Eight years on, the Cessnock author's determination and commitment to her craft continues to pay off, with her fourth novel - Wish Me Gone - to be released next month.

Wish Me Gone is Blackmore's first foray into the young adult (YA) genre - following the adult historical colonial murder mystery Charter to Redemption (2014), its self-published sequel Folly (2017), and her rural romance Central to Nowhere (2019).

It tells the story of Isabella, whose family has made a tree-change to the Riverina, and the immigrant family who have come to work for them.

The heritage-listed homestead is not the idyllic lifestyle they hoped for, as small-town intolerance turns to threats of violence.

Blackmore said it took about four years to write Wish Me Gone, and that she's proud of the final product.

"It's very humbling being able to share it - I feel very blessed," she said.

"I have been writing for a really long time, and I've had a lot of knockbacks."

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Blackmore grew up in Kurri Kurri and has been writing since she was 14 years old, when she did a stint of work experience at the Advertiser.

Over the past 40 years, she has continued to write, while raising five children and living a simple life, keeping bees, milking cows, making cheese and spinning yarn.

"Writing has always been there - it's like my oldest friend," she said.

"I feel really passionate about what artists give to the world.

"What I want to give to readers is more than a good story - something that makes you laugh or cry - it's got to be something that has meaning and makes the world a better place."

She recalls being told as a child at Kurri Primary School that she read "too many ghost stories", and to this day she likes to write stories with intrigue - "a bit spooky" - but always with a sense of adventure and humour.

While she writes fiction, the characters in Blackmore's stories are often inspired by those in her real life.

"Fiction is never fiction - half of the characters in Wish Me Gone are my family. The story is not based on fact - but fears and hopes and dreams," she said.

"And every book has something different in who you are at the time (of writing)."

Blackmore has also had numerous short stories and poems published in various anthologies, and her fifth novel - another YA story - is also in the works.

To the budding authors out there, she simply advises: "Just keep going".

Published by Rhiza Press, Wish Me Gone will be released on September 7 and will be available through Amazon and online stores.