by Andrew Alonzo | aalonzo@claremont-courier.com

What sets El Roble Intermediate School seventh grader Abigail Haughton apart from her peers is not her affinity for reading, or her mastery of history, or science. It’s another, surprising title: published author.

Late last year, the 12-year-old released her debut novel, “Treacherous Waters: The Rouge Voyage,” a fictional retelling of the Titanic tragedy from the point of view of four characters.

“When six-year-old Joshua Grant and his family board the infamous Titanic, all is well, until something is revealed to him alone. The next day, suspicion arises as James, the family’s friend, does something perilous to the boy …,” reads the book’s description.

The novel caught the attention of the Friends of the Claremont Library, who invited Abigail to participate in an author talk and book signing event at 10 a.m. Saturday, September 28 at the Claremont Helen Renwick Library, 208 N. Harvard Ave. The 12-year-old will no doubt be the youngest author on a panel including Constance Cassinelli, Parker G. Emerson, Eileen Flaxman, Olivia Michel Gallardo, Naomi Howland, Char Miller, Susan Perry, and Deborah Vinall.

Abigail hopes that by participating in the event — or better yet, by reading her novel — people will think of her as a serious writer.

“People don’t realize that I’m an author already. And when I tell them that I want to be an author, they think that like, when I’m like 20 or 19 or something that I’m going to accomplish that goal,” Abigail said. “But I’m already an author.”

Abigail credits her teachers and love for cinema for getting her into writing. But her mother, Bobrea Haughton, was the primary catalyst.

“When she was in the third grade, they were at home on … pandemic schooling,” Haughton said. “From the start, I noticed that she would finish her work and just sit there. In school the same thing. Wouldn’t say ‘I’m done.’ Wouldn’t say nothing. And the teacher [wouldn’t] say nothing. And she would just sit there. I noticed she took my mom’s phone and she was playing games on it. So, I took the phone away and I gave her a notebook and said, ‘Write something down.’ Next day she told me about Albert Einstein. I’m like, ‘What does Albert Einstein have to do with it?’ But that’s what she researched, that’s what she wrote down.”

El Roble Intermediate School seventh grader Abigail Haughton, author of “Treacherous Waters: The Rouge Voyage,” and her mother Bobrea Haughton. Courier photo/Andrew Alonzo

The exercise unlocked something in Abigail. For months she researched complex scientific topics and wrote about them in the notebook.

Then one day, Abigail surprised her mother by telling her she had begun writing her own book on her Claremont Unified School District-issued iPad.

Haughton read the early draft and encouraged her to finish. Abigail honed the novel over the last few years.

“I’m like, ‘Finish the book! Finish the book, you need to get paid,’” Haughton said.

Finally, last year, the book was finished. Abigail self-published “Treacherous Waters: The Rouge Voyage” using Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing in November 2023. It’s available for Kindle for $9.99 and in hard copy on Amazon for $14.99. Those with Kindle Unlimited can download it for free. She recently recorded the audiobook edition, which is being edited.

“Treacherous Waters: The Rouge Voyage” is the first in a two-part series. The title and publishing date for part two are still being finalized.

Abigail’s writing journey has been fun, she said. Her mother has been a pillar of encouragement and a great help in spreading the word about the book, including organizing signing events in April at Pomona’s The Fountain Church International, and at Vista del Valle Elementary School in March.

“I’m supporting her at every cost,” Haughton said. “There’s a lot of people, a lot of adults out there, that have a vision but didn’t get the support. And so, because they didn’t get the support, they go left. And I don’t need her straying from her dream. This is her dream. I’m going to support her with all that I have.”

Haughton praised her daughter for the self-determination she displayed in designing the book’s cover, assembling the story, and navigating its publishing. The only time she helped her, she said, was when it came time put in a bank account number to the Kindle service so Abigail could get paid.

Like most children, Abigail has imagined herself in various jobs over the years. Now though, she’s settled on a career as an author.

“If she’s 12 and writing like this, talk about when she’s 25 and in college,” Haughton said. “I’m so, so proud of her for writing, not like a 12-year-old, but like a grown up. So, I see hope in that. I see [a] future because she’s going to write better. The older you get, the better you get at it.”

“Treacherous Waters: The Rouge Voyage,” will be available for purchase at 10 a.m. this Saturday, September 28 at the Friends of the Claremont Library’s free and open to the public author talk at Claremont Helen Renwick Library, 208 N. Harvard Ave.