Two Seasons by Geoff Lee, published by London League Publications, priced £9.95

WHEN Geoff Lee was working as a draughtsman he was mindful of an old saying.

"They say about work that 'you could write a book about this place'. So that's what I did," says Geoff.

His fifth novel, Two Seasons, is the latest in a series loosely based on Geoff's own experiences of work and his passion for rugby league.

Set in the small town of Ashurst, the book centres on Alan Greenall, who has worked for more than 40 years as an electrical draughtsman at Wilkinson's Engineering Works, now part of a multi-national company.

Geoff took up writing in 1988, inspired by people he worked with. "If something funny happened at work it gave me an idea," he says. "I used to show colleagues my writing and a woman who worked in wages told me: "I like it Geoff, but there are no women in it!"

So Geoff introduced romance to Alan's life, in the shape of Thelma, and another character based on his granny. Two Seasons introduces Jenny, a design engineer.

Geoff, 76, is now working on the sixth instalment. The books are published by London League Publications which, says Geoff, took a gamble.

"They said that since This Sporting Life there hadn't been a novel about sport and life in the north," he says. "They took me on and my first book sold nearly 10,000 copies. That one is set from 1962-73 and this one is 2002-2003. The books follow my working life, with a focus on the humour in life and work."

A proud moment for Geoff came when Stan Barstow, author of A Kind of Loving and also a former draughtsman, described his first book, One Winter, as "warm and authentic" and an "enjoyable read".

"For someone writing about northern life, it doesn't get much better," says Geoff. "Being a draughtsman, I was drawing for other people. When I started writing I thought: 'Who am I writing for?' I based my novels on what I knew - northern working class life."

Geoff was born and raised in St Helens and "ended up in Keighley". He worked as an engineering draughtsman in Lancashire, Yorkshire and London, for firms included the former Allied Colloids in Low Moor. His working life came to an end after he underwent heart bypass surgery in 2002.

"I started off in 1957 at the BICC factory at Prescot. The initials stood for British Insulated Callenders Cables but could just as easily have stood for the 'Biggest Individual Collection of Comedians'," muses Geoff. "I worked there with 17,000 others, but all traces of it have gone now. What remains are memories of my old workmates and what was once made there."

Geoff is well known in rugby league circles and has had good feedback about his books, not least from England coach Brian Noble.

"One of the first dates Alan takes Thelma on is a rugby league match!" laughs Geoff.

One Winter introduces Alan as a young draughtsman "with an interest in romance, rock ‘n’ roll and rugby league".

"It took me eight years to complete it, writing after being at work all day," he adds. "Now I'm on the sixth one, and I've no intention of ending the story there."

* Geoff's books are available on llpshop.co.uk

* For more about his books visit geofflee.net

Emma Clayton