A former weekly deputy editor who published an acclaimed memoir about local newspapers with two colleagues has turned to fiction for his second book.

Philip Elms took redundancy from the Hastings Observer series in 2009 after a 44-year career on South Coast newspapers.

The following year he co-authored the memoir Three Men and a Quote with former East Sussex colleagues Ken McEwan and John Dowling.

It became a local bestseller and later topped an Amazon specialist download chart.

Now Philip has published a collection of short stories in which, he says, the media features prominently.

Said Philip: “The eight stories are essentially fiction but it’s been fascinating to work in elements that made national headlines.

“Not surprisingly, the media features prominently. A recurring theme shows how the past can make a stinging impact on the present and my long association with the stage is also represented.”

The title story, Intruder, tells of what happens when a man who’s already living with a guilty secret is attacked in his own home.

Other stories include a revenge thriller, Burden of Guilt, The Waterways Conundrum, which deals with a national emergency in the near future, and Curtain Call, about life and love in an amateur theatre company.

Intruder And Other Stories is published by Rag Doll Media UK at £6.99. The book can be ordered through www.ragdollmediauk.com or by emailing [email protected].