Martin Malone was born in Hartlepool in 1963 and is a Special Educational Needs teacher. He has worked in Europe and the Middle East. As a sound engineer and as a guitarist and songwriter he has released six albums. Nowadays, he plays guitar for The Scaremongers. He has published studies of Thomas Hardy’s short stories and the poetry of Alexander Pope and Charles Churchill. 17 Landscapes, his first pamphlet, was described by Carol Ann Duffy as “breathtakingly assured”. He lives in Maulds Meaburn near Appleby in Cumbria. The Waiting Hillside is his first full collection.