Writer Spends Six Years Building Bridge of Music, Magic and Junk to Connect With Autistic Son

Writer Spends Six Years Building Bridge of Music, Magic and Junk to Connect With Autistic Son

April is Autism Awareness Month

LOS ANGELES, March 21 /PRNewswire/ -- A 9-year-old boy with autism who plays guitar 'like a ring in a bell' transforms the lives of a junkyard pirate, a Jewish reggae singer, and a modern day witch in Eddie and Me on the Scrap Heap, a new novel by Marc Littman. But the back-story behind the novel is equally compelling.

"I wrote the book because I was beginning to think my own autistic son was a dud and I needed to burrow into William's world and discover the truth," said Littman. "Six years and 63,000 words later, I finally realized my son and others with special needs shouldn't be defined by their disabilities. They often have remarkable personalities and talents to compensate."

"William inspired the book. I incorporated his passion for Chuck Berry's rock and roll and love of all things whimsical, added reggae, magic, and set much of the novel in a junkyard, a metaphor for the lead character Eddie's life. He fears he will end up on the scrap heap of life because he doesn't function like others."

"Everyone tries to fix Eddie because they think he's broken, but he ends up fixing them. In the process he accepts himself and by the time I wrote the epilogue, I had accepted my own son. He had fixed me."

Though Littman is an award-winning writer, former agents and publishers shied away because they said not enough readers could relate to autism. Yet, there are 1.5 million Americans with some sort of autism and it's spreading fast.

Determined to prove skeptics wrong, Littman self-published Eddie and Me on the Scrap Heap, available through Amazon.com. He's donating half his royalties to autism organizations.

"Writing the novel made me more knowledgeable about autism," said Littman. "I researched reggae and how to speak Jamaican. Likewise, I studied magic and spent a lot of time in junkyards. But the biggest reward was learning to appreciate my son. He's not a dud; he's not a genius. He's just a great kid, and I'm proud of him."

Reviewers: e-mail autismupside@earthlink.net for complimentary books

Source: Autism Upside

CONTACT: Marc Littman, autismupside@earthlink.net, or Gayle Anderson,
+1-323-821-7213

Web site: http://www.autismupside.com/

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