On writing characters with disabilities
Iâve had a rough morning and Iâm riled up so hereâs my two cents. Repeat: my two cents. I do not claim to speak for or represent the beliefs of everyone with a disability.
INCLUDE CHARACTERS WITH DISABILITIESÂ
[Canât believe Iâm still saying this but here we are]Â
No, not âdisabled charactersâ, put your character before their disability but include it nonetheless. People with disabilities exist in real life, out in the world, living and breathing and going about their days in the same spaces as able-bodied people. No their disability does not have to further the plot because thatâs not how life works. If you want realism, include characters with disabilities. Weâre all around you. I guarantee you know several people with disabilities even if you donât think of them that way.
âBut a disabled person canât be a soldier/mercenary/other badass fighty character which is apparently all I include in my story!â
A) Yes they can. If youâre only aware of physical disabilities that completely limit a personâs mobility, youâre not aware of the diversity of disabilities or the mobility aid options and itâs time to do some research. Peg leg, bionic eyes, arm made of gears and pneumatics-based imitation tendons for each individual finger, magic potions or holistic treatments for chronic pain management, mental disabilities, someone who has a disability but is in remission. Get. Creative. These people exist and function in the same spaces as your perfectly able-bodied soldiers/mercenaries/various badasses.
B) Letâs say they canât. Letâs say, for whatever reason, your badasses must only be completely physically and mentally abled. Do you not have medics? Blacksmiths? Ammunition and weapons experts/providers? Pilots? Family members back home that your badasses fight for and return to once a month? What about the bar/tavern/club/restaurant/dining tent your badasses regularly visit - are there no servers or cooks or bartenders that they talk to? Hell, a prostitute with a missing arm or severe ADHD. Are you really telling me you donât think itâd be fun, and beyond handy, to have a magic healer who happens to be paralyzed from the waist down in your crew whoâs constantly cracking jokes and shutting down shitty behaviour? Sure they may not fight because your fighters are only perfectly abled, but damn are they good at the fix-up after.
âBut I donât want to write a sob storyâ
Yikes. Well, good news, you donât have to. People with disabilities can be ridiculous and funny and fun in general and it doesnât always revolve around their condition. However, they will make jokes about their condition and, given the right people, can be joked with about it. âThe right peopleâ varies person to person, but I find for the most part itâs close friends and family members who act as strong supports and will also joke about things outside of the personâs disability. For this, you may want to talk to real life people with disabilities. Seriously, weâre everywhere. If you built rapport, many of us would be happy to tell you if a joke/situation is offensive even within the context of goofing around with a friend. Hell, some of us (ex. me) would be willing to answer questions from a total stranger if itâs in the name of providing education and support on writing a character with a disability.Â
[in which my best friend is a gift and figured out reassuring me I wasnât a burden wasnât working so she settled on calling me her favourite burden]
âBut I donât always want to be talking about their disabilityâ
You. Donât Have. To. Itâs almost like, with all character traits/quirks/identifiers, it happens occasionally and within context.
She bowed her head low and bent her elbows at funny angles, tying her hair up quickly so she didnât have to hold her arms up for long.
âYeah, kept me up all night.â She dropped her hands, straightened up, and stretched her neck, rolling her head side to side. âAlright. Letâs do this.â
Washing bitter pills down with even more bitter coffee, he went over his tasks for the day. Dry cleaning, groceries, bank, assassination. Easy enough.
âThey canât take the stairs. Weâre leaving them behind.â
âOr, you inconsiderate rat bastard, we could find an alternate route. Youâre not getting through security without them. Theyâre coming.â
TL;DR, itâs not hard to throw in the realities of living with a disability every few chapters, or whenever relevant.
Lastly, the topic of using the word(s)Â âdisabled/disabilityâ and naming a diagnosis.
This, for me, isnât really a big thing. I can understand how it is for some people, and Iâm a fan of it but I donât consider it a necessity. Some people want to see the word âdisabilityâ used in order to take away its stigma. Some people want to see diagnoses named for the sake of completely being able to purely relate to a character. I understand that. Iâm not bashing that. This is just my opinion. Personally, I donât see the need, especially in fantasy settings or scifi or general other-world where conditions may not have the same names or treatments as they do in real life. If you make it clear that your character has a disability, show the symptoms and the ways in which they cope/manage/adjust to carry on with their lives, show their ups and downs and condition management, thatâs enough for me.
This might be the area that you upset and offend some people. Someone might get mad that you used the word âdisabledâ, some might get mad that you didnât. Some might get upset that you âmade upâ your own condition, some might get upset that you named a diagnosis and didnât portray it in a way they felt was accurate. Unfortunately, thatâs the reality and your choice to make which group you want to potentially upset. Do your research, do your best to be sensitive, make an informed decision. Ultimately, I donât think Iâm alone in saying Iâd rather see characters with unnamed disabilities portrayed in a positive way than not portrayed at all.
Please, include characters with disabilities. It can actually contribute to the realism of your stories and you might be surprised how fun it can be to write.