Second-grade student Dillon Helbig has taken self-publishing to a whole other level. The 8-year-old boy has garnered national media attention for his adorable, hand-made comic book that he easily left on the bookshelves in the library of his hometown.
Helbig’s 81-page book, “The Adventures of Dillon Helbig’s Crismis” by “Dillon His Self,” has gone viral. The boy wrote about a Christmas adventure, using a red-cover notebook and illustrating it with colored pencils.
“I wanted to put my book in the library center since I was 5, and I always had a love for books and libraries,” Helbig told Good Morning America. “I go to libraries a lot since I was a baby.”
When Dillon’s mother, Susan, asked him why he was reading his book at the Ada County Library in Boise, Idaho, when no one was watching, his response was simple: “I wanted people to read it,” said Dillon. That prompted a phone call to the library to inform staff that the book was not faulty and that it was indeed a gift for their shelves.
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Alex Hartman, branch manager at the library, edited his book and cataloged it under graphic novels. According to The Washington Post, there is now a waiting list of 55 people.
“We just hope that … kids find inspiration to write their own stories and share them with other people,” Hartman told The Post. “I just think it’s a good demonstration to share with other kids.”
The library awarded Dillon his first Whoodini Award for best young novelist, a category the library created for him.
Do not expect Helbig to be a miracle of one hit. The aspiring author has created a “Dog Man” series and his next book is with tabs, “The Jacket Eating Closet,” based on a true story that Helbig said he drew from when he was in kindergarten.