Thomas Gordon has dreamed of being an author since he was 5 years old.
Over the years, he could see the story he wanted to write forming in his mind. A lover of the ocean, his family’s trips to North Myrtle Beach, and an eventual relocation to the coastal city, helped solidify the book’s plot and its characters.
But getting the book written, as well as published, became a challenge for the now 21-year-old. In 2014, he was diagnosed with the mitochondrial disease Kearns-Sayre syndrome, a rare neuromuscular condition in which symptoms usually appear before the age of 20. Gordon was 12 when he diagnosed. There is no cure for the disease, but it can be treated.
The disease has robbed Gordon of his eyesight, and he relies on hearing aids. He can’t walk, hold a pen or type. But his mind remains sharp, and he maintains a clever wit whenever he speaks.
Writing ‘Pearl Tides and the Search for the Pahunas’
He managed writing the story through his mother, who became his ghostwriter of sorts. But every word and idea in “Pearl Tides and the Search for the Pahunas” is Gordon’s, his mother Missy Gibbons-Gordon said.
“I got inspired by the ocean,” Thomas Gordon said. The idea for the book actually started while Thomas and his mother were sitting on the shoreline in Crescent Beach, where they live.
Thomas would dictate to mom, and she would write it down. Gibbons-Gordon would try to make suggestions or give advice, and her son would shut it down, she said, laughing.
“It was a lesson in patience,” Gibbons-Gordon said.
“My wife tried to stick her 2 cents in there, and it wasn’t happening,” Thomas’ father, Neil Gordon, said.
A lesson in protecting the ocean
It took about 10 years for the book to be finished and then published. The family chose to self-publish the book, which is available on Amazon and bookstores Beach Bookshop and Video, 225 Sea Mountain Highway, and Bookends, 753 Main St., in North Myrtle Beach.
“It was the best moment of my life,” Thomas said of his book being published.
The book is a children’s chapter adventure book that is set under the ocean. Four 12-year-olds are invited to attend the exclusive underwater school Pearl Tides Academy, where there are crabs, mermaids, dolphins and other sea creatures who are able to speak and interact with the students.
The four children eventually find themselves taking part in a mission of protecting an endangered species of oyster from a greedy entrepreneur who wants the oysters for himself. The kids soon learn that the oysters are important to the health of the ocean.
The book allows readers to learn about the ocean, as well as protecting the environment, something that is close to Thomas Gordon’s heart.
Pahunas are rare oysters that hold an exclusive pearl inside, called the infinity pearl, Gibbons-Gordon said. They also have the ability to filter more water than any other oyster in the world.
“If the oyster would die, all the sea creatures would die,” she said.
Body giving out, but ‘his imagination has not’
Thomas has named many of the characters in his book after family members and pets.
“I wanted to be a mermaid,” his mother said. But instead of Missy, Thomas chose the name Diana.
His father said that while Thomas’ body is giving out, his imagination has not. “He’s smart,” his father said.
Thomas graduated from high school by attending cyber school. He’s considering taking some college classes.
When he’s not writing, he listens to books on tape.
He’s currently working on a second book. And he might include his brother, who lives in Pittsburgh. If he does, he already knows what creature he will be. “A sea cucumber,” Thomas deadpans.
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