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Copyright: © 2008 Shelagh Watkins
Language: English
Country: United Kingdom
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From the back cover:
Beth Durban is persuaded to write a
letter to the editor's page of a national Sunday
newspaper in response to a film critic’s prejudice
against adaptations of Jane Austen’s novels. When she
receives an unexpected visit from the newspaper's
critic, F. William D'Arcy, she’s bemused but, after
several sightings of the inquisitive journalist, she’s
neither pleased nor amused.
Beth is so distracted by the
unwelcome interest from such an arrogant man she fails
to see that a close work colleague is falling in love
with her. As a scientific researcher in a Scottish
University, she has led a varied life travelling the
world, spending time in New Zealand, Canada, Australia,
America, Singapore and Israel. With such a full life,
she has had little time to form any serious, romantic
attachments that might lead to a permanent
relationship.
When she decides to take driving
lessons, Beth opens up new opportunities for herself and
realises that perhaps she isn’t too old to find love
after all. |
| I'm glad you stopped by. I hope you enjoy
your visit. Please drop in anytime -- you are always welcome.
About Me
I'm Shelagh (that's the Irish form of
Sheila!) I was born in Lancashire, UK and graduated from the
University of Leeds before I moved to Scotland, where I
completed a course in Information Technology at the University
of Glasgow. I have many interests, including artwork,
computing, reading and all forms of writing, but I
particularly enjoy writing for children.
I wrote Mr.
Planemaker's Flying Machine as a children's novel but
there is more to the book than just a story, although readers
are left to figure out the underlying philosophy for
themselves. |
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Comments on the Opening Chapters from youwriteon.co.uk:
Impeccably written, creating a
smooth flow to your opening chapters.
Overall, the grammar and syntax was
excellent. Good luck.
I was
intrigued by the premise of your story – it put me in
mind of other novels centered round a literary mystery
or controversy,like AS Byatt’s ‘Possession’ or Carol
Shield’s ‘Mary Swann’.
You write
in a clear unfussy prose that is easy to read.
You write very effectively, your
ideas come across well. Good luck with this!
Your
premise is intriguing and so is your narrator. I had no
idea where this was going – a plus – and I would have
read on to find out. Thanks for a fascinating
read!
This is very well written and
starts off really well describing the effect of
journalists especially Mr D'Arcy on the reader. The
clever links with Jane Austen's novels and the excellent
writing would definitely make me want to read on to find
out what happens next. Good luck with this and well
done | |
When I began writing in 1998,
I wrote my first novel, The Power of
Persuasion. The story, set in Scotland, is about a married
woman in her mid-forties, who writes a letter to a national
newspaper in response to features written by one of the
paper's freelance journalists, who has quite a reputation as
the newspaper's theatre and film
critic.
Despite the fact that the newspaper does
not print the letter, the journalist seeks out the woman who
wrote it and follows her around. The novel is very
tongue-in-cheek and full of humour ...
and it's out at last and availble online.
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The Power of
Persuasion is now available online from all
the major online bookstores.
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Mr. Planemaker's Flying
Machine
Listen to the serialisation
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Mr. Planemaker's Flying
Machine
on www.preston.fm
Mon-Fri 8.20am
Sunday Omnibus 5pm
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Mr.
Planemaker's Flying Machine is now available on
lulu.com Price:
£7.55
Category: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1-4137-7136-X
Publisher: Mandinam
Press
Published date: 14 March
2009
Printed: 198 pages, 15.24
cm x 22.86 cm, perfect binding, cream interior paper
(60# weight), black and white interior ink, white
exterior paper (100# weight), full-colour exterior
ink
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Copyright: © 2005 Shelagh Watkins
Language: English
Country: United Kingdom
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ISBN:
1-4137-7136-X
Description:
Mr. Planemaker's Flying Machine is
a story of flight, fantasy, adventure and courage.
Emmelisa Planemaker is a strong-willed little girl but
she misses her dad, who died when she was only five
years old.
