What a brilliant chat with Kate McCaffrey on everything from her inspiration to write young adult fiction, to our love of true crime podcasts, and writing her first adult novel in her 50's.

Today on The Good Girl Confessional Podcast our special guest is Kate McCaffrey, who has an incredible career as a YA author. When she was 17 years old, she broke up with her boyfriend who had a car accident the same night and couldn't remember much, except for her. It's a powerful true story and one that she bravely drew on as she began writing YA fiction.

In fact, Kate has written no less than five award-winning Young Adult novels. Each of these novels has been on school curricula across Australia, and each talks to issues that are impactful for young adult readers.

Leaving a teaching career to write full time, Kate is not afraid to talk to issues that confronting including drugs, eating disorders, mental health issues and cyberbullying.

As a True Crime podcast lover, Kate has recently launched her first adult novel, Double Lives based on a true crime podcaster with a journalism background who hopes to solve a crime with the help of her listeners. Written as a podcast, Double Lives is a gripping novel from start to end. It is now available in all good bookstores.

I loved chatting with Kate and her incredible insights on being a woman beyond forty.

You can follow Kate and her books here:
https://katemccaffrey.org/

https://www.instagram.com/katemccaffreyauthor

https://www.booktopia.com.au/double-lives-kate-mccaffrey/book/9781760687564.html

During this Podcast, Sandy and Kate make references to True Crime Podcasts they loved. Here are the links to those podcasts:

A Little Bit Culty - hosted by Sarah Edmondson and Anthony “Nippy” Ames
https://alittlebitculty.com/

The Lady Vanishes (Channel 7 Podcast about the disappearance of Marion Barter)
https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-lady-vanishes/id1457296528

You can Listen to The Good Girl Confessional episode #22 with Sally Leydon who has continued to search for Marion, her mum:
https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-good-girl-confessional/id1475210883?i=1000490869509

The Teacher's Pet (Hosted by Hedley Thomas)
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-teachers-pet/id1385379989

Shandee's Story (Hosted by Hedley Thomas)
https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/shandees-story/id1589336606
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The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

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I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Today in the Confessional, host Sandy Lowres chats with Carol Hay, a gorgeous woman who has brought 50 Victorias women over 50 together to create a wonderful hard copy book, aptly named Who You Are: Victoria 50. As Carol was heading towards her 50th birthday, she started thinking about how often women in their 50s felt overlooked and yet, she knew from experience that a lot of women in their 50's and beyond were just getting started! Carol, who has a 34 year career in the Navy, and is married to a former Army man, travelled the world and now settled in Geelong in Victoria, she felt 100% that her time was just beginning, and wanted to meet as many like minded women as she could! I'm personally thrilled to be included in this book amongst so many awesome chicks!

Join us for this episode of The Good Girl Confessional as Carol shares her wonderful story!

The Good Girl Confessional is proudly the Podcast of Wb40 - Women Beyond Forty, an Independent Australian Platform for women 40, 50, 60 and beyond. You can join us there at wb40.com

You can also watch this video in full by subscribing to wb40.com/wb40-extra


Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
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I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

TW: This podcast mentions Suicide, grief and loss. Please listen at your own discretion. If this podcast raises issues for you, please contact Life Line on 13 11 14.

Today in The Confessional, Sandy chats with Sandy Davies, entrepreneur and founder of Happy Pause Menopause Balm. Necessity is often the mother of invention and when Sandy Davies found herself going through peri-menopause, she found herself going through many physical changes, but not getting a lot of answers from doctors. After trying products that she reacted badly to, Sandy founded Happy Pause, an all natural product to help women suffering from dryness caused by menopause, chemotherapy and periods. Sandy, from far north Queensland, donates a portion of her sales to the Melbourne Period Project, founded by Vic Australian of the Year Donna Stolzeberg, and is a kick ass supporter of other women. Sandy has also written for Wb40 Women Beyond Forty Magazine! It was an absolute delight to chat with her! :>

You can find out more about Happy Pause Balm here:
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https://happypause.com.au/
https://www.facebook.com/HappyPause
https://www.instagram.com/happypause_menopause
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The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
https://www.facebook.com/thegoodgirlconfessional


I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Today in the Confessional, host Sandy Lowres chats with delightful guest Juls Rollnik. When her husband was diagnosed with cancer, Juls realised she could be facing financial insecurity. Having stayed at home to raise their children, she didn't know how she would make ends meet if she lost her partner. Taking a risk, Juls leveraged her mortgage and bought a city apartment, and so began her journey in the world of Airbnb. Juls found her calling, quickly becoming a Superhost, and now she is sharing her hard-won wisdom in her new book Secrets of a Superhost: How to become an Airbnb Rockstar. Juls has created an amazing career for herself, gained financial security and even climbed to base camp at Mt. Everest!

