Absolutely Anyone is Capable of Absolutely Anything

this is for a sotry i started to rite to help me deall with my depreshon and being bulled when i was 13. There is no real header image or avatar yet becos i haven't drawn them.

[hilllsnholland]

How to Write Deaf Characters - From a real Deaf person’s perspective

Hello readers and writers alike, I would like to point out something that has been so glaringly annoying to me and other Deaf/HoH people so that we can end all these misconceptions. People who write for Deaf!Readers should know a few things before starting their imagines, fanfictions, blurbs - anything. It is not anyone’s fault for not knowing these things, most hearing people are not aware of the Deaf community or Deaf culture so here I am, a Deaf person who is majoring in Deaf Studies and Culture, coming here to tell you a few things to know when writing for a Deaf!Reader

(Remember this is my experience as a Deaf/HoH person and it may differ from person to person but this is what I learned/have slight annoyances within writing)

Deaf and Hard of Hearing is a culture. Yes, most people consider it a disability but IT IS NOT SOMETHING WE ARE ASHAMED OF! Please stop writing fics/imagines about Deaf!Reader being ashamed of not being able to hear or getting hearing aids to impress their SO. It’s completely wrong and just annoying. We are proud of our Deafness and we don’t want to be fixed.

DO NOT USE THE TERM ‘HEARING IMPAIRED’! This is basically a slur word. It was widely used in the ’90s but now it’s considered a derogatory term. Just use Deaf or Hard of Hearing. Or ‘deaf’ if the person is medically deaf and not culturally Deaf. (see next point)

Deaf and ‘deaf’ are different. Deaf is a cultural term for people who are born Deaf and raised in the community. The term ‘deaf’ is used in the medical field or used to describe someone who has hearing loss that does not associate with the Deaf Community. Usually, a hearing person who has become deaf later on.

Sign language is not a worldwide language. There are different types of language within sign language. ASL is for American and Canada. BSL is for Britain. So if you’re writing a story that takes place in a country that is not America or Canada, do not say ASL.

ASL does not = English. Same for every other language. ASL is its own language with grammar rules and semantics. It does not directly translate to English. So if you’re writing ASL most likely write in GLOSS or write it as you would write a hearing character. (Sentance: I want to go to the mall and buy a dress. GLOSS: I WANT WANT GO TO MALL I. ME BUY DRESS ME )

Deafness is on a spectrum. There is a legal threshold that someone must pass to be considered legally Deaf. Some Deaf people can hear more than others. I can hear high pitched noises sometimes. I know someone who can hear voices but can not hear what they are saying. Both of us are Deaf and we both cross that threshold. So when writing your Deaf!Character make sure to set a bar of what they can and can not hear.

Hearing Aids do not cure anyone’s deafness. It only helps hear some sounds and maybe hear if people are talking. Not what they are saying although it can help with that depending on how far they are on the Deaf scale.

Cochlear Implants are very controversial in the Deaf Community so if you’re going to write about them do your research!!! They are also not a cure for Deafness, just an aid.

Deaf people are not masters at lipreading! Even the best lip readers can only make sense of 30% of what is being said. I’ve been lip reading for years and I still only understand a little bit of what is being said. So no, your character is not going to miraculously know what’s going on from lip reading.

DO NOT have your characters yell at your Deaf characters. DOES NOT MATTER HOW LOUD YOU ARE! We can not hear you. Neither can your character. Have your other hearing characters speak normally. That’s the best way to lip read if they must.

Most Deaf people are born from hearing parents. It’s really rare for a whole entire family to be Deaf (Although I’ve met some and it’s super cool). But your character is probably born to hearing parents.

ALSO, the majority of hearing families with Deaf children do NOT learn ASL. It sucks but it’s true. Only about 30-40% of families learn sign for their Deaf family members. So keep it in mind,

So this is my list for now! I may add to it the more I think about things but this is basics I think everyone should know. If I forgot some then feel free to add! (as long as you are knowledgeable about the topic please). If you have questions please message me! Or if you need someone to proofread your Deaf!Imagines then I almost here for that. So happy writings everyone!

ILY

[max-gillespie]

An excellent guide!

[hihereami]

@hillsnholland YOOOO THIS WHOLE POST IS ACCURATE!!! Let me, let me!

