Karen Woods - the Manchester novelist who is now a bestselling 'Queen of Crime' fiction shares her secrets

A best-selling author who only learnt to read and write at 39 while working as a cleaner has now written 27 novels.<br /><br />Karen Woods, 53, wrote her first book at 39 after taking an Adult Literacy course – and has now written best-selling books and sold-out theatre shows.<br /><br />Hailed as Manchester’s Queen of Crime, the author credits reading and writing with changing her life and says she wants to represent people with bad starts in life.<br /><br />Now, Karen has signed book deals with publisher HarperNorth, and has appeared on TV shows including Loose Women and The One Show.<br /><br />Karen said: “I was bought up on a council estate and my mum and dad split up when I was 13.<br /><br />"All of those excuses don’t matter, if you get a bit of confidence and self-belief anything is possible.<br /><br />“I feel I represent all those people who had bad starts in life. I want to be the inspiration for women who think that because they’ve got kids, they can’t do what they want.<br /><br />“Nothing is set in stone if you believe in yourself. I'm on my 27th novel now and my dream hasn’t stopped there.<br /><br />“I write real books and real problems and I’ve been called Manchester’s Queen of Crime. I've always wanted to wear a crown.”