AN author from Radcliffe is hoping that a book written as a university project will turn into a best seller.

Gill James, of Chapeltown Road, wrote The Prophecy while studying a PhD in creative and critical writing at Bangor University.

She started the novel in 2002 and continued re-writing and editing it after completing her studies in 2007.

The book has now been published by Manchester firm Red Telephone Books and is available from bookshops and online retailers.

Dr James, aged 58, said: “I started writing the book as part of my PhD and kept changing it again and again. It is so long since I finished writing it that I’ve forgotten about some of the things that happen in it.

“I’m very happy with the book now though and pleased it has been published.”

The book is a futuristic adventure aimed at young adults and is set on the planet Terrestra.

The main character, Kaleem, a student who is bullied because he is different, is given the chance to save his planet from a deadly disease.

Mother-of-two Dr James, a lecturer at Salford University, has had more than 30 fiction and non-fiction books published. The Prophecy is the first in a trilogy and Dr James is currently finishing the next book, due to be published in September.