Azalea in flower in Stapledon Woods on Caldy Hill I've got into the habit of incorrectly referring to the woodland covering Caldy Hill as Caldy Woods, when it's actually called Stapledon Woods - named after the sci-fi writer William Olaf Stapledon.  I've only just learned this!  I knew he'd been born in Wallasey and lived in Wirral somewhere, but to find that the very woods where my fictional "last prince of the Caldy fae" AKA the Peacock King lives.  (How can he be a prince and a king at the same time?  It's a long story...) I find this bit of synchronicity really exciting.   It was Olaf's books which first introduced me to sci-fi when I was in my very early teens.  I read Odd John, and went on from there.  And here we are, with me placing some of my stories in the very woods named after him! See my photos of Stapledon Woods here .    

Jeannie Faulkner Barber writes crime and suspense novels, including Taste of Fire and  Scent of double Deception.   She is the co-author of a new fantasy novel, Destiny Never Sleeps , which is due out in 2012. Learn more about Jeannie's work in this interview with me here.   

A yellow swallow-tailed moth rests on a leaf in our bathroom. The same plant - a variety of Rhipsalidopsis - in flower. One of the things I love about living here on the Wirral is the variety of wildlife.  As I type this, there's a gorgeous yellow swallow-tailed moth sitting on one of the plants upstairs, as seen in the photo above.  The photo doesn't quite catch the moth's colour which is a distinct pale lemon-yellow, whereas the photo has bleached out much of the colour, making it look more of a chalky white.  Its wing span measures 2".  The garden outside attracts a large variety of moths - which is as well, as the bats have to eat something!  It might look romantic to us, as we enjoy an evening cuppa while sitting on the patio (when it's not raining!!), but there are life-and-death battles unfolding overhead.  The moths are trying to eat pollen to live, and the bats are trying to eat moths so they can live...

 I've just taken a good look at our apple tree and the crop is looking rather thin this year.  Last year we had a bumper crop of apples; this year we'll be lucky to harvest a dozen.  Blame it on the bizarre weather we've been having.  The few summer days we've had have been hot enough to melt the trees.  Otherwise, it's been non-stop monsoon-like rain.  There have been a lot of floods reported across Britain.  Have you ever been in a home damaged by flood water?  I have, and it is not a pleasant experience.  Look around your room now, as you're reading this, and see just how much is under knee-height.  Carpets or other flooring, chairs and soft furnishings, electrical goods and electrical wall sockets, food, kitchen equipment, gas heaters, wallpaper, the plaster on walls, etc.  All this has to be cleared away, ruined.  And pets can easily die in floods, too.  Add to this backed-up sewers, and remember that while you'...

Austin S. Camacho is the author of five novels in the Hannibal Jones Mystery Series and two in the Stark and O’Brien adventure series. His short stories have been featured in four anthologies from Wolfmont Press and two others, and he is featured in the Edgar nominated African American Mystery Writers: A Historical and Thematic Study by Frankie Y. Bailey. After thirteen years as a soldier, Austin continued writing military news for the Defense Department, then he continued as on air anchor for the American Forces Information Service. Today he does public affairs work for the DoD agency. Discover more about Austin Camacho here .   

Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali was born in Con­necti­cut, America, where she attended the Uni­ver­sity of Con­necti­cut.  Khaalidah works as an oncol­ogy nurse, and is also the author of An Unproductive Woman. This novel which tells the story of a husband who, in the hope of producing a son, takes a second then a third wife, as is permitted according to the Moslem religion.  Learn more about the author in this interview .   

I had to share news of this discovery - a scientist has found hidden portals which open and close seemingly at random several times each day, which link the earth and the sun.  Read about it here .   

Emily and her current favourite toy.  Note its missing nose. Emily really hates being the only dog in the house.  We had hoped she would have become used to it by now, following Ygraine's death, but that hasn't happened despite extra cuddles and heaps of new toys.  She was starting to worry us.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with her physical health but she is depressed.  All her life, she's been around other dogs.    So Richard suggested we look around for a rescue dog.  A brief internet search produced a whole army of Staffordshire Terriers, Bulldogs, Mastiffs and similar dogs needing homes, but neither of us like them.  We wanted a small, lively, good-natured dog who would get along well with Emily, plus our cat Jazzy and the chickens.     So Richard and I, and Emily, travelled to the animals sanctuary.  I had spoken to a young woman there via telephone earlier, and she met us in person as ...

Australian writer and entertainment agency owner Rebeka Harrington talks about her second vampire novel, Desires Revealed , in this interview with me here . Her novel is set in the 16th Century, and aims to redefine vampire fiction.   

In 2004, Geoff Wakeling quit his job as an administrator to head to Ecuador and conduct conservation work in a newly established nature reserve. He returned home to start a thriving gardening business. In 2008, he increased his gardening business by becoming a garden expert and copywriter, appearing on shows such as This Morning, Sky’s Rooftop Rainforest and Horticultural Channel. He set up the Gay Gardening Blog. His copywriting duties increased over the years, and Geoff now writes on a range of subjects including insurance, social media, men’s health and gardening. He also writes novels... Read his interview with me here on Hubpages.   

Charles Martin's debut novel, Mythical , is now available as an ebook. The first of a trilogy, this book brings us the story of an eighteen year old girl whose discovery of a corpse in the Arizona desert introduces her to the dangerous world of shapeshifters. Charles consented to be interviewed by me, and you can read the results on Hubpages here .   

Get ready for some great ebook bargains! All through July, the first novel in my Artisan-Sorcerer series, Tamsin will be at 50% its usual cost. Many other ebook titles will be at 25% their usual cost, while Spanish Jones and The Karens will be entirely FREE! All you have to do is visit Smashwords  then make your choice. A wide variety of ereader formats are available, and if you don't have an ereader you can download a free one from Adobe or Amazon, or download an HTML file which you can read on your usual computer. And when you've done that and read your heart out, how about writing a few reviews on Smashwords, or on your blog or forum - or will you take part in this forthcoming competition? Competition Time! Are you artistic? Create a web banner or some fanart based on the Artisan-Sorcerer series! Entry fee = NONE! Prizes = FREE EBOOK copy of the forthcoming 3rd novel in the Artisan-Sorcerer series,  BETHANY ROSE, for every contribu...