Mom’s deaf and – even tho lots of things overlap with her personality – here’s stuff i know from living with her all my life: Keep in mind this is based off a personal experience!

Deafness is a spectrum! My ma for example can’t hear ANYTHING if she isn’t face to face and she moves on her daily life by instinct, hearing aids and all around observation. My theatre teacher, on the other hand, can get by without hearing-aids and senses when you are talking to her by a combo of training, observation and the lil muted sounds she hears. Still won’t know what the hell you are saying if they can’t read your lips, tho.

Not all deaf people know sign language. My mother, for example, speaks verbal spanish like a non-deaf person in her day to day and has refused to learn sign language. My teacher is bilingual – speaks both sign language and verbal spanish!

Sign language varies, it’s not a worldwide language and it does have its own dialects and slang. Americans have their language, british too, us argentinians have their own, bla bla bla.

Being deaf is an extra effort. I think most people with a certain disability or who aren’t neurotypical have experienced this. But being deaf in a hearing world doesn’t only mean relying on subtitles in movies (and not being able to watch dubs because audio and lips dont match!). It also meant for my mom going every single afternoon since she was 2 years old to the speech therapist to learn how to speak, to learn HOW TO COMMUNICATE. And it meant my grandparents making a big economic & emotional effort with no state present to back them up. And it means my mom sitting in front of the lectures in school, asking for stuff to be repeated, asking the teacher to move their lips, asking for class notes the rest of her academic life. Yeah, because she went to a mf hearing school.

Deaf people are denied jobs, attention, insurance… ‘’Write down that you can hear, that way it’ll be easier for you to get in’’ said an insurance advisor to my mom when I was eight years old. She kicked him tf out of our house. Good riddance. Deaf peeps in my life have a backbone of steel, strong as fuck.

In most countries getting hearing aids is expensive and a struggle. I live in Argentina and even with the public health system, my mom has to pay an insurance to cover 30-40 percent of the big cost of getting hearing aids. They have to be ‘’tailored’’ to the person so there’s no chance of getting them cheaper or second-hand.

Non-deaf people should and have to M O D U L A T E!!!!! MO DU LA TE !!!! That’s literally fucking essential and those who have lived with deaf people for a while end up doing it instinctively. Modulating is moving your lips while you speak, it’s a bit exaggerated sometimes but that’s appreciated because it’s essential for lip reading. People who have never been in regular contact with deaf people usually don’t have that custom and have to consciously try. That’s okay.

Hearing children that are around deaf people learn quite quickly how to communicate with them. My teacher’s baby niece knows to stare at her before babbling something. My mom tells the story to anyone who wants to hear about 2 y/o me tugging her skirt to tell her ‘’ma. telephone’’ ‘’ma. want milk’’. Kids ain’t stupid and have way more instinct around deaf people that adults sometimes.

Those who live around deaf people have it naturalised and are usually willing to teach those who want to learn  One of the first phrases I remember saying in kindergarden is ‘’No, speak to her face to face, she’s hipoacúsica, she can’t hear you, she reads your lips’’. My mom calmly shows people her hearing aids while asking them to speak slower. You get used to it, yo.

The dictionary spanish equivalent of hearing impaired (hipoacúsico/a) is NOT a slur. My ma speaks of herself as that, my teacher does too (and she’s certified in sign language, not only deaf herself). I suppose it depends on the person.

Deaf people can and probably WILL be loud. With or without hearing aids, my mom’s a ruckus personified. My teacher, too. I’ve met deaf people who are quiet but I’m pretty sure it had to do with their personalities. Most deaf people I’ve met are a ruckus like my mom. She can’t hear herself, yo.

Deaf people have ‘’accents’’    Don’t be fooled, you can’t always spot a deaf person! My mom has been confused for french, italian and its variation a good thousand times. My teacher just sounds northern. There’s always THAT one letter they can’t say right. My mum’s is the ‘’r’’ and the ‘’s’’. It’s really funny sometimes, specially when she’s sleepy.

Mishaps with words are common. I was raised by my mom so I have pretty much all her speech patters. To this day, people keep correcting me on words like ‘’pastafrola’’ that bc of mum I pronounce as ‘’pastaflora’’. It’s just dumb funny pronunciation mishaps. People laugh and let them pass. Don’t be the asshole that corrects ‘em. They know, thank you.

