Another sorting post because I really like doing stuff like this.
This is a post Andrew Joseph White also made a whole while ago about the subtypes his autistic characters fall into.
I'll only include the characters that are confirmed or heavily implied to be autistic, even though a lot of the other short story protagonists also give these vibes. I'll include short story characters, side characters from works AJW included in his post, and predictions on future MCs or barely existing characters because I can't help myself. It also has A LOT of headcanons. Where I sorted the characters is included at the bottom of each section in a TLDR if you don't want to read these long-ass paragraphs.
The Groundskeeper from The Spirit Bares Its Teeth:
So, the obvious choice here would be 1 since he's literally silent, strong and a source of support for Silas, but I feel that that's not actually accurate to what little we know about his character. I think that he's actually remarkably open to connection considering his situation and that him being non-verbal, his aparent problem with written communication, and the absence of any AAC or real sign language available to him makes it extremely difficult, so I don't think "silent" is an aspect of his personality and more of a side effect of his situation. Instead, I'm taking how at home he looked in the greenhouse and how well all the exotic plants are kept and running with it. I'm headcanoning the Groundskeeper as 2, a special interest gremlin, who loves plants and looking after them and finds a peace with them he can't find elsewhere. If he where to befriend someone, they would bond by watering plants and changing their pots. He has his own individual flower language that consists of the personal associations he has with each plant and that's largely independent from conventional flower language.
TLDR: 2.
Emily Barry from The Spirit Bares Its Teeth postcanon:
If you have no idea who she is, she's the older of the two daughters Silas and Daphne end up having later in life when they're married and live under the name Barry. (Emily is named after Daphne's mother btw.) AJW talked about her and her sister in his post-canon TSBIT short, and both girls have violet eyes and autism, and one of them also has ADHD as well, though we don't know which. I'm headcanoning that Emily is the daughter with ADHD, simply because I'm also an older sibling with AuDHD lol. Because Emily isn't a character in the story itslef and we know almost nothing about her, the rest is just even more headcanons. I see her as a special interest gremlin like her father, only that her main interest is art (this is mostly based on the Post-Canon TSBIT Series by MortonMurphy on Ao3), but I also think she has a bit of subtype 3 in her, in that she gets to grow up being herself in all her neurodivergent glory and is far less limited by gender roles than most girls of her time, which leads most of society to see her as disconcerting and wrong. While her parents had to teach her that she can't behave exactly the same way as at home elsewehere for her safety, she never had to mask as strongly and never internalized it as much as Silas and most neurodivergent people of the time did, and she was also taught that the fact she has to follow arbitrary rules is a fundamental injustice, even if she can't completely disregard them, so she doesn't even care that much that she comes off as strange most of the time (or at least she tries to internalize that, it's impossible for a kid to never be hurt when faced with rejection). She's very impulsive, extroverted and disorganised, often has paint or graphite stains somewhere on her, and has a habit of intensely staring at things she considers beautiful or interesting in an effort to truly comprehend them and the emotions they evoke in her (it's what most helps her understand her own feelings, she needs this), to really commit it all to memory, and because this includes people, it's another thing that makes her seem "wrong". She likes trying to paint spirits (with their consent) to help people who can't see or interact with the Veil like her mother understand them and be closer to them and tell their stories without forcing them to answer. She grew up with Isabella and Ellen around often and Frances occasionally visiting with Mary, so they're just people she loves to her and she thinks they're beautiful like all her loved ones are and wants to celebrate them and almost angrily assert their personhood through art. Obviously, she can't ever tell a Speaker-friendly person that she's doing this because it's illegal in the British Empire, but even people in France or elsewhere think it's kinda strange and off-putting to hang out with dead people so much.
TLDR: 2 & 3.
Isabella Barry from The Spirit Bares Its Teeth postcanon:
This is the younger of the two daughters Silas and Daphne have sometime post-canon and like her sister, she has violet eyes and autism. (And yes, she's named after Silas' friend Isabella, and yes, I almost cried when I first heard that.) Once again, we know literally nothing about her other than those facts, so everything following is my headcanons running wild and nothing else. I think Isabella is also subtype 2 and gets the special interest gremlin-ness from Silas, but I think she might also be 1, the strong and silent type. She's also interested in medicine and she and Silas can gross the rest of the family out easily when they get into discussions, but she actually can't handle surgery or even a lot of first aid due to sensory issues. She's hyper sensitive to smells and the hot, slippery, sticky feeling of fresh blood grosses her out severly, but she's still very interested in anatomy and how the human body works, and ESPECIALLY in how the understanding of it evolves across time. She also likes really getting into old literature and hold conceptions of the world that differ across space and time are embedded in it, and she enjoyed her mother's Latin lessons. So Isabella becomes a historian of science and medicine (and a bit of occultism and magic because you can't study medicine in history without also studying that), and writes a lot of really influential works, though she doesn't publish a lot of them for a long time for fear of backlash. A lot of her work assesses the impacts and wider implications of the scientific development of the past and (her) present and how they were influenced and fuelled by cultural exchange (can you tell I'm currently attending a course on this lol). Her favorite work to analyse and what really got her deep into that interest in the first place is "De humani corporis fabrica libri septem" from 1543 by Andreas Vesalius (or at least that's one of the fifteen names he was known by). The illustrations and detailled descriptions as well as the way the work is structured like the layers of the human body are pulled back one by one almost make her feel like she's present during a real (if idealised) dissection, and she finds the comparisons between the human body and other things culturally fascinating. Isabella has intense sensory issues that often make it hard for her to take part in social stuff, though her parents and sister make sure she knows her reactions are not wrong and give her opportunities to step out if she needs it. So she is often very preoccupied with dealing with the onslaught of sensations and doesn't have a lot of energy left to participate in conversation in unfamiliar environments, which leads to her being very quiet and mostly making agreeable noises, so she's seen as very shy, but not overtly strange most of the time. When she's in an environment and with people she's comfortable with, however, she is often very talkative. Isabella is also Emily's number one support, usually just her quiet presence helps when Emily is in distress. (Emily also supports Isabella in her own way of course, mostly by making sure spaces are acommodating her ahead of time.)
