A teenager diagnosed with autism at the age of three has become a published author after writing a children’s novel while he was excluded from a Jewish secondary school.
Freddie Ellison — who was diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) — has been offered a deal with an independent publisher after they were left enthralled by his debut book.
The author, now 16, wrote most of the book in a local coffee shop during a frustrating 18-month wait while his parents, Katy and Daniel, struggled to find a new school for him after he was repeatedly excluded from lessons at JCoSS secondary school in Barnet.
“I worked super hard on the book — the most I have ever worked,” Freddie told the JC. “It makes me feel great.”
His mother, Katy, said: “I am so proud of what Freddie has achieved with his book.
“He’s such a great kid, but someone who has also had huge issues with his hormones, especially as a teenager.
“It has been incredibly challenging but for Freddie it’s so nice that we’ve all taken him seriously and that he’s going to have this book that is published with his name on it.
“He’s waited for so long for this too happen and he’s so excited.”
Freddie’s condition — which left him prone to repetitive behaviour and difficulties with social interaction and communication — presented regular problems while he was very young.
But he was able to stay at the mainstream Hampstead Garden Suburb Primary school due to the excellent one-to-one support he received.
But a move to JCoSS secondary school in Barnet presented far tougher challenges. By Year 8, Freddie found himself on the receiving end of regular exclusion letters from the school — with the prospect of more to follow.
“Freddie was distraught,” said Katy. “He fully got that he had misbehaved, he knew when he had gone overboard.
“He always had his frustrations. He was aware of being different and wanted to be the same as everyone else. He just didn’t know how to do it.”
Faced with the prospect of never-ending exclusions, parents Katy and Daniel felt the only option was to find a school more suited to their eldest son’s special needs — a decision backed by a psychiatrist who assessed Freddie.
Katy, a primary school SEN teacher herself, makes no secret of the fact she was disappointed in the support JCoSS had offered her son.
A further battle with Barnet Council’s education authority then erupted, with Freddie’s parents desperate to gain the support and funding for the education their son required.
It was during this period without any tutoring or support from the authorities that Freddie, then aged 14, announced his desire to write a book.
“Freddie is a massive film fan and someone who took to listening to audio books rather than reading the printed version,” said Katy.
“His favourite authors are J K Rowling, Rick Riordan, Shannon Hale, Douglas Adams and H G Wells.
“Just as J K Rowling did, Freddie used to take his notebooks and head off to our local Costa Coffee shop in Temple Fortune so he could write his book away from the distractions at home. He wrote the book in maybe five months.
“Everything in the book was Freddie’s idea, and when we took it to a publisher they offered him the support of a ghost writer who helped him focus on making sure some of the ideas remained suitable for the teenager market.”
Oliver Storm And The Great Disappearance, published by St James’s House, tells the story of a group of kids — led by main character Oliver and his sister — who launch a scientific experiment and attempt to survive in a world without adults.
Freddie enjoyed writing the novel so much he is already on to his next one. And his parents are also relieved to have found him a place at the St John’s School in Seaford, Sussex, a boarding school that specialises in teaching children with special needs.
“Freddie is a full boarder who returns home at half-term,” said Katy. “He doesn’t not enjoy it. You know with him when things are wrong.”
“It’s just so nice to see something so positive come out of all that,” says Katy. “All of us are so very proud.”
‘Oliver Storm and the Great Disappearance’ will be available in shops from April 1, 2019 (£9.99, SJH). Twenty-five per cent of profit from sales will be donated to the National Autistic Society www.sjhpublishing.com/shop to pre order
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