Deaf people can learn multiple languages! My mom will stick to her spanish, thank you very much but my theatre teacher speaks spanish, italian, sign language, english and teaches languages to deaf kids on a primary school! And they kill it!

Deaf people are practically always alert and therefore can get tired way more easily. This is a hearing world so they are all the time using all their senses, their instincts and their observational/comunicational skills to make up for it. My ma is quite hyperactive, too, so she’s always way more loudly grumpy around dinnertime. Don’t wake her up while she’s slumbering. She’s a demon. The cat wanted to cuddle and accidentally woke her once. She stood up automatically, took the cat ,YEETED the poor thing across the bed, then rolled back and started snoring.

Deaf people can be very repetitive. Okay. This might be only my mum. But every time we fight over it she blames it on her deafness so..

Deaf people can blame their deafness for petty intrascendental shit. ‘’Did i lock the door’’ ‘’yea mom’’ ‘’do you remember if i locked the door?’’ ‘’..yes’’ ‘’Did I lock the door?’’  ‘’MUM IT’S THE FIFTH TIME YOU ASK ME. YES YOU DID STOP REPEATING’’ ‘’i’m deaf i learned how to speak by repeating stuff. Now. Did I lock the door?’’  *cue dying ami noises*

Deaf jokes.

*to my hearing dad* ‘’christian, you said to buy more curtains?’’ ‘’no. when did i say that’’ ‘’right after aimée told that joke’’ ‘’she was talking about the weather’’ ‘’………………..christian…..love…….i think you are deaf’’

TOO MANY DEAF JOKES HYIQDWVKF

[hihereami]

I hate how I redacted it because it’s been awhile but the general advice still stands. If you are going to write deaf characters, please read this advice! :D

[incognitopolls]

If you use a wheelchair IRL, what type of wheelchair equivalent would you most prefer to see in fantasy media?

Realistic modern wheelchairs (as they generally appear IRL)

Realistic modern wheelchairs (aesthetically modified for the setting)

Realistic historical wheelchairs

Floating chairs controlled by the user (via telekinesis or other controls)

Chair that can "climb" with legs (controlled by the user)

"Chair" that is a separate living creature

Some other realistic equivalent (elaborate in tags?)

Some other fantasy equivalent (elaborate in tags?)

I do not use a wheelchair/show results

Voting ended onSep 21, 2024

We ask your questions so you don’t have to! Submit your questions to have them posted anonymously as polls.

[aaicoaa]

Waking up

It’s dark, cool and calming. It’s been like this for the last … he doesn’t know how long it’s been like this now that he’s thinking about it. Not that it matters, he’s happy here, well not really happy but he’s not sad, angry, scared or in pain. He doesn’t even miss his Mum, she died when his dad hit her on the head because she could not find his favorite vegetables for the stew. This made him very sad because it also meant that he wasn’t going to get that little brother or sister that his Mum said was only eleven sleeps away. Ok, now he’s angry at his dad.

Something is warm near his chest, whatever it is it’s not giving off any light, when his Mum and grandpa made stuff warm there was always a light. Suddenly the warm is replaced with seething, blinding pain he’s in too much pain to scream, he just gasps for breath as cold tears roll from the corner of his eyes. His back spasms and arches from the pain. By the time it stops he doesn’t know how long it lasted and can only think of moving away from where he has been ling, he decides to move up. He struggles to pull away the soft material hanging over him, and he moves upward.

It was a tight squeeze but he’s finally broke through the surface, when he gets to his shoulders, he pulls his arms out and hoist himself out up to his hips, and lays on the bare earth to catch his breath. He’s not sure what he was expecting but it wasn’t earth and grass. Breathing he realize is so much easier up here than even before the warmth. He pulls his legs out and wats for his eyes to adjust to the light.

“‘+*{{~’ is it?”

He spins around when he hears the deep voice behind him. There’s a tall man, well he thinks it’s a man it makes sense, being that tall and having a voice that deep, but he can’t see the face. ‘He’s ’ standing near a head-stone. It’s old and worn, it has that name on it and a date that’s me! He thinks I was 13, am 13?

“Well, is that your name?”

“No” he hears himself saying what?

“Aww, that’s a shame, where you buried in the wrong grave?” asks a new voice, it sounds old.

