What began with enrolling in a $90 online class for one Pitt-Johnstown graduate turned into the opportunity of a lifetime to co-author a book with a bestselling author.

Kecia Bal, who graduated from Pitt-Johnstown in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, signed up for a writing course with James Patterson on MasterClass.com.

A MasterClass is an online experience where a student can learn from an expert about their specific craft.

This was last March. At the time, Patterson was offering a contest in which the winner would have the chance to co-author a book with him.

Bal said she thought that would be amazing, and she wanted to try to do it.

“So, I stayed up until 2 or 3 in the morning taking the class, then I sat down and tried to brainstorm the wildest idea I could,” Bal said.

To enter the contest, Bal had to submit a summary of her book idea and a sample chapter.

“I thought, ‘This is nuts, and I have no chance, but whatever, at least I have an idea,’” Bal said.

Her submitted idea, a crime thriller novel that includes robots with artificial intelligence, placed her as a finalist in the contest. Then, she had to write an outline for the book.

“I had set the book in Boston, and I had never been there. So I (took a trip up there) and did some more research and came up with (and submitted) an outline and waited on pins and needles,” Bal said.

Meanwhile, Bal was working at the Johnstown Tribune-Democrat as a reporter, as well as doing other freelance writing jobs.

She was at a press conference when she got the call from James Patterson that she had been chosen as the contest winner.

“I squealed like a girl,” Bal said with a laugh.

Bal worked with Patterson on the book until late last fall. The final product, titled “The Dolls,” was released Aug. 1 in the U.S.

“(Patterson) was really nice and really good to work for. He was wonderful and very down to earth,” Bal said.

She said that one of the challenges of writing the book was trying not to overthink anything.

“I had to not think about what my family was going to think. I had to pretend like it was just me, working on this with (Patterson), and I couldn’t think about what other people would say or think,” Bal said.

Bal said she was thankful that Carroll Grimes, who served as Pitt-Johnstown’s Humanities Division chair until 2002, pushed her into the journalism program.

“If I hadn’t wound up there, I would not have ended up doing any of this,” Bal said.

“Ten years in journalism was good for me because it helps you build that muscle where you have to write every day.

“You have to sit down and make yourself do it.”

Bal also said that Pitt-Johnstown professor Lee Wood and Johnstown Tribune-Democrat executive editor Chip Minemeyer also played important roles in her journey.

Minemeyer said that Bal has a unique combination of traits that made her successful both as a reporter and in her writing with Patterson.

“She’s creative, bright and high-energy. She can think at a bigger level and a lower level, and that’s a rarity,” Minemeyer said.

The Dolls received mixed reviews on Amazon.com, but Bal said she tries not to look at people’s comments.

“Either people hate it, because they don’t like the concept, or they love it. I really try not to think about it like that, though. What I really want to do is more work, and all kinds of work,” Bal said.

She seems to be following through on her desire to continue working on new projects.

Bal is working as a ghostwriter for a non-fiction science book and working on writing another novel.

“The finished product is not as exciting to me as the prospect of a new project or being in the middle of making it. When I’m in the middle of making it, it’s awesome,” Bal said.