Children's writer Deborah Kelly's new book 'The Thing About Oliver' brings autism into mainstream children's literature

But the most resilient children are quite likely to be barely noticed, says Lake Macquarie-based children's book author Deborah Kelly. They are the so-called "glass children".

These are the siblings of children with significant disabilities, including autism, who can at times feel they are transparent, she says.

Kelly first wrote about autism in a picture book, The Chalk Rainbow, which was published in 2017. The main character is frightened of the colour black, likes to line things up and has his own made-up language.

That book seemed to open up a deep conversation. Since its publication, Kelly says she's talked a lot with families who are living with autism.

"There's been a lot of people who have generously shared their innermost feelings, that I have had really intense conversations with," she says.

In 2019 Kelly released The Thing About Oliver, to delve into "lots of uncovered territory" that had been shared with her.

"I had more to say," Kelly says.

"I wanted to make a book that was honest, really honest ... I hope it's human."

In particular, it was the world of the siblings of autistic children that had caught Kelly's attention. She could see why they were sometimes referred to as "glass children".

"The mountains they climb every day that nobody knows about. Siblings of kids with special needs, they really suffer. In some cases they raise themselves," she says.

The story centres on 12-year-old Tilly, whose family moves to Townsville so that her mum can get more help with Tilly's autistic brother Oliver.

"It's not a 'boo-hoo' type of book," Kelly says. "It's also about laughing when stuff gets crazy.

"Some of the people I met, who have the hardest lives, they have the best sense of humour."

In writing the book, Kelly says she was cognisant that children respect adults who are willing to admit being wrong. And, they appreciate "being spoken to on an even footing".

"They're so perceptive and they pick up on so much more than you think," she says.

So, the chapter book, designed for older primary school readers, is "definitely not preachy!".

"It's also just a story about a girl trying to achieve her dreams against seemingly impossible odds," says Kelly. "It's about her coming more into herself."

The "funny quirks", and the meltdowns, of Tilly's brother, Oliver, are "woven into that tapestry".

Kelly, who grew up on a vegetable farm in New Zealand, was enthralled by storytelling from a young age, penning a series about a prince (Puku, who had a big belly) when she was seven.

As an adult she kept writing, but only returned to children's stories after she'd started her own family.

"It was a natural progression," Kelly explains.

"I read so many picture books to my kids and realised there's a poetry to it. Every word's got to pull its weight. There's rhythm, all of those qualities of poetry find their way into children's books."

Her first title, The Bouncing Ball, was written following a park visit with her son. "He found a little bouncy ball, dug it up and put it in his mouth, of course!" she says. "I just started to wonder where it had come from and where it might go next."

The story had a stint "in the bottom drawer", but was published after Kelly had a "lucky dip" break at a writer's conference in Sydney in 2012.

As Kelly relates, if your name was pulled out of a box (which hers was), you were given a two-minute pitch session with a panel of publishers. "And they actually timed you! I'm not joking, the alarm went," she says. "You had to pitch it and give it your all. How intimidating is that?"

Kelly pitched a story about her grandmum and the jam she longed for, which "tasted like sunshine" and was only found in the Hungarian village she'd grown up in.

Kelly was granted a longer meeting, leading to publishing deals for a string of books.

Now, as a published author giving talks, she often takes along the first books written in her childhood as "show-and-tell", to show that what children do is valuable. "They're stepping stones," she says.