Introducing my Co-Author

I have an announcement. I’m co-writing a book, and my partner in this endeavour is somebody very special. It all started earlier today when my Mum forwarded me an email from author J.B O’Neil. He introduced a video on his author page explaining how he co-wrote a book with his 8-year-old son, and it became one of his best-selling titles.

My daughter Chloe has been talking for a while about how she wants to write a story with me. I thought, why not take it the next step and do what J.B. O’Neil did.

Chloe jumped at the idea and we started brainstorming ideas straight away. After an hour, we had a protagonist, some world-building and the beginnings of a plot. We ‘broke ground’ on the first draft just before dinner.

Chloe and I take a selfie with our initial outline.

So why am I doing this? Here’s a couple of reasons.

Quality Time

I’ve read so many acknowledgements pages in books where authors thank their spouse and children for being ‘widows and orphans’ during the writing of a book. While it is sometimes necessary for an author’s family to be understanding and respect their author’s time, isn’t it even better to be able to share that part of your life with them? One of the most important things a parent can do is spend time with their children. Doing something together that we both love will create lasting memories that money cannot buy.

Education

My daughter will learn so much through this process. Already, I’ve been explaining the concepts of story structure, character arc, point of view and the rules of grammar. She’s gobbled it all up hungrily (oops, better teach her to kill those adverbs). Not only will she learn about writing, she will also learn about publishing. We’ve discussed the differences between traditional and self-publishing and the logistics of print-on-demand. She’ll even learn some entrepreneurial skills, and how to wisely manage any royalties we may earn. Phew, it’s been an eventful afternoon.

It’s Fun

Seriously, what better way to spend an afternoon than inventing a new superhero with someone. Yes, the story will be about a 10-year-old girl who develops super powers. That spawned a bunch of questions. I’m pretty excited by the premise.

I’ll give this a try with my son as well, if his attention span holds. He also wants me to help him make a computer game so we’ll see which project wins out.