Griffin Nickels is a freshman at Noblesville High School, and he is autistic. He is also artistic.

He's created the artwork for a new children's book about autism.

Carson Nickels is a sixth-grader at Noblesville Middle School. It's the younger brother's imagination and view of his autistic brother on which the book is based.

"My Brother is Artistic" was published in January. A book signing is planned for Feb. 25 at The Wild bookstore in Noblesville.

The boys are the sons of Mike and Beth Nickels.

Griffin's artwork is colorful and imaginative and communicates easily what he may find difficult to put into words.

Many children with autism are artistic, according to the book's author, family friend and retired teacher Jane Webb, Avon.

Being artistic or having musical or mechanical ability is a common trait among autistic children. Autism is a brain disorder characterized by difficulties in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive behaviors.

About one in 110 American children, and an estimated one in 70 boys, have autism, according to the U.S. Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention.

Webb's inspiration to write the book came from the younger brother of a boy she had in class who was autistic, and would say "artistic" when he would speak about his brother's autism.

The author called Beth Nickels, her friend of 30 years, and read her the manuscript. Beth cried. Together, they decided that Beth's sons, Griffin and Carson, would be the characters in the book. And Griffin would be the artist.

Griffin went to work drawing pictures. Wonderful, amazing pictures that express how he feels, sees and hears things differently.

He would read one page, and his mom would give him ideas for the layout of the page. Then, he would sit and draw.

"It was just so sweet sometimes how some of the funny faces the little boy in the book makes are exactly like what Griffin does," Beth said. "He would sit at his desk with a mirror and make that face and draw it."

Griffin has always been into art. He especially likes to use colored pencils, scissors, paper and paste to create paper doll-like figures. He would play with these little paper characters for hours, and would take them everywhere, his mom said. He's currently into goblins.

Griffin created about 20 illustrations based on how Carson sees him. The message is about acceptance.

For instance, Griffin has big earphones he wears when it's noisy. He wore them to his mom's birthday party because singing hurts his ears.

"Mom says that's part of being artistic. I say he looks like a rock star," said Carson in the book about Griffin.

While Carson looks the same in every picture, Griffin is always different. Whatever outfit Griffin was wearing on a given day, that's the outfit he's wearing in the picture.

Carson said he likes his brother's illustration that has Griffin closing one eye and raising his eyebrow when he doesn't like something, in typical Griffin fashion. "I thought that picture was funny," Carson said.

Both of the boys say they feel like stars. While Griffin created the artwork, it's Carson's red-haired freckle-faced character that's on the cover of the book.

Carson, 11, is four years younger than Griffin, but he's more like a big brother, protective and nurturing. So much so that Carson was invited to join a team of students at school called the Chameleons, who help special-needs students with reading, homework and putting on their coats and backpacks.

Carson said the book is important "because it lets people know about autism."