Elmie Yan takes pride in her mixed background: Filipino, Spanish, and North American (Texas, USA). She was one of the many Filipinos whose business skills were in Australia's migration preferences in the late 1970s. She arrived in Sydney in early 1977. In 1978 she and Denis, a newly graduate then in PhD, Metallurgy, got married in the UK, where they worked and toured London, Northumberland, and Edinburgh and crossed the English Channel for Paris. Before settling back in Sydney, Australia, in mid 1979, they travelled to New York, Pennsylvania, San Francisco, Oakland, and Manila. In 1995, they had another unforgettable reunion with Elmie's relatives in California. More recently, they travelled to Rome and Helsinki.

Her early published writings included poetry and a regular column in Bank Notes, the official newsmagazine of the Asian Development Bank, Manila, and the Goldfields Golden Glow, a colourful cultural magazine. Painting in oil and watercolour wound up her activities in Kalgoorlie-Boulder before moving to Western Australia's capital city of Perth.

She completed her novel My Australian Prince in 2007 with passion and dedication, regarded by its readers as a timeless written artwork. Recently in 2011, she was invited to contribute to Catching the Dream, Poems Inspired by Susan Boyle, published by XLibris Corporation, USA.

Her background all merged together with her love for creative writing: Associate in Commercial Science from the Philippine College of Commerce (now a university), secretarial skills in an international environment, French language certificates from Alliance Française, Manila (although her French language progress was disrupted by her move to Australia), Australian tertiary undergraduate studies, and Kalgoorlie College art certificates.

Elmie and Denis celebrate their combined birthdays -
      Girshwin Restaurant, Hyatt Hotel, with their family, March 2007 .



Denis and Elmie celebrate their combined birthdays,
a treat from their daughters Jasmin and Melanie with the family -
Midori, a tepanyaki restaurant, Perth, March 2008,

At Kings Park - Perth,
Western Australia, January 2010

Taken by Exclusive Photography - Perth, May 2005
(Elmie doesn't appear as glamorous in everyday life
as in this professional photo.)

Elmie with husband Denis
on their wedding anniversary - Perth, May 2006.



Elmie and Denis celebrate Denis' birthday -
Burswood's A'Lure, Perth, March 2009

Elmie's birthday - Chez Pierre, Perth, March 2009




Denis and Elmie continue their 31st wedding anniversary
celebration at their home - Perth, May 2009.