Preston musician trades drumsticks for pen to write children’s book
A musician from Preston traded his drumsticks for a pen to write a children’s book.
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Mark Whiteside, who stars in cult band Evil Blizzard, wrote The Car Gnome.
The story is based on childhood memories and had been on Mark’s mind for many years before writing the book.
“During the 2020 lockdown, I decided to finish the story and look for a publisher,” Mark said. “The story was the easy part, but finding an artist was not.”
Fortunately, Mark has found Gizelle Molnar, who lives right next to him in Ashton-on-Ribble.
Mark said: “I already knew Zel, but I didn’t think she would want to join my idea. However, she agreed and the rest is history as they say.
“His paintings are brilliant and add magic to the book”.
Mark says it was “a labor of love” to bring the book to fruition.
Now, with the help of friends and an editor from Sixth Element Publishing, the book is slated to be released for the Christmas market.
Mask added: “I am amazed at how people got behind this. After only an hour, we had sold 30 books. It might not sound like a lot in the book business, but to me and Zel it’s amazing.
Advance orders are taken from The Car Gnome website.
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