On their tense Zoom call, Harry took the opportunity to advocate once again for why it was important to add how the kidnapping ended in his memoir.
“He exhaled and calmly explained that, all his life, people had belittled his intellectual capabilities,” J.R. said, “and this flash of cleverness proved that, even after being kicked and punched and deprived of sleep and food, he had his wits about him.”
But nonetheless, the novelist stood his ground with Harry eventually conceding and telling him, “‘I really enjoy getting you worked up like that.'”
Aside from their disagreements, working with Harry was a positive experience for J.R., who even spent time at Harry and wife Meghan Markle‘s Montecito, Calif., home while working on Spare. In fact, he revealed that while staying in their guest house, Meghan would visit with her and Harry’s four-year-old son Archie. (The couple also share daughter Lilibet, 23 months).
And Harry and J.R.’s efforts had an impact on the royal, who even paid tribute to the writer during his book party.
“He mentioned my advice, to ‘trust the book,’ and said he was glad that he did, because it felt incredible to have the truth out there, to feel—his voice caught—‘free,'” the journalist wrote. “There were tears in his eyes. Mine, too.”
