The Newcastle Herald

An article on Ingrid appeared in the Newcastle Herald on 29 May 2008.

Here is an extract from the article by Jade Lazarevic:

A lifelong passion for reading and writing began for author Ingrid Jonach at Kurri Kurri’s Holy Spirit Primary School.

The 25-year-old credits the encouragement of her teachers for leading her to pursue a career as a writer.

“Those four years I spent in Kurri Kurri really contributed to all of this because I never experienced an environment that was so encouraging,” Jonach said. “I used to read all the time. Eventually it got to the point that I started having ideas for stories myself.”

Jonach, who lives in Canberra, is preparing for the release of her second children’s book, Frankie Goes To France, on June 1 after signing a deal with Pan MacMillan Australia. The book is the sequel to her 2007 release, The Frank Frankie, which follows the adventures of a nine-year-old girl who starts her own newspaper.

Jonach was working as a journalist for The Canberra Times when she started writing the book.

“I wanted a character that kids could relate to and emulate,” she said. “I thought, ‘I’ve been a journalist. I know what that’s all about. What about if I have a kid who wants to be a journalist for a newspaper?’

“After I wrote it my parents dug out a newspaper that I had made when I was in year 6 so it’s funny because that’s obviously where some of the idea came from subconsciously.”