Novelist signs up as ‘The Daggers’ writer in residence
Dagenham and Redbridge FC have announced that they have signed their first ever writer in residence, Ian Ayris, the sports fiction and crime novelist and lifelong fan of the Daggers. He will be joining the club in a number of projects that are community related in a bid to bring football and writing together.
Ian has been attending matches at Victoria Road for more than 3 decades and is delighted to be able to play a part in both the club and the community. Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club managing director, Steve Thompson said, “Ian is a great fan of the club and we are happy to be working with him bringing football and increasing literary skills into the community. This will involve projects in schools and at the club engaging young people and fans of the club.”
Ian said, “Football clubs have a lot of influence with young people and in the community in general, especially clubs like The Daggers who are still very much a family club with family values. So it’s great to be here at the club I love and be able to work with them giving something back. I am looking forward to working with the club not just in schools but also on a project charting the history of the club with fans which we hope to produce as a book.”
Steve Thompson continued, “As a club we want to reach kids who have an interest in football at all levels. Not all will want to play or have the ability to make it as a professional footballer, but by making the most of their education they can broaden their options. Some may want to write about football or just improve their writing skills, and that’s where we as a club working with Ian, can give them inspiration.”
Ian’s novel, Abide with Me published by Caffeine Nights Publishing, hit the number one spot in Amazon’s sports fiction chart and is still the highest rated title in that section with over 50 reviews, including 44 5 star reviews. Part East End crime fiction, part passage of rites tale with football at its heart, Abide with Me is a moving tale charting the life of two boys given a raw deal in life.