I’m a South African translator and editor who accidentally ended up in this profession. Perhaps I should use serendipitously instead because nothing beats the thrill of finding the perfect word.

Being a lapsed musician with an honours degree in psychology makes me probably the most unlikely person to land a job as the compiling editor of a cookbook. But in 2007, that was precisely what happened. By the time Gogo’s Kitchen became a winner at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards of 2008, the career change had already taken place; I just had to get on and hold for dear life or be left behind.

I have a passion for fiction. I’m intrigued by how we become what we become and how that process interacts with the language we use – enchanted by our stories and how we tell them.