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As a child, Anna Cleary loved reading so much that during the

midnight hours she was forced to read with a torch under the bedcovers, to lull the suspicions of her parents. From an early age she dreamed of writing her own books. She saw herself in a stone cottage by the sea, wearing a velvet smoking jacket and sipping sherry, like Somerset Maugham.

In real life she had to earn a living, and did so by teaching children to write beautiful stories.

A little while ago, she and one of her friends made a pact to each write the first chapter of a romance novel in their holidays. From writing her very first line Anna was hooked, and she gave up teaching to become a full-time writer. She now lives in Queensland with her daughter and a deeply sensitive and intelligent cat. She prefers champagne to sherry, and loves music, books, four-legged people, trees, movies and restaurants.

Anna writes for the Modern Extra line. (Sexy Sensation in Australia)

A spot of horticulture can be very therapeutic.