Merry meet all,
Being a horror author today has many challenges. I face a harder challenge in that I am a neurodivergent horror author.
A teacher once told my mother that I would never be able to read. That cruel statement from that malicious teacher feels like a lifetime ago, and since then, I have achieved the impossible. My older brother taught me how to read. By the time I was in grade six, I read at a high school level. I was placed in the university stream in high school instead of the regular stream because I fit in culturally with the university stream. I have written three novels- one of which is published on Amazon. I have composed under one thousand blog posts. I have eight short stories published- one of which has been published five times, several poems published and thirty-two nonfiction articles published in various magazines, books and Ezines. I have taken many workshops and courses. I am a member of the Horror Writers Association. I read anything I could get my hands about how to write novels and how to write poetry, short stories and query letters. I have been reading Writers Digest magazine since I could stand. I am the only one of my three siblings to have completed a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Neurodivergence means a difference in the way that the brain works. There are different types of neurodivergence which include autism, ADHD, etc. I hope that it is taken more seriously today. For a long time and I know well from personal experience, there was no understanding. Everyone has a different way of learning. There is no one right way no matter what anyone might say.
People who are autistic excel at recognizing patterns and thinking creatively where others who are neurotypical would not. Neurodivergent people can be hyper-focused on a project, especially when it aligns with their passions and talents. For example, I am not suited to work retail but I love to write and I am exceedingly creative. I became a writer because I am not suited for most common mainstream employment. Most writers and true creatives have no choice but to express their creativity, whatever the chosen medium of their creativity is- be that in poetry, short stories or novels.
Unfortunately, those who are neurodivergent are met with struggles when trying to find work. They are forced to fit the mold and if they require certain accommodations, they are ignored. They earn less income or no income at all. It’s estimated that 15% of the population is neurodivergent- dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, ADHD, autism and Tourette Syndrome.
Many who are neurodivergent are overlooked in favor of those who are neurotypical. Bright lights and very noisy environments are harsh. A quarter of people who have ADHD or who have autism in the UK are incarcerated at twice the rate of their percent of the general population. Many who are autistic or have ADHD are more likely to live in poverty and die young. They are the first to be laid off by companies and end up very burnt out or depressed. Some who are neurodivergent are trapped in psychiatric hospitals their entire lives simply because their brains function differently than neurotypicals.
The majority of neurodivergent are not harmed by neurotypicals but by a capitalist, market-oriented system that forces conformity. It locks out those who are different or else are seen as a profit to be made off of. We feel unheard or invisible in the workplace and in the classroom and never feel understood. Neurodivergent people struggle harder than most at what comes easily to others. I can’t do math but I can pitch an article for an editor. I would love to see a raise of hands on how many others hate math.
At times it feels like I am the only one who is neurodivergent in the world. That is of course not true but it can be isolating and lonely. People who are neurodivergent try harder than most, feeling like they have lots of catching up to do to function the same as everyone else in the classroom or the workplace. I can submit a short story cover letter and story to an editor for a magazine but it took years of practice. I have improved my math skills but it was an uphill battle.
I am reluctant to share that I am neurodivergent with others. From an early age, I was abused by a parent. Teachers and students were unbearably cruel. I withdrew and learned fear. I was taught that being neurodivergent was a very bad thing. The way I learned to deal with it was to hide it from my teachers and peers. It was not till years later that I was professionally diagnosed. By then the damage had been done.
I hope it is taken more seriously not for me but for others who are neurodivergent. I know the struggle that many face in life. I hope that their struggles are understood by others and made easier for them to deal with. People who are autistic or ADHD do achieve great things but that is only possible when they are understood and embraced instead of rejected and taught fear.
The real horror is the misunderstanding of neurodivergence. We face many issues today such as war, crime, racism, genocide, immigration, poverty- indicative of a destructive capitalist system that brutally victimizes minorities in financial, social, educational and cultural areas of life.
Neurodivergent people to hug you if you are having a bad day. They understand the struggles. Many of my main characters in my horror stories are the outsiders, loners and/or rebels. I identify with them and portray them in my stories. I relate to them on such a deep and intimate level.
The movie and the novel It by Stephen King excellently portray a group of kids who don’t fit in but who experience the horrors of that clown and save the day. Another example is the novel and movie Carrie. Many people can relate to Carrie gifted with a telekinetic power yet given no understanding of how to harness it properly and perform well in society. She remains a tragic figure and a hero. She is a hero to me.
Neurodivergence should be viewed as a strength, not a weakness or a debilitation. Neurodivergent should be embraced, not cast out in the cold, a symptom of a much bigger problem and by no means a solution. Horror fiction, plays, movies or poetry reflects the horrors of our society today and display our fears. When you read a horror novel, you can close the book when you’re finished. For some of us, those horrors are experienced every day in our waking life. We cannot close the book when we are finished reading it or turn away. Neurodivergent people are resilient.
Blessings, Spiderwitch