Emmelisa and her brother Dell have
a happy and carefree life until their father becomes ill
and is forced to retire at the age of forty-three. After
retirement, Mr. Planemaker decides to build a scaled,
model airplane because he wants to build something
lasting for his children but he dies before completing
the task.
Three years later, Emmelisa is
being seriously bullied at school by a group led by the
notorious school bully, Mayja Troublemaker. When
Emmelisa becomes increasingly withdrawn and unhappy. she
seeks help and advice through the computer her father
had used to locate specialist model aircraft companies
in his quest to build a model airplane.
The computer is more than just a
computer and full of surprises: Mr. A. Leon Spaceman
being one of them! He guides the two children to
Hardwareland, where they train to become astronauts and
take on an unexpected mission into space: to follow
their father's TRAIL OF LIGHT.
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| Mr. Planemaker's Flying
Machine can be ordered from any bookstore by
giving the title, author, publisher and ISBN 1-4137-7136-X or
ordered from online bookstores. |
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The Power of Persuasion
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Universe Pathways Magazine
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Language: English
Country:
Greece |
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Universe Pathways
Magazine
Leo's Daughter: Mistress of the
Web
My first short
story, Leo's Daughter: Mistress of the
Web, was accepted by Universe Pathways, a Greek
sc-fi and fantasy magazine. The story is in the fifth
issue of the English version of the magazine. The
magazine is now available on lulu.com:
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Mr. Planemaker's Flying
Machine
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Pathways Online
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Stories of
Strength |
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Language: English
Country: United States of America
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Stories of Strength
Hope for a Safer Place in
Stories of Strength
With more than 100 pieces
from writers all over the world, and the gracious
efforts of prominent editors and graphic designers,
Stories of Strength is a tribute to the human spirit:
celebrating true stories of courage and endurance in
challenging situations that range from the death of a
child to living through natural disasters, to
smaller-scale trials, like dealing with returning an
overdue book to the local Library Troll. Headed by Jenna
Glatzer, author of acclaimed Celine Dion biography For
Keeps, this project attracted contributions from many
well-known writers, including a story and an original
hymn by award-winning science fiction novelist Orson
Scott Card, an essay by famed actor Wil Wheaton (Star
Trek, Stand By Me), and a short story from Christian
romance author Robin Lee Hatcher.
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Shelagh Watkins |
Stories of Strength
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When I began writing in 1998, I
wrote my first unpublished novel The Power of Persuasion.
The story,
set in Scotland, is about a married woman in her
mid-forties, who writes a letter to a national
newspaper in response to features written by a
free-lance journalist employed by the newspaper. The
journalist has quite a reputation as the newspaper's
theatre and film critic.
Despite the
fact that the newspaper does not print the letter, the
journalist seeks out the woman who wrote it and
follows her around. The novel is very tongue-in-cheek
and full of humour, but remains unpublished. But it
should be out soon! I am rewriting the novel and it
should be out sometime in 2007.
In October 2005, one of my poems,
Hope for a Safer Place,
was chosen for inclusion in the anthology, Stories of Strength
, to raise money for Disaster Relief Charities in
the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
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edited by Jenna
Glatzer
These are the comments I
received about the
poem:
Congratz on inclusion of your work
in such a worthy publication! Very moving poem . . . I
see the hopes & dreams of the folks in the aftermath
of Katrina, as well the needy around the world, in your
emotion.
Wow, I really like "Hope for
a Safer Place". That's a subject very dear to my heart.
I very much dream of the world being a safer place.
Great job, Shelagh!
What a great poem! It is what we
need to be reminded of today and oh so true...great work
woman...continue on!
Shelagh your poem was
beautiful and perfectly written. I really enjoyed
it. |
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I read it and really like
it. |
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Mr. Planemaker's Flying
Machine
Except for
those with a phobia, flying has always been the stuff of
dreams among all ages and, in this age of technological
wonders, flying in space has become an integral part of
this dreamland. As well as being the stuff of daring do,
flying is full of mystery and laden with symbolic
escapism, lifting us above the daily grind of adulthood
and the growing fears of childhood, and human
pettinesses from gossip to bullying, which detracts all
age groups from the joy of living.
