I started writing in 2016, a couple of years after my dear mum passed away. They were the dark of days. My friend was very frank with me and said, ‘Jo, just write to get all the shit out of your head.’ So, I did. I started a blog, writing and sharing my thoughts, feelings, stories, poetry, photos and recipes, hoping it might help at least one person take a positive step in healing and dealing with grief. My writing centred around how I emerged from the challenging period before and the dark days after losing Mum. I wrote about community, connection, courage, vulnerability and hope. It was raw, honest and thoughtful. These themes and my personal experience with grief are the building blocks for my first contemporary romance story, set in the fictional rural and seaside township of Point Perry. My debut, Second Chance Love in Point Perry (coming in September 2023), was runner-up in the prestigious Romance Writers of Australia Valerie Parv Award in 2019 and was longlisted for the Romance Writers of Australia Emerald Award in 2020.When I’m not writing, I’m chief line and copyeditor+ proofreader at Nurturing Words. I specialise in editing manuscripts for other romance authors – Yes ... I love love!www.joannespeirs.com.auwww.nurturingwords.com.au