Phil Owens

Phil is a 50-something British expat currently living in Italy. Since publishing his book way back in 2008, he has since been helping authors, screenwriters, and businesses through his work as an editor and proofreader.

Phil started his working life with a variety of jobs, working on the fairground, tyre fitting, and TV aerial rigging. He then started as a Saturday kitchen porter in a chain of pizza restaurants, leaving four years later as the head chef. After a brief period of working as a manager, he left the catering trade to start a new career in a burgeoning IT industry. His final job before emigrating to Italy was Head of IT and Patient Services at the Ipswich NHS Hospital Trust in Suffolk.

Working in IT has given Phil some valuable skills, ones that he brought to use in writing his book. He says, "two of the main skills that I feel are transferable are logical thinking and attention to detail. Saying that, when writing my book, both of these went out of the window for quite a while." Nevertheless, the finished article is one that Phil should be proud of.

His love of animals has led him to be responsible for many dogs throughout his life. These have, in the main, been rescue dogs, and have come with all sorts of behavioural problems. Despite having several dogs that have had destructive tendencies, Kopek has been their biggest challenge to date. The continuous tales of woe from both Phil and Ronnie, caused their friends to urge him to write them down. Phil says, "I never dreamed that I could fill a whole book with these tales. However, it just goes to show how much Kopek has managed to do with his short life so far."

Phil loves to hear from his readers; he says "Hearing from someone who's read my book gives me a real buzz. It has also resulted in some great friendships over the years." Contacting Phil couldn't be easier, there are forms on his website (www.cyber-write.com), or you can simply email him at phil.owens@cyber-write.com