Colin Jarman has been a professional sailing writer and photographer for almost 40 years. He began his career on the English magazine Motor Boat and Yachting before moving to the cruising magazine Yachting Monthly as Features Editor. He turned freelance in 1979 and set up a syndicated news and feature service for boating magazines world wide. At its height Eyeline was by far the largest such service and contributed to every major boating magazine.

A chance meeting in the offices of Practical Boat Owner led to Colin's teaming up with fellow photojournalist Philip Dunn to start the magazine Sailing Today in 1997. Later the two of them also launched the first internet only sailing magazine.

Colin's first book, Coastal Cruising, was published back in 1975 and has been followed by a dozen or so books covering various aspects of sailing and seamanship. His most popular book, Knots in Use, is now in its third edition and is available in many different languages. Colin's latest books are East Coast Pilot (see www.eastcoastpilot.com), a guide to cruising the Thames Estuary, Knots & Splices, a pocket tutor, and Where Land Meets Sea, a largely aerial view of England's East Coast.

Born and brought up on England's East Coast, where he also learned to sail, the jest has been made that there's more mud than blood in Colin's veins. Be that as it may, he freely admits to loving those shallow, muddy waters and still keeps his little cruiser there - a 19ft gaff rigged Cornish Shrimper called Gypsy.

Colin's writing and photography is now mainly published by Sailing Today, where he writes his popular Riding Light column and does most of the long term gear and product testing for the magazine. He is still a freelance, though, so he also undertakes commissions from elsewhere for both words and pictures. A member of the Ocean Cruising Club (www.oceancruisingclub.org) since 1974, Colin also edits and designs the club's quarterly OCC Newsletter.

Contents

 Riding Light

Published Work