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 .