M.G. Mason's Blog, page 14

A Salmonweird Sleighing: Chapter 1

So, here it is! The moment a handful of people have been waiting for. Here is the opening chapter of the second Salmonweird book: the Christmas Crime Comedy Caper A Salmonweird Sleighing.

Hello, my name is Karl, I’m a retired detective, the only living human in the village, and it’s a dark and stormy night.

Do you know what? I hate that line too, but being so close to Christmas, my guess is you’ll forgive the little transgression for the sake of the season. It’s better than Once up a t...

Three Things I Hope People Take Away from Salmonweird

Hello, it’s the author here. I thought I’d switch off the village voice for this blog post and talk as me for once. That is, instead of pretending to be an article written by a committee of scribes in a ghost village! I hope you’re enjoying the extra content here at salmonweird.co.uk either as an introduction to the books or as an expansion of the wider universe.

Your support here is much appreciated and the lovely feedback I get on the short stories and the character features (which I ha...

The Salmonweird Sea Shanty Playlist

Hello again dear reader! If you’ve read our book or any of our short stories, you’ll know how much Harry and some of the other residents love music. To get the full experience of the chronicles of our little village, we thought we would provide a quick post on the sea shanties that features in the currently released stories and some inspired by the events. Thanks to Harry for this.

Coast of High Barbary

As you walk about the village, the most raucous songs will inevitably come from Har...

Salmonweird Village Ran Out of Coffee – You Won’t Believe What Happened Next!

No, don’t worry, the village did not run out of coffee though we are running very low on some of our favourite biscuits. The jam is also getting perilously close and the clotted cream is down to one last pot. On that note, we want to talk about a new development that you can use to help us top up the village coffers.

Karl has been working so hard to chronicle the village’s major news stories. He does work hard, bless him, learning to create book covers, and improving his writing, editing ...

The Village Ran Out of Coffee – You Won’t Believe What Happened Next!

No, don’t worry, the village did not run out of coffee though we are running very low on some of our favourite biscuits. The jam is also getting perilously close and the clotted cream is down to one last pot. On that note, we want to talk about a new development that you can use to help us top up the village coffers.

Karl has been working so hard to chronicle the village’s major news stories. He does work hard, bless him, learning to create book covers, and improving his writing, editing ...

A Look Ahead to 2021 for Salmonweir Village

From Saturday 16th January 2021
Host: DI (Retired) Karl Blackman
Minutes taken by Village Committee Secretary Babajide Brewer

Welcome once again to the village hall here at Salmonweir. Ladies and gentlemen of the village, newspapers – I see we have a few of you here today, and book fans alike. Thank you to the living people here for respecting social distancing measures and wearing masks.

On a personal note, I’m relieved to see so many reporters muzzled.

(LAUGHTER)

As sent out in t...

The Crypt: A Salmonweird Christmas Ghost Story

Jowan waited for Karl to enter the church’s side room from the nave before placing the mug of tea on the table.

Karl leaned forward and swept up the mug just as Jowan clattered the generously loaded plate of Speculoos next to the mugs.

‘Don’t go eating them all at once!’ Jowan laughed, noticing Karl’s eyes widen.

‘Don’t tempt me,’ Karl said, ‘moving that tree was hungry work.’

‘I thought Cato was coming to help you? Plus, you did tell me you could do it on your own.’

‘I di...

The Next Stages for A Salmonweird Sleighing

Dynnargh dear reader! thank you for sticking with us during these quiet times. It’s been over a year since the release of the first Salmonweird book and news has been thin on the ground. We are always pleased to give you news and snippets of other events from around the village. We can now set out a kind of road map, if you like, for what will happen next for the events known around here as “The Christmas Incident.”

Karl reliably informs us that he has now finished the first draft. Exciti...

Revealed: A Salmonweird Sleighing Book Cover

Ladies and gentlemen, the Salmonweir Tourist Board is delighted to finally reveal the cover for our upcoming second volume A Salmonweird Sleighing. Released in June 2021, it chronicles what is known around these parts now as “The Christmas Incident.”

Taking place over a three-week period between Advent Sunday and Christmas Eve, here is the blurb:

It’s December and for Karl Blackman, the only living person in the Cornish ghost village of Salmonweir, that means unleashing his inner 6-yea...

Short Story: A Tale of Sword Crossed Lovers

It is a truth universally acknowledged that blacksmithing in the 21st century leaves a lot to be desired. I blame the Romans for this dumbing down of essential skills and outsourcing it for profit. I let out another long and frustrated sigh and closed my laptop lid.

So far my search for good replica armour had turned up very little of use. Most of what I could find on this “internet” you have these days was clearly of poor quality. Not a single piece would survive a light single strike of...