If you've ever considered becoming an Airbnb host, this is the book for you!

You can follow Juls Rollnik and buy here book here:
https://www.secretsofasuperhost.com/
https://www.instagram.com/secretsofasuperhost


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The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
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I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Kimberly Holiday-Coleman is a sister queen who hails from Houston, Texas but is living her amazing life in Lexington, Kentucky with her loving family. She was a model, a wife and a mum and in 2015 she was diagnosed with Stage 2 Rectal Cancer. She underwent treatment for a year, but in the course of the treatment she almost lost her life due to a bowel perforation. She had life saving surgery which also involved a colostomy bag. She has kept her stoma, affectionally called "Toodles". Surviving childhood trauma, and then cancer, Kimberly made a decision to grab life by the horns and live it loud! She continues to be a model and has been the featured model in Melbourne Fashion Week (Australia) as well as being a model is two separate book projects on body image. She is a best selling international author, a motivational speaker and has won two awards for her advocacy, breaking down stigmas around stoma/colostomy and cancer awareness. Kimberly has also taken up burlesque and is performing across the USA as well as internationally. Kimberly is beautiful inside and out and I'm so thrilled she joined us in the confessional.

You can follow Kimberly on instagram @cancerwarriorcolostomyqueen or www.kimberlyhcoleman.com

Book Sales - Underneath We Are - www.underneathiam.com
For information of Skin Deep: The Skin I'm In Exhibition by Ferrell Phelps - Http://ferrellphotography4.wxsite.com/ferrelphelps
(Australia) - For information/support for colostomy/stoma: www.australianstoma.com.au
(USA) - https://www.ostomy.org
(UK) - www.colostomyuk.org


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The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
https://www.facebook.com/thegoodgirlconfessional


I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Today in the Confessional, host Sandy Lowres chats with the Editor of the powerful anthology, The Power To Rise Above, Sandy Davies; and fellow author Susan Jarvis. Sandy Lowres is proud to be a part of this book also where she has shared her story of overcoming childhood abuse.

Sandy Davies has brought 30 women from across the globe together to share their very human stories of overcoming adversity. She is also the founder of Happy Pause, creating the revolutionary HappyPause Menopause balm, supporting women going through Perimenopause and menopause experiencing vaginal dryness.

Susan Jarvis also wrote a powerful chapter in this book, talking about the affects bullying had on her life. Susan is the founder of The Spicy Boudoir, and is the host of The Maven’s Private Diaries Podcast. Susan is a sexual wellness coach and supports sexuality for women in midlife.

You can buy a copy of The Power To Rise Above here:

https://wb40.com/shop/

Or the e-book here:

https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/aw/d/0645548901/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1664101004&sr=8-4

Follow The Power To Rise Above:
https://www.Instagram.com/thepowertoriseabove

Follow Sandy Davies & Happy Pause here:

https://happypause.com.au

Follow Susan Jarvis & The Spicy Boudoir here:
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https://www.thespicyboudoir.com/
The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
https://www.facebook.com/thegoodgirlconfessional


I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Today in the Confessional, host Sandy Lowres chats with Regina Petra Meyer. Petra is an emerging author, a lover of life, an adventurer, a spiritual seeker, and a passionate humanitarian.

She loves philosophical and honest conversations in stimulating company, best enjoyed over a mouthwatering meal and glass of wine.

Regina is an explorer at heart. Driven by an insatiable curiosity and a zest for life, her path has been filled with unexpected adventures, confronting learning experiences, and an abundance of fun and frivolous moments. Regina's love of freedom led her to follow her dream and set off on an adventure to the Caribbean, an adventure that see her find love, and experience heartache and risk a lot.

She chats about her journey, which she is telling in her new memoir, Change of Course.

You can follow Regina here:
https://reginapetrameyer.com/
https://www.instagram.com/reginapetrameyer


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The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
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I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Have you ever wanted to be a published author? Look no further!

