Borough couple's delight at publishing debut novel for young adults

The Atherton duo’s work tells the tale of Mikey Birt, who goes to live with his eccentric uncle Victor and is embroiled in a quest to save his friend Eva which involves a magical portal to another world.

Amy and Ryan hope the book will be the first episode in a six-volume series, an ambitious project which so far has been some four years in the making and started with a writing session in a service station on the way home from an Everton football match.

They are delighted with their success at getting their book onto the shelves of major retailers, with Ryan saying it is particularly a lifelong dream come true for his fiancee Amy.

Ryan, 31, said: “Amy has wanted to write since she was about five years old. We went watching an Everton game and when we were going to get some food she passed me this idea and gave me the name of a character.

“We thought we would pursue it so when we were between service stations we decided to grab a coffee and start writing. It was being taken more seriously and before we knew it we had a full series planned out.

“It’s a young adult book. It has been categorised as magical realism and fantasy. There’s also a will-they-won’t-they love story with Mikey and Eva.

“It’s phenomenal to have it published. We’ve been getting all kinds of messages, some from people we haven’t spoken to in years. It’s a bit surreal.

“It feels fantastic and words can’t describe how happy we are. I’ve always liked writing but it has been Amy’s dream since she was a child.”

Ryan and Amy, 34, took around a year to plan and write the first novel in their series and are currently working on the third book. Ryan said they were interested in the concept of yin and yang and describe the adventures in the world of Magika as a battle between good and evil, protectors and destroyers.

The couple has been juggling their writing around full-time jobs and are now organising their burgeoning literary career from an office space in Bolton.

Thanks to a deal with publishers Olympia the novel is on sale from major retailers on both sides of the Atlantic and has already hit the Amazon charts since its release on January 28.

The cover of the book has also been a local effort with their fellow Atherton resident Kenny Partington providing the design.

The Birt Family Secret and The Tale Of Two Worlds, by A.R Merga, is out now. To find out more follow @armerga on Twitter or visit www.facebook.com/armergaofficial

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