1. I appreciate this article.

  2. Kind of reminds me of one of my chars. He gets an injury that leaves him with very limited use of his hands and forearms and has to adjust his life accordingly. No superpowers come with it, and his hands never fully heal. But it impacts his daily life and he has to learn to adapt.

  3. Sharon Rose says:

    Good perspective. I just read a middle-school book with a totally blind character. His biggest issue was not the lack of vision, but the lack of a family. In day-to-day life, he got around school (differently but fine) and had a snarky sense of humor. He was a likable character, and this article actually explains why.

    • Thanks, Sharon! That sounds like a book I’d want to read. What’s the title?

      One of the things I love most about your own books is the focus on character diversity. The way you incorporate cultural (and other) differences into the characters’ daily lives and show their similarities to each other at the same time—brilliant! You effectively show how our differences make up only part of who we are.

  4. notleia says:

    TOPH. Toph from Avatar the Last Airbender. In the sequel series, Legend of Korra, they explore a bit of nonbender bias, but the studio kneecapped it and it didn’t realize much potential. Korra was also disabled for awhile (had more potential than they used. Oh well)

    • I was so disappointed that she got all her bending back at the end of that season. I would have loved to see how an avatar would handle only having one element.

      • notleia says:

        I’m waiting for the fandom remake, even if only in manga form. Korra the show does have a lot of good bits, but there were too many bad choices made for me to like the whole.

    • Great example, Notleia! I’m only a little familiar with the original Last Airbender series, since I watched a few episodes of Season 1 with my niece. It is frustrating when studios (or authors) fail to realize the full potential of a character or story thread. As a fan, I find myself preparing for a truly moving or empowering story, only to have it fall flat. I’m thankful for the other stories out there that do inspire us.

  5. Excellent article! The subject of fictional characters with disabilities is very close to my heart and I’ve written about numerous such characters as well. I’ve been heartened to see more recent examples of characters living with a variety of disabilities who are not magically cured at the end and whose disability is not the focus of the story — such as Kamet in Megan Whalen Turner’s THICK AS THIEVES, who also has limited vision.

    • Thanks, R. J.! I will definitely check out your books (and Megan’s). I appreciated the recommendations and love connecting with fellow authors and readers who share my passion for this subject.

  6. Ann says:

    What an insightful writing!! I believe the characters and their stories be realistic as far as abilities go. Especially to make the story more realistic, more believable as it beats at the heart of the fantasy, weaving it all together showing God’s love and power as the center of all things!

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