In Mr. Planemaker's Flying
Machine, Shelagh Watkins takes us on a flight of fancy,
both metaphorical and literal, through these dreams,
fears and joys. We are taken rolling and looping in
skies through clouds of bereavement, sibling antagonism,
and human spitefulness, into a brighter but mysterious
world of computer systems, then onward and upward into
the heavens and among the planets themselves. Closure of
the stormy sky issues, through which child heroes
Emmelisa and Dell have struggled, is eventually
approached in the final pursuit of Mr. Planemaker's
physics-defying Trail of Light, during which we are
constantly surprised. While all this
may sound a bit heavy for kids to read or for a bed-time
story, and while it is thought provoking for adults, the
yarn is a compulsive tale for kids, spun around daily
routines and banalities mixed with fantasy elements and
outrageous characters. The unashamedly corny names for
the latter will bring a chuckle even to the sworn
pun-hater like me. Who has not known a school brat like
Mayja Troublemaker and someone with as little spark as
her uncle Verry Boringman?
The escape route from these
pains in the neck emerges gradually via a series of
encounters, first at a strange house being worked on by
Anne R Keytect, Bill Dare, Joy Nair and Dek Orator of
Dream Homes Inc, then on to Whiz Kid Computer
Maintenance in Virtual Realty. Mr. Wizard Kidd leads us
further into Hardwareland where many of the workings of
computer operating systems are revealed to us with
greater insight than many a manual, though in this case
the user interface smacks more of magic than of a
keyboard. In the CPU building things rapidly progress
toward the (virtual) reality of the Planemaker's Flying
Machine PH1. Then, at an ever increasing rate we head
with Emmelisa for space itself, with the help of valet
Sue Tassistant, coordinator Mish Oncontrol, and master
pilot/instructor Astrow Naught. Thereafter, on a solar
system tour, some of the strands of the story are tied
up, in ways readers must find for themselves or I will
spoil the climax. So, in the
end, what does it all mean? I am not sure that I know,
or even that Shelagh Watkins does, though surely Cosmos
Planemaker the magical family cat knows, if anyone does.
What I do know is that this is a refreshing and unusual
kids' story which I, as a hard-nosed scientist - albeit
with magic as a hobby - had to read to the end, and that
it will likewise enthrall children readers and bed-time
story tellers alike. So buy it, lie back, and enjoy it
with, or even without the kids.
Professor
John C. Brown
Astronomer Royal
for Scotland
Dept. of Physics
and Astronomy
University of
Glasgow
Scotland,
U.K.
Mr.
Planemaker's Flying Machine Shelagh Watkins has created a tale
of incredible breadth, beauty and detail. The knowledge
and research that went into this fascinating tale leave
one feeling quite humble. Here we have the story of
Emmelisa and Dell the young heroes and their two main
mentors, Mr. A Leon Spaceman and Cosmos the cat. This
book is an absolute must as it quite uniquely manages to
educate, entertain and instill strong moral values, all
at the same time. The story moves at a tremendous pace
and the only problem the reader will experience is
knowing how and when to put the book down before the
amazing conclusion. I look forward eagerly to more
offerings from this remarkable author.
Lionel Ross
Author of 'Fine Feathers'
Mr.
Planemaker's Flying Machine
Anyone who has
ever harboured a desire to become an astronaut ought to
read this wonderful book and climb aboard the space
mission. Emmelisa and Dell are the first kids to venture
into space. After tinkering with an old computer and
encountering some mysterious characters, they are
catapulted into this intriguing adventure, in which they
train to become astronauts. Then they embark on an
exciting voyage to follow their father's trail of light.
