One summer, Jeff Wilson was working on a new book when his then 8-year-old son, Connor, declared he had an idea for a book.
Wanting to encourage his son, Jeff told Connor that if he really made an effort, he would help his son edit the book and would send it to an agent. Connor didn’t bring it up again for three months – just enough time for Jeff to forget. But one day that fall, Connor brought his father a spiral notebook, “filled with page after page of this beautiful story,” Jeff said. “I was so impressed.”
Now, both father and son are published authors, and will be signing copies of their books side-by-side Saturday at the Barnes & Noble Bookstore in Merchants Square. It will be a homecoming for Jeff, who graduated from Bruton High School and The College of William & Mary; his parents still live in the Queens Lake area. The Wilsons live in Tampa, Fla. now, where Wilson works as a doctor and with the Department of Defense. He previously served two tours in Iraq as a combat surgeon with the Marines and with a Joint Special Operations Task Force.
When Jeff was his son’s age, he enjoyed rewriting episodes of his favorite TV shows, and even had a short story published at the age of 14. But writing a novel seemed out of reach until a few years ago, when he had the idea for “Fade to Black,” a book now slated for release next year.
“The story was more than you can do in a short story,” he said, adding that it was “liberating to write forever,” without the constraints of short story word counts.
The road to getting published was “weird and circuitous,” involving a lot of research and multiple agents, Jeff said. He was introduced to his publisher, Journal Stone, by a friend and, to his surprise, the publisher snapped up his manuscripts for release. “I’m really lucky. Most people have three to four manuscripts sitting in a desk,” he said. “Every book I’ve written so far has been sold.”
Jeff specializes in supernatural thrillers. His newest book, “The Donors,” was released in June and tells the story of a young boy recovering in a hospital where it appears the patients’ skin and organs are being harvested against their will by mysterious evil creatures. The themes can be scary, not to mention disgusting, but that doesn’t stop Jeff from sharing his passion with his son.
When asked what writings his dad has shared, Connor said, “Only the disturbing parts for some reason!” He said the moment he realized it was special to have a published author for a dad was “when it helped me get published!”
Just like his father, Connor, now in sixth grade, said he’s always written in his spare time. The ideas just hit him, he said. He wondered one day what it would be like if his pencil were giant, and thought it might make a fun story. With that, “A Giant Pencil” was born.
“A Giant Pencil” tells the story of Billy, a kid who realizes his giant pencil gives him the power to erase anyone or anything, only to discover later how important friends and family really are. Connor said he based some of the main character on himself, and his younger brother and sister inspired other characters. The book was released this fall by Chicago-based Magic Dreams Publishing.
Jeff and Connor will embark on a mini-book tour in the area this weekend, with Jeff noting, “It’s more of a big deal for him than for me.” Being one of the youngest published authors in the United States attracts attention.
On Friday, Connor will meet with students at Walsingham Academy, where he’ll explain how he comes up with story ideas, how he focuses on writing and what it took to get published.
Meet the Wilsons at their book signing at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Barnes & Noble/William & Mary Bookstore, located at 345 Duke of Gloucester Street. For more information, call (757) 253-4900.
