Delroy in the Marog Kingdom Cover Picture

Here it is!

Publication Dates

November 7, 2008 is the publication date for the first 4 titles in the Island Fiction Series, followed on November 28 by Night of the Indigo, and on December 12 by Delroy in the Marog Kingdom. Enjoy!

Escape from Silk Cotton Forest

Escape from Silk Cotton Forest, a title in the Island Fiction Series, is the featured book of the week on Macmillan Caribbean's website.
Congratulations Francis!
This is so exciting! Order your copy now!

I'm published!

All in the Family by Tony Bradman is now available from A & C Black, Publishers. My story "Finding My Roots" is in it.

WILDE Network Ltd (see links)

I first became aware of WILDE (Women Into Literature, Development and Enterprise) in 2006 when I entered the WiSPA (Wilde’s Summer Poetry Alliance) Creative Writing Competition. In July 2006, I attended an inspiring workshop in Negril, Jamaica, put on by WiSPA. As a result of being a runner-up in the Creative Writing contest, and promotion by Wilde Network, my story ‘Finding My Roots’ will be included in an anthology entitled ‘All in the Family’ to be published by A & C Black Publishers Ltd. in May 2008.

About WILDE International Network
Founded in 1999 and incorporated in 2003, WILDE International Network is an arts production company, whose services include learning & development, events design & management, audio services and publishing. WiSPA is the annual literary retreat for female authors and poets from the UK and the US who are joined by their Jamaican counter-parts, in an invigorating interaction of diverse feminine creativity.

The Marog Kingdom

Delroy’s adventures are told in

DELROY IN THE MAROG KINGDOM

“If you look into River Mumma’s eyes, something terrible going happen to you!” Too late, Delroy remembers his mother’s warning. Is drowning his fate or is something worse in store? Becoming a marog is only the beginning. The king of these unusual frogs has chosen Delroy to succeed him, but first he must retrieve the king’s magical stone from a venomous snake. Slogging through underground caves and tunnels, faced with insurmountable obstacles, Delroy is tempted to give up. But Gorem, his intrepid companion goads him on, even when an incredible find renders their quest unnecessary.

Throughout his journey, Delroy pines for his former life. Returning to his village in frog form only makes matters worse. His papa treated him—the ‘outside child’— unfairly, but that was nothing to what he’s going through now. Delroy yearns for Papa. Will they ever see each other again? Not unless the marogs can transform Delroy back into a boy.

Delroy in the Marog Kingdom is a title in the

Island Fiction Series

A series of world class, authentic Caribbean books for 10-15 year-olds.

Character driven sci.fi/fantasy/folklore stories.

Published by Macmillan Caribbean.

Edited by Joan Gail Johnson.

Look out for Island Fiction titles due in 2008:

—ask for them at your local bookshop (in October 2008)

Legend of the Swan Children by Maureen Marks Mendonca (see links for her beautiful interactive website.)

Chalice Project by Lisa Allen Agostini

Escape from Silkcotton Forest by Francis Escayg

Timeswimmer by Gerald Hausman

Gerald Hausman is author and storyteller of adult & children’s books about Native America, Animals, Mythology, African American, and West Indian culture. (see links)

Night of the Indigo by Michael Holgate (see links)

Delroy in the Marog Kingdom by Billy Elm. (penname of Helen Williams)

Calabash Festival

Jamaica’s Calabash Literary Festival takes place at Treasure Beach, St. Elizabeth, on the last weekend in May each year. Calabash is the brainchild of Colin Channer and Kwame Dawes, two internationally acclaimed Jamaican writers who are wonderfully supportive of the efforts of other local writers. See links for Colin’s website.

Inspirational Quotations.

Here’s one from Albert Einstein:

"Strange is our situation here upon earth. Each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to a divine purpose. From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know: That we are here for the sake of others...for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of sympathy. Many times a day, I realize how much my outer and inner life is built upon the labors of people, both living and dead, and how earnestly I must exert myself in order to give in return as much as I have received."
I know he was a genius, but whatever one’s capabilities, his philosophy is food for thought.

This next one is from the editor’s review of The Kite Runner by Kahled Hosseini:

‘ … the dark hearts of adults are made step-by-step by the hatred they learn as children and all that it takes for evil to triumph is for a good man to stand back and do nothing.’

These 2 quotations sum up why I feel the need to do something, if it is only for one child at a time.

You all know the saying: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” I believe that if you teach a child to read and give him an education, he will be able to find employment, or employ himself and feed himself for a lifetime.

Teaching Reading

At the moment I’m helping 2 boys with reading and other school work. The older one I found out couldn’t read when he was in grade 5. He was keen to learn, so I started him with flash cards and then progressed to phonics. He has a strong visual memory. Two years on, he is now reading at grade 4 level.

One of the problems I have with these boys is that I sometimes have difficulty in understanding what they are saying. Even though I have lived in Jamaica for nearly 40 years, I can’t speak the patois and can’t always understand it. That’s why I’d prefer to train a group of older teens who’d be willing to help children with reading. There are lots of children who need help, but I’m yet to get that project off the ground.

CUMI Children’s Programme

CUMI stands for The Committee for the Upliftment of the Mentally Ill.

Children's Program: In 1996 CUMI commenced the children's program. Services target children who are abandoned because parent(s) are mentally ill and unable to provide care and protection.

The structure provides foster mother care using the Family Court, Children's Services. For those eligible candidates education, healthcare, family life provision and any other basic requirement for normal development are included.

This approach aims to alleviate child suffering and prevent a future adult population of mentally ill and street people.

I support the CUMI Children’s Programme.

Children of Faith

Children of Faith was established in 1999 in Montego Bay, St. James as a response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Western Region of Jamaica. The objectives of this organization are: To reach every child that has become orphaned because of HIV/AIDS; to ensure that children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS are provided with love and support, accepting them as our own and ensuring that children are educated and become functional adults in society.

I am a volunteer with Children of Faith