The former lawyer who has found a new purpose as an author as she learns to live with multiple sclerosis.PETER BARRON reports
CAROLE Lawford has had to get used to reinventing herself since she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of multiple sclerosis seven years ago.
The last time I met Carole, in June 2020, she was lovingly tending the fruit and veg in the community allotment she’d launched a year after the MS diagnosis led to her having to retire from her busy career as a Government lawyer.
Though devastating at the time, she responded to the diagnosis by launching a community interest market garden company, which became a lifeline for vulnerable people and local charities during the Covid pandemic.
Carole at her allotment in Sedgefield in 2020
(Image: Chris Barron)
Six years on, the lockdowns of Covid are a dark, somewhat surreal memory, and urgent supplies from Carole’s allotment are no longer needed, so she needed to find a new purpose.
This time, I find her at her desk, in front of her home computer, creating the latest chapter of a life that's increasingly defined by helping others, despite the personal challenges she faces.
“I love gardening and growing things, but I’ve always loved writing too, so I decided that 2026 would be the year I established myself as an author,” she declares with an affirmative nod of the head.
"My condition was progressing, with more lesions on my brain, so I needed to find something less physical than the market garden, but kept me mentally occupied and fulfilled.
"From being a little girl, I'd always written stories and kept a diary, but I was just writing for me – I'd never thought about getting published."
That all changed last month when Carole published a book, called Who Am I Now?
Carole with two of her books
(Image: Peter Barron)
It is described on the front cover as "a practical, honest guide to adult onset disability – for the people living with it, the families beside them, and the professionals who care for them".
Due to the MS, Carole's memory retention is damaged, so she's got into the habit of writing everything down, and the book was compiled from her notes on her experiences and lessons she'd learned.
Published on Amazon, the book was launched at Back of Beyond Books independent bookshop, in Sedgefield, and Carole believes it has filled a gap in the market.
"There wasn't a book I could find that would help someone like me – tell me what was happening, and what I should do," she explains.
"Books on neurological conditions are written by medical people, so there was nothing about personal experience and what steps to take. I was having to find out how to cope by myself.
"The book's main message is that you have to adapt to circumstances – whether it's illness, disability, divorce, redundancy, or whatever else might happen – accept it and find a new purpose that's right for you.
"When I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, my world was tipped upside down, I felt I was whirling round in a tumbling machine, so I had to reset my compass to due north and go forward with my life."
An extract from Who Am I Now? sums up her approach to life...
'I don't spend too much time looking backwards. I have always believed in looking forward, towards where you're going, with happiness on the horizon and hope in your heart. And, eventually, if you keep going, you find happiness in your heart too.'
Carole has swiftly followed Who Am I Now? by publishing a series of historical fiction novels that she discovered saved on memory sticks when she was having a clear-out at home.
Her own memory of writing them has been erased by MS. She also can't recall what inspired her to choose the pseudonym, Cora Lytton. But the stories had been clearly been written in what spare time she could find during trips to London during her legal career.
Inspired by the history and architecture of Covent Garden, the novels have been turned into a literary series, intriguingly called The Covent Garden Angel Mysteries.
Three have been published on Amazon so far – Death In The Wings, Murder In The Margins, and* The Cartographer's Secret*.
A fourth, entitled The Fatal Performance, is out next week, followed by* The Grand Instrument*, and* The Founding Dead*.
"They were just there, waiting for me on the memory sticks, so all I've had to do is edit them and turn them into proper books. I'd forgotten all about them – it's a case of my past-self writing for my future-self," she adds.
Carole is quick to stress that she's had "invaluable" support from successful County Durham author Owen Ryan, who writes as OMJ Ryan, and has become a trusted friend.
In a video message shown at her book launch, Owen described Carole as a "total inspiration who never ceases to amaze me", adding that he's in awe of her books.
It's become a mutually beneficial relationship. While Owen advises Carole on the vagaries of the publishing world, she gives him professional advice on the law to add legal credibility to his best-selling crime thrillers.
The illustrations for Carole's books are also produced in the North East – by Billingham-based digital artist, David Barnes, of Imaginative Edits.
And she's indebted to her carer, Claire, for the "huge difference" she's made in helping with the planning and administration involved in publishing the books.
Naturally, she wants people to read and enjoy them, but she's not expecting to make lots of money.
"It would just be lovely to be able to cover my costs, and support other creative people from the North East, like David, who's absolutely brilliant," she says.
"And, if I can use my experiences to help people through difficult periods of their lives, while inspiring them to find a new purpose for themselves, then that makes it even better.
"When I was a prosecutor, I had to write a lot of case notes, reports and letters. That was a big part of my job but now I'm writing for the sheer joy of it.
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"The damage to my brain may have affected my memory and ability to multi-task, but it hasn't affected my imagination, and I've got notes on more stories and characters than I'll ever be able to get through.
"My condition is going to keep on progressing – I know that – so I want to keep writing as much as I can. I've found my new purpose in life and it's no use waiting for tomorrow – I want to feel the joy now!"
- Carole will be signing copies of her books at a book fair, organised by Back of Beyond Books, at Ceddesfeld Hall, Sedgefield, between 11am and 3pm on Saturday, August 22. Her books and e-books can be found on Amazon by searching for Carole Lawford or Cora Lytton.