Writer Profiles

Keitha Smith

// Honorary Member & Writer

KEITHA SMITH is a wife, mother, friend, observer of human nature and, predominantly, a novelist.  To date she has published four works of fiction (Maybury Place, The Bell Curve, The Tender Conflict and The Journey) and a non-fiction book for Christian mothers called Mothering Heights. She wrote her first book – a children’s twist-a-plot novel – as a class project when she was sixteen but never really considered writing as something a person might do as a profession. However, through her twenties and thirties her love of writing continued to grow, with her main focus being on writing women’s fiction, exploring life’s rich tapestry through funny, flawed and familial fictional characters. Keitha also serves on the board of the charity Minds for Minds, fundraising for autism research.

Website: www.keithasmith.co.nz
Photo: Keitha Smith

Maybury Place

MAYBURY PLACE. Tranquil, safe, neighborly. Until new residents move in to Number Seven and shatter the peace. Within hours of their arrival four-year old Matthew Fleming has vanished. When the residents rally to search for the young boy they find their new neighbors hostile and uncaring about Matthew’s fate. Events escalate when strange characters start visiting Number Seven, the police are seen calling and one of their homes is robbed. Suspicions grow, causing the original neighbors to unite, determined to defend Maybury Place from unsavory elements. But is everything quite as it seems? Are the new inhabitants as bad as everyone fears? And has the prior tranquility of Maybury Place merely masked hidden secrets? Little does the group know that banding together will provide the catalyst for change, lead to revelations and even bring a chance of love.

Website: www.keithasmith.co.nz
Writer: Keitha Smith

The Bell Curve

THE BELL CURVE. Three women from three generations, three ages, three stages. Women at pivotal places in their lives. Pearl Hamilton will soon turn 80 and struggles with the restrictions her advanced years have brought. Pearl’s daughter, Margaret Bell, has lost herself in motherhood and become buried under her home responsibilities. Margaret’s daughter, Sarah, newly returned to New Zealand from the U.K, needs to establish a new life for herself and put behind her a failed romance. As Christmas and Pearl’s birthday nears it seems as though the whole family face difficulties unique to their age and stage. Can Pearl find a way to move into her new decade with a renewed sense of purpose? Will Margaret find it within herself to break free from the tendrils of her own frustrations? And can Sarah find her feet, overcome her fears and take a chance on love?

Website: www.keithasmith.co.nz
Writer: Keitha Smith

The Tender Conflict

THE TENDER CONFLICT. After a lifetime of happy memories in Alford Avenue, Joe and Elizabeth Wilson decide it’s time to move on. At the outset it all seems so simple. It’s one house needing one realtor to find just one suitable buyer. What could be simpler? Yet their decision will ignite dreams, open the door to opportunity and fuel the fires of antagonism. The quest to find a new owner will find friend pitted against friend, colleague against colleague and bring about realisations, change and love. Who will be the ultimate winner of the tender conflict?

Website: www.keithasmith.co.nz
Writer: Keitha Smith

The Journey

THE JOURNEY. De Vine Tours’ two-week walking trip through New Zealand wine country is billed as a trip of a lifetime: sumptuous food, great wine, fabulous scenery, easy walks and wonderful homestay accommodation. For Lindsey McIntyre, writer and illustrator, the tour seems like a recipe for success. She will be able to sketch, research for her new book and most importantly, become more independent. It’s time for her to take some vital steps to overcome the legacy of a difficult childhood and move on with her life. Despite her fears and lack of confidence, Lindsey soon makes friends with fellow tour member, Eleanor, and begins to get to know her other travelling companions. Over the course of the two weeks relationships form between tour members. Will Lindsey manage to break free from the traumas of the past? And what will happen when a mystery threatens to derail the journey altogether?

Website: www.keithasmith.co.nz
Writer: Keitha Smith

    Mothering Heights

    MOTHERING HEIGHTS: A Novel Approach for Christian Mothers (co-authored with Susan Martin Brereton). This creative volume draws insight and wisdom for Christian mothers in the twenty-first century from classic literary works such as Pride and Prejudice, Great Expectations and Much Ado about Nothing. Using selected quotes and the book titles themselves, as well as comments and stories from other mothers, the authors offer encouragement and exhortation to women of all walks of life who struggle and strive to be intentional in their parenting choices. Rather than offering methods and advice on parenting, the authors seek to help women make the most out of their motherhood experience. They challenge mothers to consider their priorities and expectations, to find value and purpose in the motherhood role and to deepen their personal relationship with God, with their families and with other mothers. Mothering Heights is the winner of a silver medal in the Mom’s Choice Awards and was a finalist for the CALEB Prize for faith-inspired writing by Australian & New Zealand authors & publishers.

    Website: www.keithasmith.co.nz
    Writer: Keitha Smith

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