TLDR: 1 & 2.
Linda Abernathy (Miles' Mom) from Compound Fracture:
First off, I honestly could have included the whole Abernathy family here, but it's pretty unclear for most of them if they are actually implied to be autistic or if it's just most of AJW's characters coming off a bit neurodivergently because he can't write neurotypical people very well, which he admits. I feel like Linda, Jeffery, and Papaw are safe bets though, because Linda and Jeffery literally gave Miles very useful masking tips like they have intimate personal experience and have a number of the same traits that Amber likely identified as autistic in Miles, and Papaw just has the general vibes. So, to Linda herself, I think she fits very neatly into the strong and silent subtype. She's the main support of her family group, and doesn't seem to like being emotionally open very much, so this feels like the obvious and only logical conclusion.
TLDR: 1.
Jeffery Abernathy (Miles' Dad) from Compound Fracture:
Uhhhh he's honestly none of them? He's too emotionally open and ready to be vulnerable to be 1, he doesn't really have a special interest he's passionate about, and he's not unsettling at all. He's still 100% autistic, but he doesn't fall into any of AJW's typical subtypes, he's just a guy who loves his family and community but will always choose the former if forced to, and is very invested in making life better for the people around them, but is also severly traumatised and suffering from chronic pain, which influences every aspect of him deeply. If I absolutely had to force Jeffery into one of the subtypes, it would be 2 due to how he bonds with Miles through their mechanic's work, but again, it really doesn't fit.
TLDR: Honestly none, 2 is closest.
Papaw Abernathy (Miles' grandfather) from Compound Fracture:
He's most definitely the strong and silent subtype. He's basically the posterboy of it, there's no question about it.
TLDR: 1.
Amber Foster from Compound Fracture:
She's very much a strong figure of support for Dallas, Micheal, Miles and everyone else around her and the way she naturally behaves when she's not masking with her flat affect and expression very little emotions outwardly is probably seen as very uncommunicative by most neurotypical people, so I think she fits the bill for 1. Kind of related to this, Amber also seems to be seen as strange and wrong by many people, but especially Sheriff Davies, and she does not care at all hehe.
TLDR: 1 & 3.
Aspen from You Weren't Meant To Be Human:
So Aspen being autistic is never confirmed anywhere, but I feel it's heavily implied in some of their dialogue with Crane at the start of the book, so I'm including them. In the flashback to their and Crane's high school days we see, Aspen is very much trying to be as off-putting to everyone around them as they can, trying to keep people away, likely because of their home situation, mental health issues and anticipating rejection due to their autism and transness. Because of this, I think past Aspen is very clearly subtype 3. In the present day, though, they're very different. Now that they're able to live as themselves, are independent and also carry reponsibility for another life, they are much more outgoing and friendly, no longer trying to chase people away through disgusting them or being mean to them, but they don't seem to mask much either, they're just much more at peace with themselves and their life. Now, they're Birdie's rock, an amazing supportive father, and trying to help who they can. 1 doesn't quite fit who they are now, but it's the closest.
TLDR: formerly 3, now 1.
Cameron from Who Were You, What Are You:
This poor boy masks so strongly and makes so many of his decisions based on what other people will like most, that neither we the readers nor he himself really know what he would be like without it. He's most definitely not 3, because again, the way he acts is in large part geared to be as palatable to other people as possible. He also doesn't really seem to have a special interest he's passionate about, and he is far too communicative and emotionally vulnerable to be 1. Hopefully, he finds out who he is on his own (as far as that is possible for a human) after the events of the short story and explores himself a bit more. My prediction is that he will find a special interest he's really passionate about and begin to fall into subtype 2. Cameron also has a fascination with violence and taking back power over his life (understandbly) that could potentially mean he becomes subtype 3 in the future if he leans into that, but I think that's unlikely given the short story ends with him resisting that impulse. I headcanon that he will get super interested in autism itself as well as maybe other neurodivergencies and developmental disabilities and that will become his special interest, which he will use to help himself and others unmask in the future. This is basically just based on the fact that he knows a bit more about autism than most AJW MCs, and me shamelessly projecting a friend and her interests on him.
