Felicity Price

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PRICE, Felicity (1951 - ) is an author of fiction and non-fiction, a communications consultant and former journalist. She lives in Christchurch and, as well as writing, managed for 25 years an award-winning public relations company with her husband.

Price’s first published book was the novel Dancing in the Wilderness (Hazard Press, 2001), a story of two women separated by generations. Though fictional, three generations of the same family connect two key events in New Zealand history: the birth of the Labour movement on the Denniston plateau at the turn of the century and the start of environmental activism in nearby Westport ninety years later.

Her second novel, No Angel(Hazard Press, 2002) also connects past and present, with a suspenseful twist. In a review, Price was described as “a stylish action writer who has turned in a polished and entertaining performance.”

In 2004, Price published both a novel, Call of the Falcon (Hazard Press) and a bestselling biography of John Britten, Dare to Dream, which was described by one reviewer as a “stunner”. Her two further non-fiction works were corporate histories – Lane Walker Rudkin: 100 Years in the Making (Hazard Press, 2005) and Building Mainland Business: 150 Years of the Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce (Star Press, 2009).

The first of Price’s trilogy of Penny Rushmore novels, Split Time, was published by Random House in 2005, and was described by The Dominion Post as: “Chick lit meets feminism ...an appealing, readable novel with soul and a social conscience.” It was followed by A Sandwich Short of a Picnic (Random House, 2008), which spent three months in the top two spots on the New Zealand best-seller list, and Head Over Heels (Random House, 2010), also number two on the best-seller list, which was called “funny and fast-paced…candid and entertaining” by The Australian Woman’s Weekly, NZ edition.

The trilogy’s main character, Penny, is a woman of a certain age sandwiched between the demands of tricky teenagers, elderly parents, a challenging job, rollercoaster relationships, and major issues like cancer treatment and the right to die. Despite the serious undertone, the novels are written with a light touch. Price says, “I believe there must be humour despite the pain. Like life.”

In 2011, Price obtained an MA in Creative Writing from Victoria University’s International Institute of Modern Letters. During the year, she explored her own personal story of being adopted, which was the inspiration for her 2012 novel, In Her Mothers’ Shoes (Blackjack Publishing).

Her most recent novel, A Jolt to the Heart (Blackjack Publishing, 2014), deals with another personally relevant subject, the aftermath of the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

Price has had a long and varied journalism career. She began at The Press in the 1970s, before moving on to TVNZ and Radio New Zealand. She has written for North and South, The New Zealand Listener and New Zealand Woman’s Weekly, and for Radio New Zealand and TVNZ. Price has also appeared on TV in the panel show Beauty and the Beast.

Price was appointed a member of the Arts Council in 2014. She was chair of Christchurch’s Court Theatre from 2006-2013, and has also chaired the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra and The Press Christchurch Writers’ Festival. In 2009, Price was awarded the ONZM (Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit) in recognition of her services to business and the arts.

MEDIA LINKS AND CLIPS

Author website: http://www.felicityprice.com