A LOCAL author hopes to cash in on the American fascination and demand for British historical novels.

Brian Wainwright has gone Transatlantic to have his latest book published by a company in the USA. The historical novel, entitled Within the Fetterlock took the local government education officer four years to write.

Because such stories are rather unfashionable in this country, the 50-year-old author successfully found a publisher in the USA.

Brian, of Swinton Crescent, Unsworth, already has a previous historical novel under his belt. The Adventures of Alianore Audley was published last year.

"The new book is quite different and something I've been working on for a long time," he says. "I'm quite obsessed with the Middle Ages and I've a particular interest in the 14th and 15th centuries, especially the House of York.

"The book is about the early years of that family, about 50 years before the War of the Roses started.

"It took me four years to write this version, weekends and evenings that is, but there were other versions before that and the research seems to have been going on for eternity."

Brian disclosed: "The idea for the book was born from a very brief reference to the heroine, Constance of York, doing something which I thought was quite amazing for a woman of that era rescuing two boy prisoners from Windsor Castle, the biggest fortress in England."

Now, Brian's book will be soon be published to allow readers both here and Stateside to glimpse life in that historical period.

Within the Fetterlock has been snapped up by Tamara Mazzei, managing director of USA-based Trivium Publishing.

Brian continued: "I think there's maybe more of a market for English history and historical fiction in the States than you might realise. I know a lot of Americans are fascinated by our history. After all, for many of them, pre 1776, it's their history too.

"They have ancestors who were involved. According to one website I found, Humphrey Bogart was a descendant of Constance."

Not surprisingly, Brian is delighted that his book is to be published. "I'm very excited. I don't expect to become a millionaire or anything silly like that. But I know for a fact there are hundreds of fine writers out there who never get a sniff."

Asked what attracted her to Within the Fetterlock, Tamara Mazzei of Trivium said: "There are so many things, the writing; the characters; the story itself. The combination of them all took my breath away. Constance of York is one of those historical figures who hasn't received much attention, but Brian teased out every detail to draw a lifelike portrait of an amazing woman. It is one of the best written and best researched historical sagas I've ever read.'"

She says that large publishers often do historical fiction in popular genres, like mysteries and romances, but not many publish the "big" sweeping historicals any more. "That's a boon for us, though," she stresses, "because readers still want them."