TLDR: none, maybe 2 in the future.
Dune from Who Were You, What Are You:
We know very very little about them, they only appear in text messages and scenarios Cameron imagines, but from what we see, Dune seems to be a confident, loyal person and very protective of Cameron. This doesn't really fit any of the subtypes, but 1 might be closest just for the "strong" part.
TLDR: maybe 1.
Simon from Oathbreaker:
He is obviously a special interest gremlin. His free time and most of his thoughts revolve around ttrpgs, he uses them to understand his emotions and connect with people, there's no way he could be anything else.
TLDR: 2.
Mr. Green (Simon's Dad) from Oathbreaker:
Like Simon, he talks about ttrpgs more than anything else and seems to similarly use them to understand himself and others, so he's a special interest gremlin also. However, I feel like he might also fit subtype 1. He is certainly very closed off and doesn't communicate much outside of ttrpgs, and if we take his ttrpgs character, the unnamed barbarian, to be mostly just him the way Landry is mostly just Simon, which seems to be the case from what we see, he is also typically reliable and eager to support people in his own quiet way, which I think fits strong and silent.
TLDR: 1 & 2.
Morgan Slaughter from You're No Better:
Obviously we can't know for certain because the book's not out yet, but from the exerpts published so far, and the premise, Morgan 100% belongs in subtype 3. He and many people around him are constantly distrubed by him and see him as untrustworthy, sick and dangerous due to his past, behaviour and intrusive thoughts. People like to project a whole host of issues on him, some of which are probably accurate, some not, and treat him like a ticking time bomb. He himself also seems to think he's a fundamentally bad and cruel person. Subtype 1 might also be applicable here due to how strongly he masks and how often he pretends to be completely unbothered by what's going on, as well as the fact that he seemingly usually refuses invitations to be emotionally vulnerable with people like his parents, his therapist, or Felicity. (Which is very understandable in his situation, but still. It was understandable for Nick too, and he was still subtype 1.) If I had to limit Morgan to just one subtype, it would be 3, that one fits way better.
TLDR: 1 & 3.
Blythe from Beast//Warden:
We know even less about him because his book isn't even fully written yet, so this is mostly based on the post AJW made about his vs. Morgan's autism a while ago. According to that post, Blythe has an incredibly intense interest in a single nondisclosed topic that most people find very gross, and that is one of the reasons why he's excluded from his community. That alone is enough for me to declare him a special interest gremlin honestly. It also hints a bit that he might also be subtype 3, and I think this is corroborated by the other things we know about it. We know that Blythe is mean and nasty, very ableist despite being disabled himself, hated by his whole community, and very ready to get violent, as seen in his plans to kill the other apprentice. All this fits the image of someone who most people are disturbed by and who could be called unstable, so very subtype 3.
TLDR: 2 & 3.
One of the love interests from Beast//Warden (either Hawthorne or Livia):
This is where we reach the territory where I know next to nothing lol. I know from the now deleted representation catalogue that one of the two love interests in Beast//Warden is autistic (or was at least planned to be at some point, that might have changed since then), and it seems likely that it is the other apprentice trying to become Bestwarden because he or she (either Hawthorne, who uses he/him as far as I can tell, or Livia, who seems to use she/her) is also disabled, but that's not a guarantee (given that AJW also said the other apprentice might have a rare autoimmune disorder if he can get it to work with the magic system and so the apprentice might have the autoimmune disorder and autism or just the autoimmune disorder and the other love interest has autism), and even if it were, we don't know whether the apprentice will be Livia or Hawthorne. We especially don't know anything about what either of them is like. So this is just absolute guesswork and shots in the dark based on vibes alone here. If the love interest with autism ends up being the other apprentice, whoever that may be, my personal prediction is that he or she will be subtype 1, putting on a strong, unfuckwithable facade to protect him- or herself and not talking much with Blythe until he starts trying to kill him or her. If the love interest with autism isn't the other apprentice, I think that he or she might have a very intense special interest and fall into subtype 2, and connect with Blythe through that, maybe because their special interests are somewhat similar or related. All this will probably end up being completely wrong, and I'm honestly looking forward to AJW surprising me.
TLDR: maybe 1 or 2.
Gunwyn Byrne from the as-of-yet unannounced adult project:
Once again, we know almost nothing about this man, and I'm mostly including him to celebrate that he will soon-ish exist. From what littel AJW has said about him, it seems his story is mostly about trying to force himself to fulfill expectations of being adult and almost breaking under the strain because his developmental disability makes it nearly impossible. I think this "conceal don't feel" approach fits most in subtype 1, but again, this is a total gamble and will likely end up completely wrong.
TLDR: maybe 1.
Do you agree with these characters belonging in the various subtypes or not? Where do other autistic characters fall into in your opinion? Are there other AJW side characters you think are autistic and otherwise neurodivergent that it isn't confirmed for? Please tell me!
(I think Ainsley and their dad from Oathbreaker both have ADHD, for instance.)