The Nook, a bookstore and gift shop on Gloucester Main Street, will be holding an author event for Phillip Sanderson of Mathews on Saturday, April 4 from 1-3 p.m. Sanderson’s debut historical fiction novella, “Conkers, Pearls, and the Girl Who Loved Snuffy Stirnweiss,” was published in December.

“I’ve been writing deliberately for maybe three years,” said Sanderson.

Sanderson, a math instructor at the Chesapeake Bay Governor’s School Glenns campus, has been known in recent years to disappear into his stories for hours on end, both in writing and researching.

“I kept writing, mostly short stories,” he said. “I decided to not jump into novels right away.”

The idea for his debut novella began as a request from his stepmother who suggested that he “write a story about conkers for your dad.”

Conkers is an old game that was popular among children in the 1940s and 1950s. “That is the most ridiculous premise I could ever come up with,” said Sanderson.

The main character of the story, Bizzie Ferris, came from one of Sanderson’s students who was casually talking about his cousin of the same name during class. He found the name so unusual and charming that he wrote it down for later use.

Slowly, the story began to take form for Sanderson. He imagined a group of Bronx children could have held a conkers tournament during the 1948 World Series to distract them from their team, the New York Yankees, not making the cut for the World Series that year. The Yankees competed in and won the World Series the year before and the year after.

“They are depressed because their team’s not in the World Series,” said Sanderson.

For every one hour of writing, Sanderson performed three hours of research. “The rabbit holes had rabbit holes,” he said.

During his research, Sanderson discovered a little-known hero of the 1947 World Series, Yankee Snuffy Stirnweiss.

“This girl, her hero is Snuffy Stirnweiss,” said Sanderson about Bizzie. “It works its way into the story.”

Sanderson also researched what these children would have done with their free time after school. “They go out in the streets and play games,” he discovered.

For his characters, he imagined a diverse cast since the Bronx was a true melting pot. Playing these games helped children erase racial boundaries.

“It broke down the barriers,” said Sanderson. “The currency was being able to play the games.”

His primary writing time took place on Tuesday and Thursday nights while his wife was out teaching GED classes. “I would sit down and just start typing,” said Sanderson.

Striking out as a solo project with no publisher, Sanderson relied on his family for help. “The editing team is just my family,” he said, mentioning that his brother found the story so enthralling on the first read that he could not put it down.

After months of navigating the labyrinth of self-publishing, learning how to format his book and analyzing proof copies, Sanderson had his completed novella out in the world on Dec. 7.

“The dedication is to my dad and my brother,” said Sanderson.

Growing up, Sanderson’s father was a civil engineer who enjoyed writing and his mother held an English degree and always made sure her children were reading.

“I do get it from both sides,” he said.

On April 4, he will be at The Nook for a meet-and-greet, author talk and book signing.

“It’s not something natural or easy,” said Sanderson about public speaking, in spite of his teaching background.

To keep up with Sanderson and his writings, sign up for his newsletter, “Sandy Thoughts,” online by visiting plsanderson.com.