Hello and welcome.
I’m Mark Diacono, a writer, cook, gardener, walker and photographer. I live in the south west of England.
I write about food - from the garden to the table - and everything connected with it. You’ll find recipes, stories and much about growing and cooking incredible flavours.
I’m also here to help if you are looking to take your writing to another level, to engage with the publishing process in all its forms, and to create a substack that works for you.
Why subscribe
Every week or so, I publish the latest instalment of ABUNDANCE: Recipes and Stories From A Gardening Cook, the book I am writing live here - many are free to read
Every month, I will be publishing The Compendium - exceptional writing, a playlist or two, recipes, a plant thats’s great to plant or eat right now, and much more
This is my writing home, and where I announce and reveal everything from book covers to events, offers and workshops
As a reader, you give this a point, a purpose, and I value that immensely
You’ll become a valued part of this wonderful community of writers and readers
I hope what arrives in your inbox will bring you pleasure.
Here is different too: you are not part of an algorithm, there are no ads. This is all about me, you, this community and the words.
Why become a paid subscriber
Become a paid subscriber and you get more…including access to all my words, recipes and online workshops, masterclasses and other events.
This includes:
online events - masterclasses from me, Ask-Me-Anythings, writing workshops (known as Gatherings) where we get into everything from interviews with commissioning editors and publishers, to writing a proposal, to making the most of your own Substack. Ordinarily, this kind of professional development comes at a cost; here, it comes as part of your paid subscription
access to the replays of past events
being able to read all of ABUNDANCE, the book I’m writing live here
paid subscribers (on 20 Oct and 31 Dec 2024) will have the option of having their name printed in it, recognising that you made it happen
a digital PDF of my book A Taste of the Unexpected, which was awarded Food Book of the Year in the UK. To have this sent to you, email me once you are a paid subscriber
If you live in mainland UK, you are also eligible for:
25% off plants and seeds from the Otter Farm nursery website. For more about this, click here
a signed copy of my book SPICE (RRP £25) for only £3.50 +p&p from my website. Instructions as to how, here
It may not have escaped your notice that if you come to one of the online events I run for paid subscribers, or buy the book and a few plants, just the discount from that will easily cover the cost of an annual subscription.
About me
I’ve written over a dozen books, winning Food Book of the Year twice, and Garden Book of the Year twice. My book SOUR was shortlisted for a prestigious James Beard Foundation Award in 2020. I also won Garden Blog of the Year twice.
I write a monthly food columns for The Sunday Times, Delicious Magazine and a monthly gardening column for Country Life magazine.
My latest book VEGETABLES was published in June 2024.
I once led the garden team at River Cottage and I created the groundbreaking Otter Farm.
I am very happy to say I’m an Honorary Professor at Liverpool University.
Innovative gardening
In 2004, I created Otter Farm from two blank fields in southwest England. It become a ground-breaking 17 acre smallholding, growing probably the most diverse range of edible plants in the country. Pecans, Nepalese pepper, Asian pears and Chilean guava growing alongside asparagus, apples and grapevines in orchards and forest gardens.
Although I no longer live at the farm, the nursery continues to encourage people to grow unusual and forgotten food along with the best of the familiar, and I use those principles in my new garden.
River Cottage
I was involved in the early days of River Cottage, leading the garden team, running courses and events, and appearing in the TV series. I wrote three of their best selling Handbooks, including Veg Patch.
Before that
Having woken from a sustained period of idleness, a million gigs and the occasional foray abroad, I took a degree followed by a Masters in Environmental Management, and ran a consultancy advising government agencies and local authorities in sustainably managing the landscape.
Thank you…
…for subscribing and being a valued part of this vibrant community of people who share some of your interests, who have insights and experiences that might enrich your life and vice versa. I’m delighted to have you along.
Mark
