Why I wrote Lucy Zeezou's goal.

Deep-Jones, Liz

'You're too smart to be a girl ... you should have been a boy.' said my Uncle Bob. I promptly replied, 'But Uncle, girls are just as smart as boys in fact they are smarter.' He grunted and walked off.

As a child I always tried to look at the positive side of life and knew that I could one day reach for the stars. I'd look up at them and marvel at their sparkle and try and touch them ... of course they where too far away physically but I knew that one day I'd get close enough and my dreams would come true.

I want to share my life experiences and whacky imagination with my readers in the hope that they too will reach for the stars and follow their dreams. As I've grown up, well in years, I've realized how important it is to stay on track and pursue your dreams no matter the obstacles or hurdles you may face.

'You don't have a face for TV.' I was brashly told during a journalism course. I've successfully worked in television for fifteen years. 'They only chose you for the feature article because you're a girl.' yelled a former colleague. 'You should deliver the news presentation more like a man, strong and authoritative or you'll never make it in this industry.' advised another colleague. These comments didn't deter me from my goals in fact they made me more determined and persistent.

Lucy, my main character in my book, has similar traits. She's a young girl who believes in herself and follows her heart, striving to be a professional footballer. This is where I hope to encourage and inspire my readers.

I must admit that writing my first book was a daunting task as it was an area I wasn't trained in. But I followed my mantra 'anything is possible' and like Lucy I followed my heart and the words came pouring out onto the page and the characters came alive.

They became so real that one day as I was writing about a frightening situation Lucy finds herself in and I became fearful for her and I began to cry. I called my husband in tears, 'Derek, Lucy has been taken hostage. How am I going to tell her parents?' I continued to sob. He abruptly replies, 'Just change the scene and get a grip of reality.' I mumble back, 'But I can't this is meant to happen but I must help her.' He is miffed, 'I think that you need help. Take a break.' He hangs up.

The hostage scene in the book became one of the most gripping and enthralling for my readers. My thirteen year old son, Dylan calls it his favourite. I love Lucy and love what she represents, hoping that her character reaches out to readers and empowers them. She's a tom boy but she dances, plays football with the boys and struts her stuff on the catwalks of Milan thanks to her pushy Australian mother but at the end of the day she follows her heart and that's what I hope to inspire in all of you.

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