The Mackerel is dancing!
I’m happy to say that the online shop is now up and running! The page is titled ‘Dancing Mackerel’ because that’s the name of our own mini-publishing imprint – and, as you may already have seen from the News section, our first printed book is now available. When Penny, the author, first showed Cas and me the story we loved it; Cas was inspired to create a series of gorgeous illustrations, and we’re all very proud of the finished result. Hope you agree!
The shop is starting off in a very small way, with only a couple of items available as yet. But I have Cunning Plans (:)) and hope it won’t be long before there’ll be more goodies on offer. It’s far too corny to say ‘Watch this space’ – so I won’t. Only I just did. If you see what I mean…
The other big news is that the children’s page is also live on this site now, with a special mention of my forthcoming new quartet for Puffin Books. I’ve recently completed book 3 and have started work on the final volume; you can find details, a taster and the absolutely stunning covers for books 1 and 2 in that section. The setting, this time, is at Mount’s Bay on Cornwall’s south coast. I haven’t named the fishing port where my young heroine, Lizzy, lives, as it is fictionalised to a degree. But if you know Cornwall, you might be able to make an inspired guess. The photo shows the Severn class lifeboat that Lizzy sees on her visits to the harbour, and which has a significant role in the story…
Frogs and other trivia…
Apropos of absolutely nothing, a small, greenish-yellow frog has decided to move out of our garden pond (which is very small and already houses 20 of his friends) and take up residence in a large bucket that has filled up with rainwater. He (or she? How do you tell?) spends most of his time with his head poking out of the water, just chilling out and watching the world go by. If his presence means a few less slugs around the veg. beds, I’ll be well pleased!
And cat trivia (how can an ailurophile like me resist? 
) Simba has become a toy-boy! The object of his interest is Miss Bella, who has just moved in with our lovely next-door neighbour. Miss Bella is about five years older than Simba, rather genteel and shy, with a lovely pattern of black-and-white fur. I’m not sure if they’ve actually met yet, but I’ve seen the way he looks at her from a distance when she’s sunning herself in her garden. I await developments… Maybe I should give Simba his own blog on the site? He can’t type, but if he dictates it to me, I can write it for him. What does everyone think? Anybody out there speak Cat?
We’re coming to the end of our Carnival week as I write this – a fun week, as it also included Cas’s birthday. I won’t tell you how old he is. Suffice it to say that I played a certain Beatles track on the birthday morning, just to make the point! There are lots of holiday visitors here, the beach lifeguards are working their socks off, and plenty of events are coming up, including a mini-regatta and ’round the rocks’ swimming competition, and our annual Lifeboat Day, which is always a terrific spectacle, especially when the guys from RNAS Culdrose search-and-rescue squadron fly in to perform a sea rescue display. The Sea King helicopters with their superbly skilled pilots are awesome to watch, whether they’re hovering over a boat at sea…
or coming in for a flawless landing on the beach…
Well, that’s it from me for the moment. More soon. And do let me know if you think I should give Simba his very own blog. He certainly thinks I should – though I suspect it would contain a lot about the relative merits of different cat food flavours, with the occasional mouse review for good measure!
Hope you’re enjoying your summer – or winter, if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere!