<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> T H E B O S U N ' S C H R O N I C L E All the latest on Julian Stockwin's Kydd series <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> VOL. 5, ISSUE 2, March 2005 Avast, Shipmates and anchors aweigh! 1 DISPATCHES 2 FEATURE 3 BOOKSHELF 4 WHAT SHIP? 5 SALTY SAYINGS 6 A DAY IN THE LIFE 7 CONTESTS 8 COUNTDOWN TO TRAFALGAR 9 THIS SHIP IS 10 NEW ON THE WEB ==================== 1 DISPATCHES +McBooks Press Last month we announced that McBooks Press will be publishing QUARTERDECK in the US this October, and subsequent volumes thereafter. Julian says: "Anyone who has seen their publications knows of the professionalism of McBooks - and I am delighted to be working with publisher Alex Skutt and his talented team." The Bosun recently caught up with Alex to chat about the Kydd series in America. Alex founded the company, which is based in New York State, in 1980. During the last seven years he has especially developed the nautical fiction side of his business and now publishes many of the leading authors in the field. Recently Alex was awarded the Miriam Hope Bass Award for Creativity in Independent Publishing. Bosun: What particularly drew you to Julian's books? Alex: They have the elements that I, as a reader, hope to find in the nautical fiction I most enjoy: well-plotted adventure, high-tension battle sequences, historical and maritime accuracy, and a richly drawn, appealing protagonist. They are abundantly present in the Thomas Kydd sea adventures! Bosun: Do you have a favourite? Alex: I've loved them all. Perhaps my favourite is ARTEMIS because that's the novel in which Kydd begins his ascent to higher rank and responsibility. In addition to nautical excitement, there's also plenty of imaginative dry land activity. Bosun: What plans have you for the Thomas Kydd series in the States? Alex: We will publish both the paperback MUTINY and the hardcover QUARTERDECK in October this year. Soon we hope to catch up with the publishing schedule of Hodder & Stoughton in the UK and offer simultaneous UK/US publication. Bosun: Anything else you'd like to add? Alex: I'd just like to reiterate my joy that McBooks Press will be working with Julian and Kathy Stockwin to bring the Kydd adventures to a large US readership! www.mcbooks.com +Mutiny audiobook BBC Audiobooks bring out the unabridged audiobook of MUTINY this month, in both CD (special price: GBP 22.99) and tape (special price: GBP 17.99) format, read by Christian Rodska. http://www.audiobookcollection.com/ +Trafalgar party suggestions American Shipmate David Roth emailed saying he would like to hold a Trafalgar Dinner in honour of Lord Nelson and could Julian offer some menu suggestions. We're working on this, and will report back to you in a future issue. +Julian on Malta Julian and Kathy spent time in Malta last month on location research for COMMAND, the seventh book in the Kydd series. Julian talks about some of the highlights of the visit: "Even though the Royal Navy had a presence in Malta until 1979, it was not somewhere I had visited during my time in the Service so when I decided to include Malta in COMMAND, I knew I had to go there to get a sense of the place through Kydd's eyes. For a tiny island, just 122 square miles, Malta holds so much to capture a writer's imagination. I had to be very focused in my research or I would have been sidetracked by over 5000 years of history! When we go on these location research visits there is always a great deal of preparation ahead of time - Kathy is excellent at this and digs up the names of various experts to contact etc. Sometimes we find there is almost an embarrassment of people to talk to and Malta was no exception. There is a deep regard and respect for history and preserving the nation's heritage. In fact we were so busy there we did not have any time for sightseeing and did not even get to see the archaeological sites or visit Gozo! We spent many absorbing hours in the National Archives looking at the priceless documents from Kydd's time. These are always so precious to me, and I delight in reading the actual words that Kydd would have done. On one particularly cold day we went with Joseph Muscat, a world authority on the small local vessels of the Mediterranean, to the fishing village of Marsaxlokk where he showed me the colourful, traditional boats that Kydd would have seen, still in use. One question I was asked before I visited Malta was - did