“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.”
― Ernest Hemingway

“If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn't seem so wonderful at all. ”
- Michelangelo

I started stone carving in 2012 while writing a PhD in history. Once a week, I chipped away in the Cambridge studio of Esther Melamed, a kind mentor who carved with inspirational passion.

When my PhD ended, my son was born and a grim commute to London began. I stopped carving. I eventually published a history book and got a better job at Cambridge Uni, where I still work. 

In 2017, my daughter was diagnosed with a rare genetic syndrome, WHS, and my world was turned upside down. I stopped working on Fridays so I could take her to hospital appointments. As her health improved and she went to school, I had a decision to make - go back to work 5 days a week or use Fridays for something else. The pandemic settled it.

In 2020, I started carving again. I have an open air studio in my garden and a (sort of) sheltered workshop in my shed.