Cathryn and Emalyn deVries
Cathryn and Emalyn deVries are an award-winning mother-daughter writing team who live in the Gold Coast hinterland of Australia, and one editor has described their style as 'Brandon Sanderson, but with a feminine touch'. Cathryn is the aeronautical engineer turned home-schooling mother of four children—two of whom are on the autism spectrum—and the accidental instigator of their debut project that soon took on a rather alarming life of its own. Emalyn, her co-author, is the proud autistic girl responsible for providing the bones of the story, and—at last count—is currently planning out four or five series of her own—as well as beginning a career in film and television after graduating from a Diploma in Screen and Media (Post Production) in 2023.
Both mother and daughter have a special affection for the fantasy/sci-fi genre, and combine that with a love of the great works of classic literature which invariably ponder the deep mysteries of life. Not satisfied with story as a vehicle for mere entertainment, they wish to write books that stay with readers long after they finish the last page. Since Cathryn suffers from depression, and Emalyn from anxiety, the deep needs and fears that drive human behaviour also drive their writing, and the complexities of how life shapes personality is something they want to deeply explore. Through the characters they create, they hope to build bridges of understanding and present alternate worldviews that challenge our fast-paced consumer mentality and gender role stereotypes.
When she is not writing, Emalyn can usually be found working on a piece of digital art destined to remain half-finished, or futilely trying to train her pet cockatiels. In her dreams, Cathryn would be found taking a walk in nature, playing the cello, or sitting in the sun reading a book—but she is more likely to be attending to one of the many infinitely mundane intricacies involved in managing a household of six.
Influences
All of these things have shaped us and influence our writing in one way or another.
Click here to see some of our favourite books
Click here to see some of our favourite movies and TV series
Click here for some interesting facts that didn't make the bio
