Shelley's non-fiction books stem from a passionate desire to help people who have been through a tough time. She has had many job roles; chambermaid, administrator, conference coordinator, waitress and even a turkey plucker, but opening her holistic health business in 2008 was a defining moment. Her non-fiction titles cover the topics she finds to be most beneficial for her clients.
As a child she lived in a make-believe world. She thanks Enid Blyton for her love of fantasy. Reading The Magic Faraway Tree in the 1970's opened up a world of adventure for her, discovering her love of writing around the same time. As Shelley grew up she was drawn to all things supernatural and before she knew it, she was hooked. Even as she approached her twenties and thirties she devoured anything written about faeries, witches and dragons and found herself itching to write her own fantasy stories.
She lives in the West Midlands with her three teenage children, two fish and a Dragon called Roger, but was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire. Shelley clings on fiercely to her Northern roots and tries to get back as often as she can. She is an avid list maker, huge VW campervan fan and is at her happiest eating pizza whilst watching Game of Thrones.
In her own words – Shelley Wilson
At eight years of age, my love affair with fantasy fiction and writing began. Enid Blyton’s The Magic Faraway Tree gave me a reason to climb every oak in my neighbourhood. During my tweens, I devoured the Sweet Dream Series and spent my school life wondering why the boys in my class weren’t charismatic horse rustlers. As a teenager, I began to work my way through my dad’s Wilbur Smith collection whilst also developing a taste for horror thanks to James Herbert and Stephen King. By the time I hit my late teens I had moved on to my mum’s Mills & Boon novels, but I always came back to fantasy fiction.
At each stage of my life, I wrote short stories – hundreds of them – all inspired by what I was reading at that time. Now that I have arrived at the tender age of forty-something I have reverted to my youth and fill my reading hours with young adult novels. Of course, they do have to be from the fantasy genre! Fantasy has always been a huge part of my life, from living in a make-believe world as a child to closing the curtains and snuggling down with a Jana Oliver novel.
Ten years ago I walked away from an abusive marriage. Newly divorced and with three very small children to look after I struggled to keep up with my writing and my short stories, and half written books lay gathering dust in a desk drawer as single-motherhood took over.
My life took on a whole new direction when I retrained in holistic therapies. My day job became one of helping others to cope with what life can throw at you. I used my experiences to offer comfort and support to my clients. My reading material took on a whole new direction, from Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway by Susan Jeffers to The Secret by Rhonda Byrne.
Two years ago I began writing a motivational blog as part of a challenge I set myself one New Years Eve. I was fed up of procrastinating and desperately wanted to get back into my writing, so I set myself twelve challenges, one a month, to complete over a year. I blogged the entire experience for the world to see. By the end of the year, I was writing regular weekly posts and had the first draft of my young adult fantasy novel. I had achieved my ultimate goal.
My debut fantasy manuscript was ready to be re-worked and edited but at the same time I had all this information on achieving goals and making the best of your life. I didn’t know what to do with it, so I wrote to Douglas McPherson’s column in the Writers’ Forum Magazine. Douglas advised me that my blog was the perfect starting point for a non-fiction book. He told me it would fit perfectly into the mind, body, spirit sector that I worked. Armed with this knowledge, I began to put everything together.
In May 2014, I published my debut non-fiction book, How I Changed My Life in a Year. The feedback has been overwhelming and continues to receive great reviews. I am contacted several times a week via email, facebook or twitter by people who have read my book and are making changes to their lives, some small and some life changing. The book has helped so many people to realise their potential, and I was overjoyed to see it soar to the number four spot on Amazon’s best seller listing for self-help.
I set out all those years ago to write fiction, never giving much thought to how a non-fiction title could change my life, but it did. It may have taken me thirty-four years to get there but if you are going to procrastinate then at least do it in style!
You can find Shelley's non-fiction title on Amazon as an eBook or Paperback.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00KKAUE88
Her motivational blog is still going strong http://myresolutionchallenge.blogspot.com
Shelley is also on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/resolutionchallenge
http://www.facebook.com/FantasyAuthorSLWilson
and Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/ShelleyWilson72
Finally, you can find details about all of Shelley's books, non-fiction and fiction on her author site:
http://shelleywilsonauthor.com
How I Changed My Life in a Year! One Woman’s Mission To Lose Weight, Get Fit, Beat Her Demons, And Find Happiness…In Twelve Easy Steps!