GFPC When Barney met Santa

About Ken Hayward

Hi I'm Ken Hayward Author and Illustrator of the Ginger Furry Pussy Cat series. I was born and raised in a mining village in what was the West Riding of Yorkshire England and while a career in the Coal Mines (Darn `t' Pit) was considered inevitable my parents persuaded me to look further afield. At 15 years of age I joined the Royal Navy and by the age of 19 I had covered at least half of the globe on an Aircraft Carrier before joining the fantastic world of submarines almost every day was a unique adventure. The rest of the world came later and I have never lost the fascination of travel and culture. Fortunately for me the Navy encouraged its younger sailors to write home often and it became a must do that kept Mum and Dad up to speed with a constant barrage of mail. They got the adventure stories from around the world and I kept the poetry to myself at least for the time being. Seventeen years as a Sailor and the Directorship of two engineering companies to follow the writing stayed with me. My greatest pleasure came when I taught my little girl to read by sharing the sentences being patient and taking credit for her first complete unaided page reading. The sudden invasion of our home by a real Ginger Tom cat prompted my first poem `The Burglar' and now some 20 years on and with much encouragement from my wife and `that not so little girl' I am fulfilling a dream by sharing my love of writing and art with those who will hopefully enjoy them the most. Read more at:...... www.kenhaywardauthor.co.uk. - www.kenhaywardauthor.com.