Simon Whaley | Author | Writer | and a bit of a photographer too ...

Simon Whaley | Author | Writer | and a bit of a photographer too ...

Doing what I enjoy - walking in the fresh air.

Doing what I do best - drinking tea.

Doing what I like least -posing for a camera

Home > Biography

I began writing in my early teens and a couple of years later saw my first published piece in October 1989. Hooked from then on in, I spent as much of my free time writing as I could. Fifteen years later, in January 2004, I did something that every writing book on the planet tells you not to do - I jacked in the day job and became a full time writer. Well if you don't try, you'll never find out will you?

At the age of 14 I wrote to several famous writers asking for their advice, which included:

● Don't - become a brain surgeon instead, it's easier (Alan Bleasdale)

● Never give up (John Sullivan)

● Draw on what's around you (Alan Ayckbourn)

Looking back, I think I wholeheartedly concur will all of those. Becoming a Brain Surgeon would probably have taken less than 15 years.

After spending 8 years working for Barclays Bank in south-west London, the Welsh Borders beckoned, where the summer of 1997 was spent settling in. The final months of that year saw me employed in the local offices of the D.S.S for three months, before moving on the Rural Development Commission for six months. From there, the Community & Economic Development Unit of Herefordshire Council beckoned between July 1998 and January 2004.

In the meantime I kept sending out the articles and other ideas, with more and more success, becoming a regular contributor to Country Walking magazine's 'Down Your Way' section.

In 2003, Hodder & Stoughton published 100 Ways For A Dog To Train Its Human - a success story which was truly astounding. Published with an initial print run of 10,000 copies in September 2003, by 21st December 2003, Hodder supplied the 100,000th copy. Re-organisation at Herefordshire Council at the same time seemed to be fate suggesting that perhaps now was the time to have a crack at this writing game full time. In January 2004, I did just that.

Exploring this website will show you how that journey has developed. At the moment, it's a journey I'm still discovering, with no end in sight.

One of the best things I did when I moved to Shropshire, was to join a writer's circle near Telford. I started at Wrekin Writers in February 1998, and in January 1999, they elected me as Chairman (I can be so naive at times). I survived the role for 4 years and to this day remain an integral part of the committee. I also go to Ludlow Writers, and it astounds me that whilst I lived in London, I had difficulty finding a group that met at a convenient time, yet here in one of the more sparsely populated counties, I now go to two.

I am also a member of the Society of Authors and the Outdoor Writers & Photographers Guild.