Instead of, you know, functioning entirely as a) a healer, b) a distraction, and most importantly c) a hobbit delivery system.  

Hobbits brought down Sauron AND Saruman, thwarted Denethor’s insanity, stopped the Witch King of Angmar, thwarted Saruman again, and REBUILT AFTER THE WAR. And they did it all with, I swear to God, the POWER OF FRIENDSHIP. 

Bilbo befriends Gandalf and a bunch of cranky dwarves, intervenes repeatedly to try to prevent dragon attacks, murder and war, and then just WANDERS HOME WITH THE RING.

Bilbo’s POWER OF FRIENDSHIP allows him to actually leave the Ring, something nobody’s ever done before.

Frodo and his friends set off to take the Ring to Elrond, make friends with the local reclusive demigod and survive purely thanks to THAT FRIENDSHIP. 

The hobbits unite the Nine Walkers with FRIENDSHIP. 

Merry and Pippin befriend the reclusive tree people, GOODBYE SARUMAN. 

Frodo trots across the world befriending people and gets them all the way to the fiery mountain, when Sam’s friendship GETS THEM THE REST OF THE WAY. 

Meanwhile, Pippin makes friends in Minas Tirith and SAVES THE DAY AGAIN. 

Merry befriends Eowyn and inspires ‘Dernhelm’ to just suit up and go like he does and distracts the Witch King at the crucial moment DAY SAVED THANK YOU. 

Then when they think it’s all over, they amble back to the Shire, find it in trouble, and CALL ON THEIR FRIENDS TO FUCKING CARE BEAR STARE SARUMAN OUT OF TOWN. 

falling, falling, falling...💘

Do they not realize that like…my muscles are going to atrophy anyway if I don’t get a wheelchair??

I am less likely to leave my bed during a flare up if I know I will have to walk. This causes me to miss out on a lot of things. I will end up not moving at all and my muscles will become weaker.

At least with a wheelchair I can actually go out and do things during a flare up instead of staying in bed. I will have more energy to keep my body healthy in the long run.

 Despite the fact that I am not deaf, mute, or blind myself, one of the most common questions I receive is how to portray characters with these disabilities in fiction.

As such, I’ve compiled the resources I’ve accumulated (from real life Deaf, mute, or blind people) into a handy masterlist.

Deaf Characters:

Deaf characters masterpost

Deaf dialogue thread

Dialogue with signing characters (also applies to mute characters.)

A Deaf author’s advice on deaf characters

Dialogue between Deaf characters

“The Month I Suddenly Went Deaf”

What It’s Like Going Deaf In Your Thirties

9 Women Share What It Feels Like To Lose Your Hearing

What It’s Like Being a Deaf Teenager (video)

Parenting With Sign Language (video)

Deaf Teen Talks About Losing His Hearing To Meningitis (video)

Things Not To Say To A Deaf Person (video)

Deaf Kids Shining in High School (video)

I recently discovered the youtube channel of the amazing Jessica Kellgren-Fozard, a vintage-loving, lesbian, happily married queen, who talks about her deafness in many of her videos.  I can’t recommend her enough.

Black Deaf Culture Through the Lens of Black Deaf History

Black Deaf History

Video: How to Sign in BASL (Black American Sign Language)

Mute Characters

Life as a Mute

My Silent Summer:  Life as a Mute

What It’s Like Being Mute

21 People Reveal What It’s Really Like To Be Mute

I am a 20 year old Mute, ask me anything at all!

Selective Mutism: 

Story Time - Selective Mutism (video)

My Selective Mutism Story (video)

When I Grow Up, I Want to Talk: My Story of Selective Mutism

Myths About Selecive Mutism

The Experiences of Adults With Selective Mutism

Blind Characters:

Things Not To Say To A Blind Person (video)

What It’s Like to Go Blind (video)

The 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Blind Characters.

@referenceforwriters masterpost of resources for writing/playing blind characters.

@blindbeta‘s masterpost of resources and blog full of resources and information for depicting blind characters.

The youtube channel of the wonderful Tommy Edison, a man blind from birth with great insight into the depiction of blind people and their lives.

As does Molly Burke, “a typical sushi and makeup loving millennial girl who just so happens to be blind.”

And Alyssa Irene, who talks about her experience going blind and life as a blind person.

An Absolute Write thread on the depiction of blind characters, with lots of different viewpoints and some great tips.

And finally, this short, handy masterpost of resources for writing blind characters.

Characters Who Are Blind in One Eye

4 Ways Life Looks Shockingly Different With One Eye

Learning to Live With One Eye

Adapting to the Loss of an Eye

Adapting to Eye Loss and Monocular Vision

Monocular Depth Perception

Deaf-Blind Characters

What Is It Like To Be Deafblind?

Going Deaf and Blind in a City of Noise and Lights

Deaf and Blind by 30

Sarita is Blind, Deaf, and Employed (video)

Deaf and Blind:  Being Me (video)

Born Deaf and Blind, This Eritrean American Graduated Harvard Law School (video)

A Day of a Deaf Blind Person

Lesser Known Things About Being Deafblind

How the Deaf-Blind Communicate

Early Interactions With Children Who Are Deaf-Blind

Raising a DeafBlind Baby

If you have any more resources to add, let me know!  I’ll be adding to this post as I find more resources.