Nelson stay ashore there? It appears he did, at St Paul's Bay, where he rented a small villa with the Hamiltons for a few days - and legend has it that his daughter Horatia was conceived there. But please don't think my visit to Malta was all work. In the evenings (after I had typed up my notes for the Boss) we took great pleasure in sampling Maltese cuisine - and especially some of the fine Maltese red wines that are available. I recommend these highly!" + World Book Day, March 3 To mark World Book Day Julian is giving a talk at a special Readers' Day at Taunton Library, Somerset. Details on the website. This year, the organisers are campaigning to encourage people to recommend a good read to friends and family - why not join in and suggest the Kydd books? The Bosun would be happy to send you some Kydd series bookmarks - just email your postal address with Bookmarks in the subject line. +UK paperback of QUARTERDECK Hodder & Stoughton are publishing QUARTERDECK this month "A" format (export market) ISBN 0 340 83870 "B" format ISBN 0 340 83219 3 ===================== 2 FEATURE Tallships today It is really only in the last ten years that sailing in tallships has become an option for people other than naval cadets or members of certain youth organisations. Now, and especially in the Year of the Sea, there are fantastic opportunities all around the world - in countries as diverse as Japan and Russia - to experience the unique experience of sailing in a tall ship. We can't list all the sites devoted to the world of tallships, but here are a few you might like to visit. + Want to sail on a tall ship? Lots of information http://chrisbrady.itgo.com/tallship/wantosail.htm + Tall Ships FAQ. A useful overview of the scene. www.apparent- wind.com/tall-ships-faq.html + Clipper ships. Some wonderful images! http://www.eraoftheclipperships.com/introductionweb.html + Cornwall-based fleet of square-riggers http://www.square-sail.com/ + "The Lady Washington", a fine replica ship. Shipmate Nathanael Logsdon has signed up for a voyage and has promised to report back to Shipmates soon! http://ladywashington.org/ + One of the last full-rigged ships still sailing. http://www.tallshipbounty.org/ ==================== 3 BOOKSHELF + The Sailor's Word-Book By Admiral W H Smyth, Conway Maritime Press ISBN 0851779727 First published in 1867, this is a wonderful source book of the rich sea language of Kydd's day. With some 14,000 nautical terms it defines a huge range of both common and rare words in the author's characteristically pithy style. Julian always has his copy to hand as he writes! For a chance to win a copy, see Contests + Bound for Blue Water By J Russell Jinishian ISBN 0 867 13 088 1 Written by the leading authority on American marine art of the twentieth and twenty-first century, this superbly produced book highlights key movements in today's scene and features over 200 colour illustrations. As well as paintings, Jinishian includes scrimshaw and sculpture - and looks at the historical influences that have shaped current artists. ==================== 4 WHAT SHIP IS THIS? See if you can guess which vessel this is from the clue below. Can you also remember in which book she appeared? (The answer is at the end of the newsletter.) A small three-masted Mediterranean craft; often equipped as a corsair. ==================== 5 SALTY SAYINGS clean bill of health Today, if we give something a clean bill of health it generally means it is are in good shape, for example a company with respect to its financial dealings. This expression derives from the certificate issued by a port authority in Kydd's day confirming that no member of a ship's crew suffered from a reportable contagious disease, and that no contagion was known to be present in the ship's point of departure. Plague was of special concern for obvious reasons. If there was a problem, a "foul bill of health" was issued. ==================== 6 A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A SHIP-O'-THE-LINE The Morning Watch The Morning Watch was between 4am and 8am. Practices varied between ships, but what follows is fairly typical. Shortly after the beginning of this watch the idlers (such as the gun room steward, gun room cook, poulterer, midshipmen's servant, cook's mate, captain of the head, who was responsible for cleaning the toilets) were called up to begin their duties. The cook lit the galley fires and started the burgoo, or breakfast porridge. Around 5 am