Craig Thomas, the co-creator of How I Met Your Mother, is set to release his first novel.
Hanover Square Press will release That’s Not How It Happened on Nov. 4, 2025, it was announced on Friday.
That’s Not How It Happened will center on a family after Hollywood decides to make a movie version of their lives.
Hanover Square Press writes of the synopsis: “Paige didn’t set out to be a stay-at-home mom, but when her husband’s screenwriting career took off right before they had a son with Down syndrome, the decision was made for her. Now, with her children nearly grown and her own future uncertain, Paige writes a memoir about the challenges of raising a child with a disability. After her book becomes an unexpected bestseller and Merritt Berkshire, a major Hollywood actress-turned-producer, shows up at her door eager to make her ‘inspiring’ story into a movie, Paige is shocked, excited, and only a little terrified. This movie just might be the comeback opportunity her husband, Rob, desperately needs—after all, who better to adapt Paige’s memoir?”
The story is a personal one for Thomas given it draws from his experience as being a father to a young adult son with Jacobsen syndrome, a chromosomal disorder that leads to lifelong health and developmental challenges.
“I hope this novel will get people thinking and talking about how we think and talk about disability; about how our stories get told (and who gets to tell them); and about how love stories can come in many different shapes and sizes,” Thomas said in a statement.
April Osborn, Senior Editor at Hanover Square Press, acquired North American rights from Christy Fletcher at UTA.
How I Met Your Mother stars Josh Radnor and Cobie Smulders are also set to lend their voices for the audiobook of Thomas’ book, which will be produced by Harlequin Audio.
Thomas’ former colleague and How I Met Your Mother co-creator Carter Bays also released his debut novel in 2022.
That’s Not How It Happened will be published on Nov. 4, 2025
