Creeping Shadows

While every author draws on life experiences to form a narrative, not every author has such a rich and at times dark background as Klaas Kalma. Klaas is an artist, musician, writer, author, secondary teacher and sport psychologist. Originally from the Netherlands, Klaas arrived in Australia with his family on the good ship 'Sibajak' in 1953 at age 13. He was immediately separated from his family and forced to work on a dairy farm 12 hours a day, seven days a week. He escaped from that life only to find himself homeless and destitute on the streets of Melbourne. Klaas quickly overcame those difficult circumstances and married - determined to succeed he caught up on his education. However, tragedy soon struck with his daughter dying from leukaemia at age 12. His wife also succumbing to cancer only a few years later. Klaas himself nearly died because of a car accident. He spent the best part of two years recovering in the burns unit of a leading Melbourne hospital. However, he was determined to carry on with his three great loves that have always been art music and writing. Klaas lives with his wife Sue on the Mornington Peninsula where he has a studio for painting and writing. His published the acclaimed novel Creeping Shadows.