An introduction to a lesser known English author...
Now semi-retired, he counts his time as a local journalist as a career highlight.
All his titles are available in paperback and e-book formats. Fluke's Cradle and In the Shadow of Marc Bolan are also available in hardcover.
Contact : malfoster1956@gmail.com
Follow Mal on Facebook www.facebook.com/MalFosterAuthor
Very much a self-proclaimed “writer of the ordinary man,” Mal Foster was born in 1956 and grew up in Camberley, Surrey before moving to nearby Knaphill in the late 1980s. He had left school just before his sixteenth birthday in 1972 to help support his single mother and younger brother. Around this time he began writing poetry, and indeed, his first poems were published soon after.
In 1982 Mal joined the amateur music society CAMUS. In May 1983 he took a lead role as Lt Joseph Cable in the Rogers & Hammerstein Musical, 'South Pacific,' at Camberley Civic Hall.
Mal was once part of the music duo 'Leviathan' with Paul Wells. A number of tracks still exist on cassette tape. There are plans to have them digitalised.
In 1987, Mal recorded some of his poems with the band, 'Magic Moments at Twilight Time' and appeared live with the group at the Greenpeace Festival in Surrey.
Mal's song 'The Unheard Of War' was performed live by the Irish band, 'Giro Junction', at the St James Tavern, Piccadilly, London in 1988.
Snippets...
Mal Foster's first poetry was published when he was just seventeen. He went on to win three Young Poet awards, and edited the small press poetry magazine, 'Wire'.
Poetry Unlocked: Written in 1980 on a London Underground train, Mal Foster's poem, 'The Wedding,' is his most-read piece to date.
A tongue-in-cheek (1987) recorded version of 'The Wedding' exists and was performed by the band Magic Moments at Twilight Time. Mal and Shona (Atkinson) Moments performed vocals, and the band's Mick Magic played keyboards. Mal also appeared with the band at the Greenpeace Festival in Surrey the same year.
‘The Wedding’ was also included in Poetry Unlocked, an anthology for secondary school students in Australia published in 2007 as part of their English Literature exam curriculum. Something Mal has stated as "ironic", as he had left school without any formal qualifications himself!
A definitive selection of Mal's poetry, entitled Songs Without Music, which includes 'The Wedding', is available HERE