Day 3 of the 14 Days of Halloween, featuring the Australian Horror Writers Association

Summary: Dark fantasy writer Josephine Pennicott lives in Sydney, Australia, but spent her early childhood in Papua New Guinea and Tasmania. Her first book, Circle of Nine (Simon and Schuster, 2001), was listed as one of the most impressive debut novels of the year in the fifteenth edition of The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror. Josephine's other novels are Bride of the Stone (2003) and A Fire in the Shell, which was shortlisted for the Aurealis Award for Best Horror Novel in 2004. In 2001 she won the Scarlet Stiletto, Australia's premier award for female crime writers. She is also the winner of the 2003 and 2004 Kerry Greenwood Domestic Malice Awards. Josephine has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a major in painting, and is a graduate of the Australian College of Journalism. Josephine's paintings and writings reflect her interest in myth, magick, fairytales, dreams and transformation. Josephine lives with her writer partner, David; her six-month old daughter, Daisy; her Maltese dog, Alfie; and a black fluffy cat called Smuchi. Her goals for her life are to keep studying and creating, and to be found annually in the departure lounge at Sydney airport. There's more information about Josephine's books on her Web site, www.josephinepennicott.com