Disability Writing Advice

This is a resource for writers trying to write disabled characters. The main format of the blog is question and answer, but we also post critiques, book reviews, and writing advice about disability.

[disability-writing-advice]

I have a mute character who signs, and I would mainly be portraying them in comics and illustrations. What would be the most respectful way to portray them signing in that medium?

Look up Matt Fraction’s Hawkeye comics - those do an AWESOME job of portraying sign

- Mod m

[disability-writing-advice]

Hello! First of all thank you for this blog, it's so helpful! My question is - one of my characters is involved in a car accident and part of his recovery brings him in a weelchair. He's ultimately left with reduced mobility in one leg. My question is - would it feel like a cop out on disability for him to go from wheelchair to walking (with a crane)? And how can I describe him dealing with becoming disabled without falling into the "Bitter Cripple" stereotype?

not my realm of expertise- opening to community input

[disability-writing-advice]

Character is paraplegic because of a war. Gets abducted alongside other (able bodied) characters. He is hypnotised and believes he's still at the war, back when he was able: he doesn't feel he's paraplegic and would sometimes try to walk and fall without knowing why. This isn't meant to be a gag. His disability has never been a Great Tragedy to him, nor the only reason why the war gave him so much PTSD. But I'm still not sure. Is this plot point ableist? Can it be improved?

Not my realm of expertise. opening it up to the community

[disability-writing-advice]

I have a writing question, I often hear the advice “in order to keep the plot interesting imagine the worst thing that could happen to you or the ones you care about and do that to your character.” in varying forms. My question is: do I have to? Can the plot be interesting and engaging while things are either going right or the character not dealing with tragedy? Thank you for your time.

You /definitely/ do NOT have have to put your characters through horrible things to make it interesting. Maybe your character goes somewhere or meets someone new that will help them grow as a person, or learn about a friends’ struggle and learn how to help them - even if it is just being support. Depending on how you write it, you can for sure have everything going ok and still be interesting! Sure it helps to not have everything great all the time - no one’s life is great 24/7, but you also don’t have to have everything dark all the time either. If you want to write about happy times then do it! If its interesting to /you/ chances are someone else out there will find it interesting too. 

Good luck!

Mod M

[disability-writing-advice]

Hi, I'm trying to plan a book in which it is absolutely crucial to the story that the main male character was left in a wheelchair by a car accident having previously been planning on making a career from being active. Eventually he will learn to walk again (so I'm leaning toward an amputation being the reason for the chair) but having never been in a chair myself I'm a little unsure on the day to day problems it'll cause him? Especially if he too is new to not being able to walk. Can you help?

I’m fairly sure that no mod on here has experience with this particular disability, so I’m going to let those in the wheelchair-bound community answer this one.

- mod m

[disability-writing-advice]

Hi! I'm remaking a bunch of old characters who all fight in super hero-esque ways. I really want to make some of them disabled! I'm worried about giving them disabilities that "get in the way of fighting" though? While at the same time avoiding giving them powers that makeup for their disabilities? And on the same note, I've already portrayed one character as needing a wheelchair but also being able to teleport. So does that undermine the wheelchair situation?

Mod M here, 

I’m not sure that any of our mods can speak on this, as it is wheelchair specific and (as far as I know) none of us are wheelchair bound. Does anyone who is comment on this for our anon? 

[disability-writing-advice]

hi there! I have a girl in my book who had an accident and became deaf as a result of head trauma. Just wanted to know whether it'd be okay for her to sign to her friend who then translates, and if so how can I accurately/correctly describe signing?

If both friends have had time to learn or had already known sign language, then I would think it would be ok. I would set up that when the friend is there, they translate for her (until they’re distracted or something and then explicitly state that the translator friend is busy and what communication is hindered because of that). I would then just have the english translation in italics so that people remember they are signing and not speaking.

Anyone else in the d/Deaf/hoh community have anything to add?

- Mod M

[disability-writing-advice]

Is it ok if my main character had an injury as a kid that gave him something like a permanent vocal cord paralysis, so during the book he cannot speak loudly and he gets exhausted when doing it, but at some point he really loses his voice and starts using sign language to communicate?

That seems decently realistic to me however learning a new language is pretty difficult so try to incorporate that somehow?

Also I don’t know how common it is for people in your story to know sign language. but at least where I’m from it isn’t very common so even if you learn it very few people will know what your trying to say even if your character asks a freind or relative to learn with them not every person will do it they might just blow them off or tell them to just write stuff down

but other people can weigh in?

