A SCUNTHORPE-born public relations supremo has published his first book.

Chris Wilson's The Commuter's Tale is a poetic thriller written entirely in verse.

Chris, who has written his debut under the pseudonym Oliver Gozzard, left Scunthorpe at a young age but speaks fondly of the town.

"My parents often talk about Scunthorpe," he said.

"When I was at university in Hull I cycled to Scunthorpe and I really liked it. I find that it's much more friendly in the north than it is in the south."

It was Chris's father's work which meant the former journalist left Scunthorpe at a young age.

"My dad was a gas man and he was working as a fitter in Scunthorpe. I was born on one of the coldest days in Scunthorpe's history in 1961. We lived on a council estate near the steelworks.

"Two or three years later my parents gradually started moving down south, and eventually we moved to Poole in Dorset.

"But my dad always speaks very fondly of Scunthorpe."

The 49-year-old has moved around just as much, working as a journalist on papers in Coventry, Hull and as the showbiz editor at the Daily Star.

Chris's inspiration for The Commuter's Tale came during two years of commuting to and from London. It tells the story of how a bored commuter quits the nine-to-five to embark on a daring adventure with a modern-day version of romantic poet Lord Bryon – brought back to life as a rap star.

Chris said he had chosen the pen-name of Oliver Gozzard because he thought his own name a bit dull.

"I just wanted to use a different name," he said.

"Chris Wilson is such a common name, and I liked Gozzard – it means someone who drives the geese to market."

The "thriller in verse" has been published by Desert Hearts and is on sale nationwide in more than 105 bookshops, including a number in the region.

Chris said: "The idea for The Commuter's Tale came to me in 2008 while commuting to and from London. I wrote and revised the entire book over the next two years on countless train journeys."