Dad Jeremy Gritton has created a children’s book called “The Inn at the Edge of the World.”

WINTER GARDEN When Jeremy Gritton decided to create a children’s book, he never imagined it would take four years.

Now with only three months standing between his years of work and holding the final product in his hands, Gritton, a Winter Garden resident, is counting the days until his book, “The Inn at the Edge of the World,” is published.

Gritton’s inspiration for the book came shortly after his first daughter was born, but it had been years since he had put paint to paper.

“As a kid, I would always draw and illustrate,” Gritton said. “But I had stopped drawing, so I had to retrain myself.”

But before he could start drawing, he needed a story.

While drifting off to sleep one night, an idea floated into his imagination - a story about a family who ran an inn at the edge of the world for magical creatures.

“(Before falling asleep), I remember thinking, ‘I should probably get up and write this down,’” Gritton said about his wave of inspiration. “Luckily, I remembered it in the morning.”

Within a few days, the story was done.

Illustration

Gritton assumed the illustrations would only take a few months, especially since that was more of his wheelhouse. 

“My original plan was to have it done by my daughter’s first birthday,” he said.

But as a new father, finding time to work on the illustrations was a challenge. Between taking care of a newborn and working full-time as a digital sculptor for video games, Gritton’s only time to work on the book was between 5 and 6 a.m. The work was slow-going.

“If I had realized how much work it was going to be, I might not have gone through with it,” he said.

Day by day, hour by hour, he plugged away at his project. His daughter’s first birthday passed, then her second and third birthday. It became a running joke among his friends - would Gritton finish the book before his daughter graduated high school?

Gritton worked alone, using a touchscreen tablet and Photoshop to create each illustration. 

“Painting on a monitor is much more forgiving than working in the traditional way,” he said.

He agonized over colors, shaping, sizing. His wife, a graphic designer, offered advice whenever he asked for it.

“I almost always followed her advice,” Gritton said. “I joke that she’s my artistic director.”

In December 2015, Gritton completed the last illustration. But when he looked at all the illustrations side-by-side, he noticed discrepancies. His earlier pictures looked different from the later ones. Fixing them would require several months more of work. 

When it was completed nearly a year later, nearly every illustration had been reworked about three times.

Publication

Like many artists, Gritton turned to Kickstarter to fund the final phase of his project - publication.

His campaign began on Nov. 1 with the goal of getting 500 book orders through the website.

In the last month, Gritton watched as people from across the globe placed orders for his book. By the time the campaign ended on Dec. 4, more than 400 orders had been placed.

“It did amazingly well considering I had no outreach,” Gritton said.

Although he didn’t reach his goal of 500 book sales, he came close enough to place an order this month for 500 copies to be printed. 

The estimated delivery date is March 2017.

As a children’s book, Gritton said that “The Inn at the Edge of the World” is geared towards children ages 2 to 6, but adults could enjoy the story as well.

“Adults reading the book to their kids will enjoy the story and be able to relate to it,” Gritton said.

Are there more books on Gritton’s horizon? 

Maybe, he said.

“The story lends itself to sequels,” Gritton said. “But I do have a standalone book already written. It’s a rhyming ABC book.”

Contact Brittany Gaines at [email protected].