-mod kev

[disability-writing-advice]

What would be a way to properly convey sign language in a comic format? Having a small panel for each sign with a caption might be time consuming to do every time, so would it be alright to show only some of the signs of a full sentence at one with some kind of "subtitle" beneath the characters hands?

The Matt Fraction Hawkeye comics are a great example of using signs in comics! i’m not sure how i’d describe it without pictures so if you can you should look them up! Fraction doesn’t put captions on it so that hearing people can get a taste of what d/Deaf/hoh people feel like but you could put captions if you wanted to! I’d just put a bubble or something without quotes :)

- Mod M

[disability-writing-advice]

So, if you guys are still around - One of my characters and the main character has a quadriplegic girlfriend. What I'm hoping for is some advice on writing caregiving activities (think help dressing or with eating, assisting transfers, etc..) and intimacy. Things I should avoid? Things I should do? How should the disabled character react/not react when her girlfriend first offers such assistance? (Broadly, obviously individual people are different.)

I don’t think any of us mods have experience with this so i’ll open this up to the community. 

- Mod M

[disability-writing-advice]

Hi! Is it ableist that my mute character doesn't sign in my story? She uses morse code instead because she mostly interacts with her older sister who is vision-impaired. Since her sister couldn't see the hand signals, they started to talk via morse so that the older sister wouldn't be at a disadvantage. I know that some people don't like that mute characters don't sign and write instead, but I didn't know if morse would be similar to that. Thanks for your help.

Mod M here! 

I go nonverbal occasionally and I think that would be fine! Sure, its not stereotypically done but it shows another way that people can accommodate each other, and (i just did a bit of research on the various ways to transmit morse code via this link) so it would be good. Also think about screen readers/braille writers. There is also this video about the way that people who are hard of sight and deaf communicate through signing. 

There will be some people who aren’t happy with your story, but at the same time if it fits the character then, in my opinion, it would be fine. 

If anyone who is non-verbal/mute/partially non-verbal and has an opinion for anon please share it!

[andreashettle]

I’m not mute or speech impaired (people I’ve known have had different preferences in terminology), but I’m deaf, and I’m not personally comfortable with this. In real life, I have taught a few signs to hearing blind people basically by letting them feel the shape of my hands while I am signing, and they have successfully learned signs this way.  (I have not yet had the chance to teach someone the full language, just a few words and phrases and the alphabet, which is why I say “signs” and not “sign language”).  I don’t see why the mute character couldn’t also teach a hearing blind sister signs in this way as long as someone is helping say what the signs are the first few times the sister feels the signs. Or, morse code could maybe be an interim solution as an aid to learning the real language of whichever sign language the mute sister users. (Hopefully you realize that there are about 2 or 3 hundred different sign languages in Earth, not a single universal sign language.)

Bear in mind that in the video, it looks like both women are deafblind, which is why both of them need tactile to read each other’s signs. Since only one of the sisters is blind, only the blind sister would need to rest her hands on her sister’s hands to read them. If the blind sister signs back then of course the sighted sister would just see the signs.

I admit some of why I am instinctively resistant to the idea of using morse code as an alternative mode of communication is because it feels like you made the leap to go there based on assumptions about what blind people can or can’t do rather than finding out for sure. Before writing too much of your story or making final decisions on how the sisters communicate, I suggest you do more research into blindness, speech impairment/muteness, etc. and real people with these disabilities adapt the usual ways of doing things. This should include researching more into how deafblind people learn and use sign language to help you consider how a hearing blind person might do the same. Bear in mind that there are learning differences depending on whether a person is born deafblind versus growing up deaf and sighted (or hearing and sighted first) then having to learn to tactile signs when you are older. And more differences again for a person growing up hearing blind–on one hand they may make some of the same mistakes that sighted hearing people make when they are novices at learning sign, but on the other hand they have more experience learning information via tactile than a deaf person becoming blind late in life. 

If you still want your sisters to use morse, consider other reasons why they might choose this method of communication. Maybe there are others around who know sign language, and they need a secret way to communicate? Or maybe for some reason the parents have refused to allow the mute daughter to learn sign language? For example perhaps the parents have the misguided idea that blocking other avenues of communication will somehow force her to be able to talk? If so, what has stopped the girl from finding other ways to teach herself sign language via online videos or seeking out friends who use sign language? If there is no Internet within the universe of your story, then this would obviously remove some avenues for learning independently or finding deaf people or people who are mute/speech impaired. Or the mute sister could have internalized ableism that stops her from trying to learn to sign. If you’re going to remove sign language as an option, there needs to be some reason why that makes sense within the story. And also some explanation how and why the girls first learned morse code.

