You're autistic, right? If it's alright with you, do you have any advice on how to Write Autistic Characters authentically and not horribly insultingly like The Good Doctor or some shit?
Hi I sat on this ask for many moons bc I wasn't sure how to answer it and I wrote and deleted an essay or two. I hope you're even still active and will actually see this 😅😅😅
But in the end I think it comes down to the genuineness of the character, the relevance of their differences, and respect for their needs and the way they are
Autistic characters can feel flat or stereotyped but that doesn't mean you MUST stay away from "stereotypical" traits- a lot of us have those!
They can feel shoehorned or token-y if the way their autism is treated seems inconsistent with their role in the story.
And it can be really obnoxious to have an autistic character need to be"fixed". We often have a lot of issues that we need to overcome or accommodate in order for us to live happy lives and sometimes we need help with those issues, but constantly seeing "autistic character disrespects their own feelings and needs in order to blend in" phrased as a huge win, like wow, you're almost a real person now! Is just. Kind of. Wow okay. Yeah we do that every single day and it's just part of basic survival and it also causes us harm that we need to go to extra effort to recover from. Lol thanks tho
I know for people who aren't autistic and don't understand autism that the appearance of participating in normal life can seem like the be all end all. But you can write an autistic character whose big win is participating in normal life without going "all you have to do is be uncomfortable and unhappy for the sake of others' approval, yay!"
I'm not an expert, just one writer who's autistic. Personally, when I write autistic characters, I have SO FAR never found a reason or motivation to label them autistic on page. The story isn't about that, or we're in a world where they would not be diagnosed autistic, or some such. If I ever have a reason to label it, I will, but mostly I just want to show autistic traits and struggles as just stuff that this character deals with. My writing isn't activism and I'm mostly informed by my own experience of figuring shit out while undiagnosed, so many ideas around that sort of thing are compelling to me.
I'm working on an original novel where one of the main characters is autistic and is shown having social issues, sensory issues, literal thinking, unusual use of empathy (less or more than is expected for the situation) unusual affect and mannerisms, stims, and other common traits or symptoms. There are some very recognizable autistic traits, and some that are less recognizable. She may be clocked as autistic immediately by some or just seen as quirky, unusual, weird, or even off-putting to others. (I hope not too off-putting!) But she's found herself a niche where she's incredibly competent, and she's able to take care of herself, so those around her are mostly just going to consider her odd, slow at certain things and quick at others, and rigid or particular. Her autism will be assumed to be personality traits and she'll be judged and treated accordingly. That's reality for a lot of us, and it's one worth writing and reading about, for me.
Here's an open invitation for autistics to comment their own opinions bc I know what we want to write and read is broader than just what I've covered.