Today in the Confessional, Sandy chats with Susan Dean, the founder of Dean Publishing and a woman who is passionate about helping others to share their stories or their expertise, guiding people to become published authors.

As the founder of this heart-centred family business, Susan started her career working with disenfranchised youth, and she found the power of storytelling to support them was so beneficial. This is something that led her to coaching and working with John Gray, the author of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus.

Susan's genuine passion in helping others put their stories out in the world is infectious! Her business is based at Dean Manor, nestled in the beautiful Macedon Ranges in Victoria and if you are ready to share your wisdom, they can help guide you through the entire process - from writing, to editing, to publishing your own book!

It was a joy to chat with Susan, and as she says, it is never too late to be a published author!

You can follow Susan here:

https://www.deanpublishing.com/
https://www.instagram.com/deanpublishing
https://www.instagram.com/susandeanofficial


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The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
https://www.facebook.com/thegoodgirlconfessional


I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Today in the Confessional, host Sandy Lowres chats with special guest Sam Bloom. Sam's life would be changed forever when, on a family holiday in Thailand, Sam fell 6 feet from a broken railing leaving her paralysed. Her recovery was long, involving moments of intense darkness. An unexpected visitor to the Bloom household arrived in the form of a baby native bird - a Magpie they named Penguin. Her husband Cameron, a photographer, captured the most heartwarming images of Penguin with Sam and the family. Penguin would help Sam, and the whole family to heal.

Sam's extraordinary journey was told in her best-selling book Heartache & Birdsong, and is now the focus of a beautiful film - Penguin Bloom - starring Australian Hollywood actress Naomi Watts.

Sam is now a champion athlete, representing Australia in the canoe world championships and is also a 2 x World Champion Para Surfer.

She shares her journey here with honesty and an open heart.

You can follow Sam Bloom here:
https://sambloom.com.au/

Https://www.instagram.com/samjbloom
https://www.instagram.com/penguinthemagie

Photo credits: Cameron Bloom
https://www.instagram.com/cambloom

Sam Bloom | Heartache & Birdsong (Sam Bloom, Cameron Bloom and Bradley Trevor Grieve) is available here:
https://sambloom.com.au/book/

The film Penguin Bloom is now available on Netflix.
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The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
https://www.facebook.com/thegoodgirlconfessional


I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

Today in the Confessional, host Sandy Lowres chats with Brianne Davis, a working actor, director, producer, author and a recovering love and sex addict.

In film and television, Brianne most recently starred on the History Channel’s “Six” (2016-18). Brianne was a scene-stealer as “Lena,” a teacher and wife of lead SEAL Team Six commander “Joe Graves” (Barry Sloane). Additional TV credits include Netflix/FOX’s “Lucifer,” Hulu’s “Casual,” FOX’s “Rosewood,” HBO’s “True Blood,” and CBS’ “The Mentalist.”

Recognising that an addiction to love and sex was hindering her life, Brianne started on a journey of healing, self-awareness, and recovery. Now, 12 years in recovery, she has written her Amazon #1 best-selling book Secret Life of a Hollywood Love and Sex Addict. Brianne talks openly and honestly about the struggles with addiction, the stress of societal views and how she broke the silence around her addiction to help others in their journey.

Brianne is also the host of Secret Life podcast which explores true confessions of love, sex, money, food, addiction, and hidden taboo topics that are often hilarious, uplifting, and hopeful. This weekly podcast pulls back the curtain on the deepest, darkest, heartbreaking, and even silly secrets from an eclectic group of guests.

Brianne’s open and honest conversation about her own life encourages others to share their truth and set themselves free.

You can follow Brianne here:

https://briannedavis.com/
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1732403/
https://www.instagram.com/thebriannedavis
https://www.facebook.com/thebriannedavis


Secret Life of a Hollywood Love and Sex Addict is available here:
https://www.amazon.com.au/Secret-Life-Hollywood-Love-Addict-ebook/dp/B08S9BSSCC

-The Good Girl Confessional Podcast is part of WB40 - Women Beyond Forty

Follow the revolution:
www.wb40.com
https://www.instagram.com/womenbeyondforty
https://www.instagram.com/thegoodgirlconfessional
https://www.facebook.com/thegoodgirlconfessional


I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, upon whose lands I live, work and play. I pay my respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.