The story is spell-binding, compelling and magical. The
plot is unusual, clever and well thought out. I was very
impressed with the author's research and knowledge of
her subject and her use of technical terms, which will
educate her readers. She also has great emotional
insight, as the children have to deal with great changes
in their lives, but it leaves them stronger and the
story ends on a note of hope. This talented new author
is a welcome find. She pays great attention to detail
and her pages are alight with adventure. I highly
recommend this inspiring and most original
novel.
Sabine
Muir author of 'Matthew and the Highland
Rescue'
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What a wonderful poem Shelagh.
Congratulations on its publication. I hope the anthology
sells well. Peace to you x
That's really nice shelagh,
we have to live on hope don't we?
thats a lovely poem, with beautiful
sentiments, lets hope it comes true.
Well done Shelagh. Going
from strength to strength eh?
Well done, Shelagh!
That really is a beautiful poem
Shelagh
That.is awesome, Shelagh! I
read the poem and I really like it.
Congratulations, love your
poem.
Wow! I am so proud of you
and the poem is beautiful (and I'm a poetry
snob)!
Congrats! It's very touching.
I love the poem.
Awesome, Shelagh
I LOVED your poem!
shelagh, that poem was
amazing!
I really liked Hope for A
Safer Place. Your words are a joy to
read.
I'll be going back on there
to see what others I can read, if
possible.
That is a beautiful poem.
Congratulations.
Very cool Shelagh, I admire
poets cause that's not my talent.
I enjoyed reading it very much! A
beautiful poem with an awesome message!
Your talents never cease to
amaze me, short stories, poems, books. You are such a
source of inspiration to me. I wish I had all your
talent. I wish you all the best. Keep up the good
work!
Thanks, Shelagh, that was
beautiful.
That was a beautiful
poem.
I love the message it
conveys.
Your poem exudes love, strength and
hope for those who have lost so much during that
horrible tragedy.
Yes, wouldn't it be nice if
all that hope actually paid off?Everyone would actually have
to work
together. | Beautiful
poem Shelagh... |
Books Poems Short Stories
Mrs.
Planemaker's Flying Carpet
SEQUEL TO MR. PLANEMAKER'S FLYING MACHINE
Mrs.
Planemaker's Flying Carpet is in the early
stages of writing and should be available sometime in 2010. As
soon as I know more, I'll let you know!
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Great poem
about children and our world is worse now as far as
genocide than I think it has ever been. The poor, and
the children always suffer in war but people that are in
power struggles don't respect any of humanity and if
people unite and say they will not put up with it, then
everyone wins. In Darfur, the Janjaweed and building up
for another assault. This is Arab Muslims against
African Muslims and they will not respect anything but
force. The United Nations will not do anything just as
they did nothing in Rawanda. It is a pity that not one
country does anything about these genocides. Why not?
Because we do nothing does not mean that we are peaceful
people, but just the opposite. Sins of omission are the
greatest sins just to do nothing. Now you've got me
ranting and raving and it was because of your poem about
children. I don't think that if we all lay down our arms
that all of these terrible people will lay down theirs,
but just the opposite; they will rejoice in victory. To
fight against injustice is not a sin. I think that God
praises those who are just
Keep up the great poetry, Shelagh.
Have a great day.
Thanks, I
found it, read it, and it's very nice. Good luck with
the anthology, hope it raises a lot of
money,
thanks, shelagh! a lovely
poem.
OUTSTANDING!
I
loved it.
Something
written from the heart is always a beautiful thing.
You've succeeded in that. Wonderful poem.
I
read it and it is beautifulI hope one day
the world does realize that, particularly for the sake
of the children
Warmest wishes and again
fine write and a beautiful sentiment to be shared to and
with all.
How lovely! I share your sentiments
exactly!
Very nice. Good message
too.
Your poem is really lovely and an
inspiration.
That was a really nice
poem.
Congrats on the Poem! Great read.
I enjoyed reading the poem.
Shelagh, that's beautiful! I admire
poets so; it's such a difficult art form.
What a beautiful piece of
poetry it is and what a lovely prayer for
peace
The poem sheds light on you as a
person. It expresses what many of us feel about peace in
the world. The poem promises to be
memorable.
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