“um” he looks around, there is four counting him, the others are all waring ground length black hooded-robs with the hoods up, so he can’t see their faces but he can see the light glinting in their eyes, only it’s a different color for each of them. They are in a very old grave-yard, so old it’s been forgotten.

“You don’t need to keep it.” Says the third, their voice sounds young, not as young as him but still. They offer their hand to help him up.

He looks at the hand before accepting only to recoil seeing that the hand is just bones. He goes to get up on his own, but his knee fells weird under his hand so he looks down at himself for the first time and screams.

Panic floods his mind. His leg, his legs and feet are bone, his hands are bone, he’s wearing a long sleeved, formless black dress, he pushes up the sleeves his arms are bone, he opens the front of the dress to look at his chest it’s just bare, bone ribs. Too shocked, scared and confused to do anything else, he starts to sob, he can feel the tears run down his face and with out thinking he wipes them off his cheeks, he goes quite as he feels the bare bones of his hands drag across his naked cheek bones, he feels for his nose and mouth and when he can feel that they are just dry bone and teeth, Quietly, warm tears stream down his boney face and his shoulders shudder.

The younger one has sat beside him and wraps their arm around him reassuringly, and says “I know you’re confused but we’ll explain everything, can you tell us what you want us to call you?”

“It can be anything?”

“Yep!” they say with a smile.

He’s not sure how he knows their smiling.

“anything” says the tall one.

He thinks then sheepishly says “what about ‘Brant’?”

“If you like it, what right do we have to dispute it?” asks the old sounding one.

They are nice people thinks Brant, as he is helped to his feet. He is instructed to not forget what looks like an over-sized gran-scythe. By the tall one, that introduces themself as Third.

The old sounding one introduces herself as Bébinn.

And the younger one introduces himself as Mandla.

As they walk to the open-top horse-drawn carriage. And Brant can’t help but ask “what was that warm?”

“it’s what gave you the strength to move” answers Third as they hold the door of the carriage open.

Brant feels like that answer and the early after-noon sun-light is bringing peace to his mind.

end

[aaicoaa]

this is the first thing i rote/posted

                                        Can’t sleep

   The house is quiet, silence save for an analog clock, too far down the hall for most of the occupants to hear, but hey, it’s 1:30am, and whose awake to hear it, except everyone, no-ones sleeping, their either lying in their beds staring at the ceiling or drinking snapps in the kitchen, not making a sound.  Rebecca is lying on her air mattress, staring at the ceiling, she yawns and it brings a tear to her eye, she thinks “Damn this.” and gets up, she lets out a huff of air and looks at Rose, her eyes are wide open and fixed on glow in the dark shooting star stuck to the ceiling above her, she has not reacted to Rebecca getting up at all, you’d think she was dead if it wasn’t for her chest slowly rising and falling as she breathes, Rebecca tightens her jaw and rushes out of the room as quietly as she can, shes closes the door behind herself and with her eyes closed presses her forhead against the door, “DAMN IT!” she thinks as loud as she can, she thinks back at what she saw when she looked at Rose, and still closed, her eyes water, shes had sleepovers with Rose before, she knows that she cant sleep unless she is on her side with half a dozen pillows, Rebecca whispers to herself, “I’m asleep! I’m dreaming! I’m going to wake up and the first thing I hear is going to be the choir of alarm clocks going off in the dorms and the first thing I smell wiill be Vicki’s gym gear, then I’ll look at my calender and see that today is the 16/08/2007. and the worst thing that happens is Jim Fullbody hits on me again, that is my day, that is my day.” she repeats the last line to herself again and again, her voice gets louder as she remembers a 15 year old with brown hair and red peach fuzz doing an impersonation of helf eaten swiss cheese. [pieces missing and full of holes] he’s eyes looking like Roses’, it’s Jim, she leans into the wall harder as she slides down to the floor, gritting her teeth silently sobbing, everyone knows that everyones awake but they all hope that if they are quiet enough someone will get to sleep but it’s been over 24 hours for all of them, some have even been up for over 30 but sleep eludes them all.

[aaicoaa]

I did it

this blog is just for my story, Absolutely Anyone is Capable of Absolutely Anything it well probley just be ‘text’ posts.

@tenaciouszombiearcher @mlh-property-management-3280 @theskittles