I always urge people who want to write disability into their stories to follow @disabilityinkidlit and their “sister blog” at http://DisabilityinKidLit.com to learn more about tropes and other things that bother readers with various disabilities. Look for more blogs and videos by blind people–and not just in Tumblr, since Tumblr isn’t a very friendly platform for blind users. With a few exceptions (like @actuallyblind and a few others) many blind people prefer to use other blogging platforms like Wordpress, Blogspot, etc, or Twitter, etc

Here is a blog written by a deafblind woman, she was deaf first then started to lose her sight in college: https://tactiletheworld.wordpress.com/

[capricorn-0mnikorn]

NaNoWriMo is coming up; so I’m reblogging for this excellent point from @andreashettle:

…consider other reasons why …

Whatever you choose to write (but especially with disability – and other experiences not directly your own), do your research, and work out the “why,” first.

Otherwise, you’re simply reducing your characters to mere objects of spectacle (and remember, there will be people like your characters in your audience, and they will abandon your story like a burning house if they feel like you’re using them for a cheap gag).

[disability-writing-advice]

Responses from the community! These are both excellent additions to this post. If you are able it's well worth the read! - mod m

[disability-writing-advice]

Hi! Is it ableist that my mute character doesn't sign in my story? She uses morse code instead because she mostly interacts with her older sister who is vision-impaired. Since her sister couldn't see the hand signals, they started to talk via morse so that the older sister wouldn't be at a disadvantage. I know that some people don't like that mute characters don't sign and write instead, but I didn't know if morse would be similar to that. Thanks for your help.

Mod M here! 

I go nonverbal occasionally and I think that would be fine! Sure, its not stereotypically done but it shows another way that people can accommodate each other, and (i just did a bit of research on the various ways to transmit morse code via this link) so it would be good. Also think about screen readers/braille writers. There is also this video about the way that people who are hard of sight and deaf communicate through signing. 

There will be some people who aren’t happy with your story, but at the same time if it fits the character then, in my opinion, it would be fine. 

If anyone who is non-verbal/mute/partially non-verbal and has an opinion for anon please share it!

[disability-writing-advice]

Hi! I'm writing an urban fantasy novel, my main character's best friend is a young mage - magic user with a military bent - who, in the last act, has her leg amputated. Do you have any advice on how to do this with realism and sensitivity?

Hi there!

None of us mods have personal experience with amputation, so I am going to open this question to those who do have experience. 

If anyone reading has advice and has personal experience please send it their way!

- Mod M

[bbhhhhhhh]

Guides on writing autistic characters

There’s a lot of great advice about writing autistic characters on the internet, and the aim of this post is to link to all of it. If you’ve got something that should be included in this post, please include a link in a reblog.

Accidentally Writing Autistic Characters by Alyssa Hillary

Note to People Thinking of Writing Autistic Characters by Ada Hoffman

How to Write Genuine Autistic Characters by Bard

Writing Autistic Characters: Behaviourizing vs. Humanizing Approaches by Elizabeth Bartmess. The blog this was written for is gold.

On Writing Autistic Characters by ChaoticIdealism

How to Write an Autistic Character by Draggle Ella

Writing characters, not symptoms: A gamer with autism discusses what our hobby gets wrong by Joe Parlock

How to Write Autistic Characters by Karamatsu boy

L. C. Mawson has many great posts about writing autistic characters that discuss words you should know, empathy, and why you shouldn’t write an insufferable genius.

