A regional sports journalist has published his debut novel after calling on colleagues to help him research the story.

Mark Eklid, who is most well-known for his years of writing about Derbyshire County Cricket Club for the Derby Telegraph, has achieved a childhood ambition by publishing taut psychological thriller Sunbeam.

Set in Sheffield, the book not surprisingly features some cricketing scenes – although not as many as he originally penned.#

Said Mark:  “I trusted one of my oldest friends to read it and he said there was too much cricket in it, so I scaled it down a bit.”

Mark also researched court procedure with the help of Derby Telegraph court reporter Martin Naylor before penning the novel.

He told the Telegraph: “It is a little scary to think my name is on the cover and it has come entirely from my imagination.

“And the nearer to publication I got, I felt like I was about to step out naked in public. My main thought was ‘what if no-one likes it?”

“Journalism calls for observation and tight writing – two qualities useful to an author. But if I can do it then anyone can, it’s just a case of finding the time and being disciplined.”

“Promoting the publication far and wide is my next aim.”

Sunbeam, which is self-published by Mark through Amazon, is available here.