Writing Blog Number 2 (continued)

20251226 Writing Disabilities

Writing Disabilities

Disabilities are becoming more and more common in written works. Unlike in earlier times where the disabled were portrayed as either the bad guy (especially with a physical disability) or an object of pity, or even a joke character, there has been a concerted effort of late to make people with a disability more like, well, people.
         But this does not come without some issues. So here is a brief look at some common disabilities and how they are and can be used.
         I will say that I rarely use people with a disability in stories, unless it is a disability I have. I feel it is their story to tell. But sometimes I do know some people want to include people with a disability in their tales. I will also say I know that the term "disability" is no longer generally used, but I think it is the term most of us are familiar with. This is not to imply people who would fit into this list are any lesser as people. It is a look at the tropes that should be avoided when it comes to some people.

Blindness
This is one disability that seems to have been treated well by creatives. And while the lack of this sense does create a heightening of other senses, the character Daredevil is not a good exemplar of what can happen.

Deafness
It is difficult to write people who cannot hear, and so few do it. But if you want an example of it done really well, I recommend Impossible Music by Sean Williams (2019).

Autism Spectrum Disorder
This is one of the more common neurodivergencies used in fiction. But they are either used as figures of fun, or as something akin to an evolutionary step (yes, I am looking at you, The Predator), or as some sort of savant (Big Bang Theory, anyone?). When they are not utilised in these manners, we get horrors like Sia’s Music. The thing is, as the title says, it is a spectrum, and the differences between those on the spectrum can be wide. There are some similarities, but that does mean you cannot represent every person on the spectrum with one character.
         I have some experience as a qualified teacher of those on the spectrum, and the representations I have seen in films and read in books just makes me sad. I will not write of a person on the spectrum despite my experience because it is definitely their story to tell, and with what I write, how is it going to help the narrative?

Down Syndrome
People with Down Syndrome are often portrayed as stupid and used as victims or butts of jokes. They are depicted as not being able to learn or being taught things as a matter of rote learning with limited understanding. This diminishes those with Down Syndrome markedly. One of the ladies on the radio station I read at each month has Down Syndrome and she is amazing. Stereotyping people can lead to belittling, and that is what I see too often in written works.

Missing Limbs
This is where the bad guy trope comes in – they have a missing arm, leg, eye, hand, whatever, and it has made them embittered. That is ridiculous. Often, the person suffering this is resilient and copes really well. They have some issues – phantom limb syndrome is surprisingly common – and depression often accompanies it. Prosthetics do help, but they are not real. It is only in recent years that we have some technologies that enable these prosthetics to be functional, and even then it does not work for everyone.

Acquired Brain Injury
This is the disability with the widest spread of effects. It can include (but also not necessarily include) personality changes, mood swings, amnesia bouts, permanent memory loss, limb spasms, tics, eyesight issues, referred pains, headaches including migraines, memories of events that never happened, forgetting people they have known for ages, short term memory issues, medium term memory issues, hearing issues, tinnitus, audio and visual hallucinations, learning difficulty (sometimes in only one or two learning aspects), speech issues, and more besides. But no one person will have all of these, or even half of these. Instead, what we get in popular media are people with amnesia or superpowers.

There’s five that I have seen the most of in films and books and TV. By the way, despite what some claim, depression, homosexuality, insomnia, et al. are not disabilities. They are just a part of what makes human beings an interesting species, and are things that are normal.