Latish in life I acquired my other main focus, my husband, George Spenceley, and three fine stepsons. George has always been an indefatigable traveller: a photographer, lecturer and one-time explorer in areas ranging from the Himalaya to both Poles.

In middle age he took up long distance canoeing and then persuaded me that this was a Good Thing for me, too. So together we canoed the full length of the Rivers Danube and the Mississippi, the latter providing the subject for my non-fiction book, The Big Muddy. George is currently writing his memoirs.

Though no longer young, we are both still very active

and as keen on travelling as ever.

PUBLISHED WRITING

Travel writing Assistant Editor, GO Magazine (1955-59); regular travel correspondent Sphere (1963-64); Medical News (1967-73); Financial Times (1969-83). Contributor to numerous national newspapers and magazines, some BBC radio programmes 1960-.

Short stories and articles (1992 - ) Woman’s Weekly, Woman’s Realm, Woman, The Lady, Candis, People’s Friend, My Weekly, World Wide Writers, short-listed for Ian St James Award 1998, The New Writer; short-listed for Asham Award 2003; espressofiction (Internet magazine); winner of American Dreamquest short story competition 2007. Caravan and motorhome press.
Books (non-fiction) Young Traveller in Finland (Phoenix House 1962); Travellers’ Guide to Finland (Cape 1965, revised 1977); Young Traveller in Yugoslavia (Phoenix House 1967); Finland: Creation and Construction - co-editor (Allen & Unwin 1968); Travellers’ Guide to Yugoslavia (Cape 1969); Finland: an Introduction - co-editor (Allen & Unwin 1973); Welcome to Scandinavia (Collins 1983, revised 1987); Welcome to Yugoslavia (1984). Area Editor and Contributor to Fodor’s Guides: Scandinavia (Finland 1966-90); Yugoslavia (1977-90); Eastern Europe (Czechoslovakia 1979-90, Bulgaria 1979-88, Romania 1981-88). Contributor to Insight Guide to Finland (Apa 1992). Author or The Big Muddy - a canoe journey down the Mississippi (self-published as Oriole Press 1994, reprinted 2006).

(fiction) trilogy ‘Distant Voices’: Another Kind of Loving, 2005; Beyond the Broken Gate, 2007, winner of self-published novel award 2007; third book, Long Shadows, 2010.

Education aids Jackdaw Publications: Assassination at Sarajevo, 1966; Caxton and the early Printers, 1968; Scott and the Antarctic, 1971; The Vikings, 1976.

TALKS

So You Want to be a Writer
At Home Abroad - staying in private homes in other countries
The Big Muddy - a canoe journey down the Mississippi