The Gift: 'Percy Jackson' author reveals genesis of novels

>>> young kids then you ll the percy jackson books have caught fire with young readers. the books are a kind of narrative mash-up of classical mythology with current life today. ty is at near els in some quarters with reluctant readers as a category. as kate snow reports, percy 's creator is also a father and the books are the gift he has given to his own son.

>> for readers of certain age, rick is a rock star .

>> how are you doing today, democr? he invented percy jackson , the hero of the lightning thief his first kid's novel made into a movie. he's a modern day kid that fights ancient battles. the percy jackson novels are the reason kids like these know so much about mythology. who are your favorite greek gods ?

>> aphrodite.

>> the goddess of agriculture.

>> with the lightning thief, he launched an empire, nine books so far, a series about percy , another that brought in roman mythology and the latest on ancient egypt , the cain chronicles. you've sold 30 million books , rick. 30 million books .

>> i don't know what that means. it's so unreal to me.

>> unreal because it all came t. ten years ago he was a teacher at a san antonio middle school . his son haley was 7 and miserable. he was struggling to read and hated school. haley was diagnosed with adhd , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia.

>> he was in a precarious place when he was that age, and as a parent you do whatever you can, of course.

>> he found a way to connect with his little boy at bed time . he told haley every greek myth he could think of until he ran nd started making one up. one that turned adhd and dyslexia into superhuman powers .

>> i said, you know, haley , in percy jackson 's world if you have those conditions, that means you're probably a demigod. you're the son of a god. and he had no trouble believing that. he'd say, yeah. yeah!

>> he introduced it like another story.

>> like any other story that dad would read their kids.

>> instead of like thomas the tank engine , he was telling me about percy jackson .

>> did you make him stay up late? did you say more dad?

>> yes. he would say my voice is tired. let me go to sleep. i'm going to sleep.

>> percy 's dyslexia means he can read ancient greek . and his scattered thoughts give him quick reflexes in battle. what did you like about the story?

>> he really incorporated a whole lot of my life into that story. it's like handcrafted for he me. he knew what i liked, so he put that in the story.

>> were you thinking all along as you tell the stories i would a book?

>> i was not thinking it would be a book at first, not at all.

>> when he decided to turn the bed time story into a novel, haley wasn't happy to hear it.

>> my first response was no. that's a bad idea.

>> why?

>> because it was my story. i didn't want it being shared with anyone else. it was my personal thing.

>> eventually haley came around, persuaded by percy 's power to get kids like him to keep reading. you have adhd , right?

>> yeah.

>> we asked a bunch of fans to meet us as book people in austin that helped launch ryerton.

>> percy jackson 's series makes me feel if you're not one of those kids, you can do anything you want.

>> like you're supposed to have it because it's what's going to keep you alive and make you who you are.

>> his biggest impact has been on his very first audience. now 17 haley doesn't just read without a struggle, he's blossomed into a writer, too. he's working on a novel. getting editing suggestions from his dad, and haley has a short story coming out in a companion book to the percy jackson series. you're proud of if?

>> i'm really proceeded of it.

>> i'm picturing 10, 20 years from now when our shelf next to each other on the bookshelf.

>> that would be interesting. the fun thing i watched percy jackson and haley grow up in tandem, and he they sort of take the heroic quest together. they're both about the same age, and haley has become an amazing kid in his own right.

>> he's really changed me. i used to hate writing. i used to hate reading. i couldn't do any of that. he helped me. so he's been a wonderful parent to me. i mean, i can't thank him enough.

>> and neither can his readers. hard core fans have invented summer camps based on the fictional camp half blood, but despite the fans and the best tries to stick to his pre- percy lifestyle keeping his old routine amid a multi- million dollar enterprise. he writes two books a year now, the next one is out in may, and we got a first look at it.

>> the title is the serpent's shadow and wrap up the cain trilogy.

>> while his publisher has to wait a bit, the fan mail is forwarded in bulk, most letters of tranks from readers far and near.

>> the percy jackson series has changed the way i look at the world and everything about me. i think differently and speak differently now.

>> i used to hate books , and it was hard for me because i have dyslexia and adhd .

>> i still don't like to read when it comes to your books --

>> all of that changed. you inspired my whole family to read your books .

>> that's great. those are the kinds of responses that mean the most to me. that why i do what i do.

>> kate, i'm generally of a mind that if a kid is reading a seat back safety card on an airplane it's a net gain , because they're reading. these are so good. that these are so all-consuming, such good stories, no wonder.

>> he was a middle schoolteacher, so he said to me, you know, this was my audience and these kids i know. i know how to reach them. i know p if you put in humor and drama, basically being a demigod is being in middle school , caught between adulthood and a child.

>> that honest moment where his son considered it this is our thing. it's a violation of privacy.

>> i want to keep this for myself. i don't want to give this to the world. now he's enormously proud of his dad.

>> a global debut of new cover tonight.

>> the next series, norse myth mytholo mythology.

>> kate, thank you, for your reporting. when we come back some things you may have