BORN with a condition called hemihyperplasia, Jan Davidson has had surgeries on her left foot since she was a child.<\/p>\n
\u201cSports weren\u2019t an option, so I would sit a lot, and I\u2019d be bored,\u201d she said. \u201cOf course, my imagination wandered, I\u2019d start to pick up a pen, and jot down ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not once did the Invermay local consider becoming an author, until she entered her early-20s.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought I was being very stealthy, writing a book in complete secret. I thought no one knew, but when I left little notepads everywhere, my husband noticed what was going on,\u201d Davidson said.<\/p>\n
After she\u2019d finished that manuscript, her husband encouraged her to publish the book, and share it with an audience.<\/p>\n
Receiving positive feedback, two more books followed, and another two are due later in 2023.<\/p>\n
\u201cJ.S. Davidson is my pen name for my fantasy thrillers, with a little bit of horror, and Ella Stone is for my Australian drama and romance novels,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Her novel Hunted features themes inspired by her experiences as a teenage mother.<\/p>\n
\u201cI adore being a mother, but 15 or 16 years ago, there wasn\u2019t the same support for young mums that there is now, and there was a lot of judgement,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were lots of challenges, and I sometimes felt trapped, so that\u2019s filtered into the book.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Ella Stone books are very cathartic, and my emotional side goes into that. They\u2019re wonderful to write, it just flows out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Davidson is currently travelling through south-eastern Australia as part of her first national book tour, visiting community libraries, meeting readers, and signing books.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love the big places, but the small towns are beautiful, and I don\u2019t want anyone to ever feel like I can\u2019t be bothered visiting them. I\u2019m really excited to visit.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my talks, I skim over what to expect in my books, a bit about myself, and I like to discuss self-doubt,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany more manuscripts have died to self-doubt than any publisher or agent rejection letter. It\u2019s an artist\u2019s nemesis. I want to encourage aspiring writers to write.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot everyone\u2019s going to love your work, but people will love it, so put it out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
The first part of Davidson\u2019s tour included South Australia last year, and she said she draws a huge amount of inspiration through travel, and the people she meets along the way.<\/p>\n
Behind the scenes, she is the president of the Ballarat Aero Club, where her son is training to be a pilot, a member of the Rotary Club of Ballarat, and a gardening lover.<\/p>\n
Her books are available online and are stocked at the Doveton Street North post office in Soldiers Hill.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BORN with a condition called hemihyperplasia, Jan Davidson has had surgeries on her left foot since she was a child. \u201cSports weren\u2019t an option, so I would sit a lot, and I\u2019d be bored,\u201d she said. \u201cOf course, my imagination wandered, I\u2019d start to pick up a pen, and jot down ideas.\u201d Not once did […]<\/p>\n