Having slaved over a hot laptop all day, I decided to wander down into the woods next to our house the other evening just as the sun was dipping over the Somerset hills, curious to see what magic was being conjured up by the changing light. And I wasn’t disappointed by what I discovered. From… more…
Author Archives: Malcolm Welshman
Roe doe and her kid
Spotted our resident roe doe walking across the front lawn with her two week old baby. She stopped to graze while the youngster decided on having a gambol round the grass, leaping up in the air and tearing in circles before finally stopping next to mum for a breather. Just long enough for me to… more…
Mid May with Hawthorn in Full Bloom
Mid May and here in the UK the hawthorn (or may) blossom is at its peak. Superstition says it’s extremely unlucky to bring hawthorn flowers into the house. It’s to do with the smell. They have a distinctive scent the main element of which is triethylamine, which is also one of the first chemicals produced… more…
Spring has finally sprung.
There’s been a very short window for the spring flowers this year due to the preceding wet and cold weather. But flowers have suddenly burst into bloom and produced their feast of colour throughout our garden and adjacent woods. more…
Meeting the oldest living land animal
Earlier in the year. I was a guest speaker on a cruise going from Cape Town to Namibia and then 1200 miles across to St Helena and Ascension Island. While we were berthed in Namibia, I was able to do a day excursion into the Namib desert with its striking vistas of endless barren canyons… more…
Pets Aplenty Finally Published
That moment all authors relish when I finally have a copy of my book in hand. The finished product. The result of many months of work. Months in which whenever the dreaded writers’ block descended, I wondered if I’d ever get to the end. Now the book’s been delivered. I’m holding it. Rather like the… more…
Penzance Literary Festival
A mystic moment on the Cornish coast when I was down giving a talk at the Penzance Literary Festival. I was staying at a retreat near St Just on Cape Cornwall, four minutes walk from the coastal path. The first evening of my stay, I decided to take a two hour round hike up to… more…
Cover of Pets Aplenty
An artist friend of mine, David Brackston, has put together some cartoons I drew and coloured them in to create the above design for my forthcoming novel, Pets Aplenty. This reflects the content of the book, with the rabbit suffering tooth ache and the pony bent on biting the young vet, Paul, whenever the opportunity arose.… more…
Bluebell Time
During mid-April a carpet of bluebells slowly unfurled through the woods that grace the slopes down from our house – a carpet complimented by the tracery of pale green beech leaves above it. I was requiring a new photo of Dora to possibly use for her May diary on www.sixtyplusurfers.co.uk/links so what better than have… more…
Finding a home for Pets Aplenty
The first couple of months of 2014 found me looking at the options for publishing my third pet novel, Pets Aplenty. My agent at Sheil Land Associates proposed using their in-house publisher to produce a print-on-demand(POD) and Kindle version. Robert Hale Publishers offered a contract to publish the book next year. I considered the possibility… more…