7 & 8?
7. …has a physical disability.
Fictional representation for disabilities and chronic illness is something that is very important to me, but I didn't intentionally include it in my series. It just happened. Arienna deals with a debilitating, severe, incurable, life-threatening illness. It affects her daily life and ability to function. It also affects her future and prevents her from living the life she would have wanted. I relate to this deeply, since I have severe chronic illnesses and disability as well. Arienna's experience probably came out of my own, though hers is worse than I first thought. 8. …has a mental disability.
As mentioned here, several of my characters have PTSD, including Jason, Marcus, and another character, Rhiennyth. Each of them has lost family members in tragic ways, and Jason and Rhiennyth have experienced abuse. They will find healing eventually, but it's hard. Thalia definitely has ADHD (though I didn't plan it that way). Her brother Luke probably has ADHD as well (his is more inattentive, hers is more hyperactive). Their brother Evan has ADHD as well, and he's probably on the autism spectrum. One of their family members in the next generation sequel series is also likely autistic. Their cousin Arienna has mild anxiety and later deals with a lot of trauma that needs healing. She has C-PTSD rather than PTSD.