the decks were swept by the duty watch, rinsed with sea water, sprinkled with sand and then scrubbed with "holystones", hunks of sandstone. The residue was swilled off and the decks swabbed until dry. Then all the brasswork and bright steel was polished with rags and brickdust. By 7am this work was complete, the gear stowed away, and the rest of the crew awakened with "up hammocks". The seamen had to move smartly, dressing, lashing their hammocks and stowing them on deck - this was done in just twelve minutes on the "Superb". Breakfast was served at 8 am and usually a half hour was allowed for this meal. Next month - The Forenoon Watch ==================== 7 CONTESTS Great prizes this month! Email entries Bosun@JulianStockwin.com. Please include your postal address and put CONTEST in the subject line. Deadline: March 25 + The Sailor's Word-Book For a chance to win a copy, email the Bosun with the answer to this question: To which discipline did Smyth devote much of his naval career? www.conwaymaritime.com + Limited Edition print of HMS Pickle You could be the winner if we draw your name out first! Send your answer to this question to the Bosun: Name two other prints in Geoff Hunt's Fighting Sail series. + MUTINY Audiobook If you would like your name to go into the hat for a copy of the unabridged audiobook of MUTINY email the Bosun with the answer to this question: Where did Renzi meet Stanhope in this book? + Commemorative stamp sets from the Isle of Man Post If you'd like to be in the draw for one of these sets, email the Bosun with the name of one other Manx sailor present at Trafalgar. Congratulations to Tony Osborn and David Lambert, winners of last month's contests. Apologies for any confusion over the wording of the question about Nelson's son (stepson) - to be fair to everyone, we put all entries into the hat! =================== 8 COUNTDOWN TO TRAFALGAR Events for the celebrations connected with the bicentenary of the Battle of Trafalgar are gathering momentum. You can check out the latest news on www.seabritain.co.uk +Honouring Quilliam The Isle of Man is a tiny Crown dependency in the Irish Sea. A Manx man, William Quilliam, saved HMS "Victory" from fatal damage during the Battle of Trafalgar. The island will be celebrating this, and its many links with the sea, in a special programme of maritime events this year. www.seaisleofman.com/Events.htm For a brief bio of Quilliam you might like to visit: http://www.homepages.mcb.net/kelly/manxatsea/quilliam.html Interestingly, Quilliam started his naval career as a pressed man and rose up the ranks to become post captain. +Voyages in Pickle A replica of the famous vessel will be touring the UK from June to September. This Pickle is a 97 foot topsail schooner, built in Russia in 1996 as a sail training ship - and very similar to the original. http://www.hmspickle.org.uk/ We have a superb limited edition print of "Pickle" - battling bravely through the waves as she bears the bitter-sweet news back to London of Nelson's death and the great victory at Trafalgar - for one lucky Shipmate! See CONTESTS. Geoff Hunt painted this famous vessel as part of his "Fighting Sail 1773-1815" set. www.artmarine.co.uk + Nautical Narratives Tour Julian has been invited to give a talk in Greenwich on July 17 for the Nautical Narratives Tour, which will take American book lovers to Nelson's birthplace, Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, Buckler's Hard and many other areas of special significance in this bicentennial year. www.bookadventures.com/05nautitin.html =================== 9 THIS SHIP IS She's an xebec (pronounced 'she-bek'), a vessel distinguished by the great projection of her bow and overhanging of her stern. The rig varied with the wind - in normal conditions they were square-rigged on the foremast and lateen-rigged on the main and mizzen but this changed, for example, to a full lateen rig, but with over-length yards, when sailing close-hauled. In Julian's books we read of the xebec in MUTINY. =================== 10 NEW ON THE WEB We've just completed a revamp of the website. Please do visit and let us know how you like it! Suggestions are always welcome. www.JulianStockwin.com =================== Coming next month - We catch up with Geoff Hunt RSMA to talk about painting the cover of TENACIOUS - and we announce details of our new Reading Groups programme. Yours aye, THE BOSUN ++ Back issues of the newsletter downloadable from the website ++