I was born in Larne, Northern Ireland, and shortly afterwards went on to be educated - an experience I didn't enjoy terribly much, if I’m honest about it. Fortunately I'd already discovered the joy of reading, which helped quite a bit.

In early secondary school, with a group of friends I took to writing and illustrating comics - mostly about insects, since they were easier to draw than people - and from there, I began writing other pieces of silliness.

In the sixth form - when I really should have been revising for my A-levels - I took up the guitar,

and quickly began to direct my creative energies into songwriting, with the occasional bit of poetry thrown in.

During the next few years I somehow made it through university, acting in a number of plays while I was there. I went on to do various other things including voluntary work for Barnardo's, a stint as a YMCA worker in Norwich, a summer working in a summer camp followed by a tour of the Western states of America in a battered Ford van with two Danes, and several months as a machine operator in a tape factory in London, which was to be my home for around 15 years. London, that is, not the tape factory. I also formed a band and spent quite a bit of time trying to get a foothold in the music business.

In the early 1990's I trained as a primary school teacher, a job I did for over 10 years. One of the first - and best - pieces of advice I was given during training came from a Mr Alan Millington (then deputy head at Broadwater Primary School in Tooting), who said:

"If you're going to teach children, you need to read children's books."

So I did. I read lots of them, and so rediscovered my love of children's literature. Naturally enough, reading soon led to writing, and after a while I began sending stories to different publishers. One of these stories

caught the eye of Sue Cook, Senior Editor at Random House Children's Books. Over the next few years, Sue encouraged and guided me and, when I wrote Zeus on the Loose, put it forward for publication. It reached the bookshops in January 2004, and the following year was shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award for 'an outstanding first novel for children'.

I now live in Stroud, Gloucestershire, with my lovely wife and our two wonderful children. I gave up teaching to concentrate on writing when we moved here, but I really enjoy visiting schools as an author and would like to do even more.

In early 2004 I took up running and within only a few months I completed the London Marathon.

Ummm...

I completed it in a little over 5 hours, actually. It just felt like a few months. But what I meant was, I ran the marathon only a few months after taking up running. Clear?

Now I’m a keen (if not very fast) runner and member of the Stroud and District Athletic Club, even though I’m not really that athletic. But I do live in Stroud, so that counts.

I’m also a member of the Society of Authors, which doesn't involve much running. Okay, it doesn't involve any, but I do get to meet other authors - including some quite famous ones - and there's quite often food, or at least crisps, which is nice.

I sometimes review books for Armadillo, an online magazine about children's books which is well worth checking out.

I’m also a member of the Scattered Authors' Society - the other SAS, as they like to think of themselves. If, as Shakespeare said, the pen truly is mightier than the sword, they ought to be able to beat the original bunch in a fair fight, but for some reason none of them is very keen to put that one to the test. Still, it's worth checking out everyone's websites. Some of us now blog together at An Awfully Big Blog Adventure - do drop by and let us know what you think!

The whole Dougherty family are also keen members of Stroud Community Agriculture, an organic farm collective, which means we get a yummy box of healthy vegetables every week, plus we get to help out on the farm once a month. On their first workday, I got to drive a tractor! Sadly, it isn’t always as glamorous as that. Sometimes I end up shovelling cow-poo from one place to another instead.

Music is still a very big part of my life. I was a member of award-winning extraordinary acappella group Naked Voices for over 2 years, and was very sad when the group ended. I’m hoping to do more singing with some of the others soon, though.

Other things I enjoy include getting together with friends, going to restaurants, getting together with friends to go to restaurants, listening to music, playing music, watching films...

...and, of course, reading.

1. •This is the ‘About John’ page of the official website of John Dougherty, author of Zeus on the Loose, Zeus to the Rescue, Niteracy Hour, Jack Slater Monster Investigator, Bansi O’Hara and the Bloodline Prophecy, and Jack Slater and the Whisper of Doom. It’s got biography and stuff like that.