Autism
I’m a proud aspie who also has dyspraxia. Both can affect me pretty severely at times. I write the occasional post about my experiences on the autistic spectrum over here: http://youdontlookautistic.wordpress.com/
I don’t think people with differences are shown often enough in books or on television. Whenever I find one who’s portrayed well I get really excited. Hawkeye from the avengers movie is one of my favorites because in the comics he’s 80% deaf. He’s also really witty and seems to have a strange habit for talking to inanimate objects. I’m crossing my fingers they show that in the movies – both the deaf parts and the witty behavior. And if you’re interested in comic book Hawkeye, check out Matt Fraction’s version. So much awesome.
I try to branch out in terms of the types of people I represent in my fiction. So here’s a short list of some of my differently abled characters or otherwise diverse characters. Be warned, not everyone will be present. Contact me if you think there’s someone who you think should be added.
Crystal Wolves Series:
Roy Crystal: No official diagnosis. Being part of a werewolf pack means seclusion, and while the pack is flawed in many ways it’s very accepting of most differences (aside of course for being human.) I believe if he’d been brought up in human society he’d have a diagnosis of adhd by now, and something along the lines of bipolar as well.
Payton: Aspergers syndrome. It’s possible that she does have a diagnosis, and hasn’t told anyone. It’s mentioned in ‘Blood Trail’ that Clem suspects she’s autistic.
Malia: Deaf. She can hear small amounts of loud sounds, nowhere near enough to make out speech. She can lip read to some extent, but unlike movies this isn’t a perfect system and she can only do so with some words and if the speaker is clear and speaks slow. She prefers to sign. She can talk, but not clearly, and her clarity goes downhill when she tries to talk fast. It could also be speculated that she and her brother Marcus have poor self image and self esteem.
Gil: Covered in scars, and only has the one arm, and the one eye.
Damsel Knight:
Main character is gender questioning.
Outcasts vs Aliens (in planning):
So much diversity due to situations shown in the story. Main character is paralyzed and demisexual. And his ragtag team have various differences that led to them being smushed together.
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