I finished in 6th place in the bookart category of the P&E Reader's Poll:

final results

Thanks to everyone who voted for 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 lots of 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. It isn't exactly Sophie's World with philosophical explanations -- readers are left to figure out the underlying philosophy for themselves.The first five chapters are on my website:
http://shelaghwatkins.co.uk/

When I began writing in 1998, I wrote my first unpublished novel, The Power of Persuasion.

The story, set in Scotland, is about a woman 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 The novel is very tongue-in-cheek and full of humour, but remains unpublished.

BUT it will be out soon! Watch this space!

My first children's book Mr. Planemaker's Flying Machine was published in 2005.

The story is about two ordinary children, Dell and Emmelisa Planemaker, who lead uneventful lives in a small town in Lancashire until they discover a unique computer that takes them on an extraordinary journey. They are guided by a strange looking man from a far-off distant planet who helps them to undergo a tough space mission: to follow their father's TRAIL OF LIGHT.

Mr. Planemaker's Flying Machine can be previewed on Google book search. Click on this link to view the book: Search Books

I am also working on a sequel, Mrs. Planemaker's Flying Carpet, to my first published novel.

I am looking for an agent for the sequel, which I hope to complete by the end of 2007 but, the way things are going, it will probably be the end of 2008!

My web site: http://shelaghwatkins.co.uk

Leo's Daughter: Mistress of the Web

My first short story was accepted by Universe Pathways Magazine. Special thanks to George Sotirhos at Universe Pathways for reading my story and accepting it for the English version of the magazine.

Issue 5 of the English magazine with my story inside can be previewed on lulu.com:

Universe Pathways preview

My story, Leo's Daughter: Mistress of the Web, is on page 167.

You can find Issue 5 of the English magazine here:

Universe Pathways: Issue 5