volunteer in the kitchen at St George’s Crypt in Leeds, a charity that offers care and hope to people who are homeless. The proceeds Gill makes from CLARA’S GENI-OUS PLAN are being donated to St George’s.
The proceeds from Gill’s first book, A Game of Consequences, were donated to charities leading the fight against dementia, in memory of her late father who passed away in 2014.
Gill is a strong believer that children’s fiction should not be exclusively for children. ‘There is a child inside all of us and reading children’s books is a valuable way of reconnecting with that,’ she says.