Advice from Loud Enough to Hear

How To Write Autistic Characters ( With Examples From Ruby’s World ) by Neil Kapit

Information on stimming by Packbat with an addendum from Fluffy-critter

So you want to write an autistic character part 1: Integration dysfunction and what to do about it by Senga

Writing Autistic Characters by Real Social Skills

5 Step Guide On Writing A Character With X Disorder or X Disease by ReferenceForWriters with an autistim-specific appendix by YouNeedACat

Tips for Writing Autistic Characters from SilverSarcasm

Great advice from TAL9000

Writing Aspergers from WriteWorld

Writing reference: things to keep in mind when writing autistic characters by Yehudisha

If you want an example of what not to do, check out this post I wrote about The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

[thatdorkishkittyriley-deactivat]

@ocdetective idk if this is good stuff but it might be cool to check out for your other blog thing

[disability-writing-advice]

Hi guys, I write about superheroes quite a bit (I'm on my fourth generation right now) so you'll probably be getting a lot of hero/villain asks from me. So atm I'm working on a crew of teenage heroes & villains, and one of the soon to be villains (and the main heroine's ex bff) is, in my head, completely deaf. So my general q is what you guys think about disabled villains in general, and what powers you'd like to see for disabled supers that wouldn't invalidate their disability (1)

I’m currently thinking something that makes use of his disability, like sonic bombs etc that debilitate hearing people, so his disability actually becomes a huge advantage? Is that weird or a cool idea? I’m desperate not to do stuff like give a blind person the ability to magically see with heat vision or something, because then I feel they won’t properly represent the problems actual blind people face (as an example). Does that make sense? Help me Obi Wan Kenobi(s), you’re my only hope! (2)

Hey there! 

I personally think that having disabled villains and superheros is awesome, as long as you dont make them only villains. as for powers i guess as long as it doesn’t magically substitute the disability anything else is fair game, like you were saying. The sonic boom could be a really cool idea, as long as you remember to take into account the reaction to the vibrations that go along with it! just remember to think about the other senses and I think you’ll be fine :) 

- Mod M

[disability-writing-advice]

are you still accepting mod applications?

Not right now, sorry! We might open up mod applications again later on, but we’re good for now. Thank you for your interest though!

--mod Alan

[the-anchorless-moon]

Fandom Thing That Makes Me Angry #276: People in the HP fandom using trans!remus as a replacement for werewolf!remus

Here’s the thing: Lycanthropy in the Harry Potter universe is a chronic illness. Not only does it function as a chronic illness in-universe (a long lasting incurable disease that gets worse over time* **) Not only that, but HP werewolves are specifically a metaphor for HIV/AIDS(x). Everything – from the side effects to the state of treatment to his fears about passing his condition to his partner or child to the stigma Lupin faces – everything about the presentation of HP werewolves is designed to reference AIDS. And Lupin isn’t really very good representation,*** but he is still positive representation of a grossly under- and mis- represented group of people. Making a canon disabled character trans and going “it’s a metaphor” is not progressive. It is erasure.

The other part of this is that, in using Lupin’s illness as a metaphor for transness, you are comparing transness to an illness. Like we don’t have enough problems with that already? “Gender Dysphoria” (previously Gender Identity Disorder) is still on the DSM. We are constantly being treated as sick against our will – people are constantly trying to “cure” us – and with that being the case it’s honestly just really sickening to see a well intentioned story that buys into that.

And look, I get that the ‘period once a month’ thing appeals to people as a parallel, but honestly it’s just so disrespectful both to trans people and to disabled people alike. For one thing, almost half of the population has periods. People are not marginalized for having periods.**** In addition to that, most people’s periods are relatively mild. Some people have more extreme period related issues,***** but for the vast majority of the population, periods are gross and humiliating at worst. Even with periods triggering dysphoria, it’s still no where near the same level as a stigmatized illness that causes severe pain and injury on an ongoing basis.

As both a trans person and as someone with a chronic (mental) illness,****** this trend in the Harry Potter fandom bugs the hell out of me, and makes it hard for me to access works about my favorite character. And don’t get me wrong, I love trans!remus – but he can be trans and still be disabled, yeah? Here I am, trans and chronically ill both, typing this right now. Please don’t engage in ablewashing. Please don’t compare our genders to illnesses. Please, please, please, engage in creative and respectful exploration of Remus Lupin’s gender and disability both.

Lupin can be either a transgender werewolf or an HIV positive trans boy – and both of those are amazing stories that deserve to be told.

Go out and tell them.

*due to build up of injuries caused by transformation. **note: not all of these criteria are necessary for something to be classified as a chronic illness, but they are all part of the definition(s) ***u tried, JK ****people can be mistreaded for having a period in association with being marginalized as a woman or as a trans or intersex person, but having a period is not in and of itself a cause for opression. *****debilitating pain from cramps and blood loss, to name a couple. ******which isn’t the same as having a disease like AIDS or a similar illness, but falls under the same umbrella.

[disability-writing-advice]

Reblogging from myself here because relevant

--mod Alan