( CNN ) -- James Patterson may be the top-selling writer in the world ; he might very well be the busiest , too . Patterson has three books near the top of the bestseller lists right now . His latest , `` Guilty Wives , '' arrives in stores next week . With the help of his co-writers , Patterson is turning out about 10 books a year . Patterson holds the world record for the most No . 1 bestsellers of any author . He 's also the first author to reach 5 million e-books sold . All together , he 's sold an astounding 220 million books worldwide . Adult fans love Patterson for novels such as `` The Women 's Murder Club '' or his Alex Cross series . A new movie starring Tyler Perry as the detective is coming this year . Younger readers love Patterson for titles like `` Maximum Ride '' and `` Witch & Wizard '' or his Middle School series . When he 's not writing books , Patterson is working to get more kids to read through his website , ReadKiddoRead.com . He 's also sent thousands of books to U.S. troops overseas . This month . Patterson donated 200,000 books that are now on their way to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan with the help of organizations like Operation Gratitude and Books for Heroes . CNN recently caught up with the bestselling writer to talk to him about his latest novel and his philanthropic efforts . The following is an edited transcript . CNN : Let 's start by talking about Operation Gratitude and how you recently donated thousands of books to U.S. troops . Patterson : Books are on the way overseas this week , which is the big subject for me . It started in part because a friend of mine , a partner in my entertainment company , was a captain in Vietnam , and his son did a couple of tours in Iraq . He 's a bright guy ; he used to send letters home every week and also letters from his friends . I read a lot of them , and they were really kind of mind-blowing in terms of just putting you in touch with what it 's like to be a soldier overseas right now . It really got me interested . If I could , I would like to shake the hands of everybody over there , because I do n't think they get the attention that they should . I ca n't do that , so we 're going to put 200,000 books in the hands of thousands of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan instead , which I think is a big deal . CNN : What kind of feedback have you received from U.S. servicemen and -women for your efforts ? Patterson : We 've been doing this on a smaller scale for five or six years now , 20 or 30,000 books , so I 've had hundreds and hundreds of letters and ... lots of pictures , with troops saying , 'here I am reading your book in some sort of foxhole or in my truck or jeep or whatever . ' I also hear from families , people from home saying , ' I got a note from our son , and he talked about getting a couple of your books , ' and that 's very cool . It 's very rewarding . CNN : You 're also a big believer in getting kids to read . Patterson : It 's a huge thing with me . Getting the books out , going to schools , talking to kids about how important it is for them to read so that they really become better human beings . I think at this stage in our civilization , I think books are probably the best place to get varying points of view on things , understand how other people think and live their lives and have more understanding and compassion for people . Obviously , if a kid ca n't read well by the time they get out of middle school , most likely they 're going to have problems . It 's just so much harder to go through school and get a decent job . The implications are huge . There are a lot of things we as individuals ca n't do much about . We ca n't solve global warming as individuals or health care problems , but as individuals , most of us can get our kids reading . We can do that . Patterson 's recent CNN.com essay on getting your kid to read . CNN : You have several books on the bestseller list right now , a new novel coming out and a handful of others in the works , plus your other projects . So how do you keep up with everything ? Patterson : Oh , yeah , the books , too . I do n't know . I do n't feel stressed out . It 's just a pattern I am comfortable with . I get up every morning and chop wood , and I pretty much do it seven days a week , and I like to do it . I still have time for my wife and my son , who 's 14 , and at this point , my head is still above water . I think part of it is , you can take on more , and you do , but at a certain point I may say , that 's it . I ca n't do anymore . I read a fair amount , but I do n't read as much as I used to , so that 's suffered a little . CNN : You work with a number of co-authors on some of your books . How do you divide the workload ? Patterson : We alternate words . Just kidding . Actually , I write an outline of about 50 to 60 pages that will lay out every chapter . I then ask the co-writer to contribute to the outline . I want their opinions , and I want them to feel they 're part of the process right from the get-go . Then they will write a draft . I like to look at things every two weeks . That way you can say 'that part 's great ' or 'hold it , let 's talk about this . ' I was just talking to Mike Ledwidge a little while ago ; he and I do the Michael Bennett books . When I have a first draft , then I will do another , and in some cases I 've done , seven , eight , nine drafts . And that 's the process . I do the outline , the co-writer does the first draft , and I 'll do subsequent drafts . Although my co-writers might call it 'Jim screwing up the book , ' but so far , it 's working well . CNN : `` Guilty Wives '' comes out next week . What was the spark behind this book ? Patterson : I had this idea of four women going off on a cool vacation and getting in big trouble , really big trouble . They 're accused of murder in France , and it 's a huge , huge trial , and I do n't want to give too much away , but I really liked that idea . CNN : What are you working on next ? Patterson : There 's the next Alex Cross and then a couple of kids books , a follow-up to `` Middle School : The Worst Years of My Life . '' I 'm trying to write books that are really funny but also have things for kids to sink their teeth into and think about . I 'm writing one now about middle school and summer camp , and then right around Christmas , I 'll have a book about a middle school kid who desperately wants to be a stand-up comedian , and he knows every joke in the history of mankind , so that 's kind of a fun one . CNN : How is the Alex Cross movie coming together ? Patterson : I 've been to two test screenings , and I visited the set , and it 's looking really , really good . Tyler Perry is going to blow everybody 's mind . He 's very , very good . Not that you would n't expect that , but he has n't done this kind of a movie before . You 'll see him as a very dramatic , very physical actor . Also , Matthew Fox is going to blow people 's minds as the bad guy . It 's unusual for a thriller , because it 's both exciting and very emotional . I think it 's going to do extremely well . CNN : How do you come up with all of your story ideas ? Patterson : Sometimes it can just be a title , or I just have a sense that I can build a story around something and I 'm going to like the story . I have to feel emotional about it to do it . I used to , like a lot of writers , get up at 2:30 in the morning and start scribbling stuff down . I 've kind of stopped doing that , because the good ideas I tend to remember . I have more than enough ideas right now . I have a folder in my office with about 400 ideas in it . So it will take me another 40 years to get through those . Read an excerpt from `` Guilty Wives ''
Patterson currently has 10 books on the best-seller lists . James Patterson turns out three books a year , with help from co-writers . His latest , `` Guilty Wives , '' arrives in stores five or six years .