Award Announcement!

Lights Out was among the 25 titles chosen by In The Margins for their 2020 Fiction Titles

You can see the other titles chosen here.

I am beyond honoured and proud of my work!

Disabled Characters FTW! - The Creative Process

DISABLED CHARACTERS FTW!

I talked last week about representation (found here) and this week I want to touch on something near and dear to my heart, and that is: disabled characters. Now I've talked about this before (pieces here and here, video here) but it's been a long while since I really spoke about this issue. A lot of the time, it feels like disabled characters get forgotten about. We end up with the tragic ending, or being cured when actually we're just happy being in fiction. There's a lot than goes into this, some of it is the belief that disabled people are better off dead, some of it is the idea that every single one of us just wants to be cured magically and go on our way, and some of it is plain old ignorance.

When I started my AuthorTube channel, I did so without really saying much about my own disability. If you follow me there, you know that I regularly open up the floor for questions from my readers, you guys basically. You'll also know that a lot of the time, I got a lot of similar questions: what's wrong with you? It got to the point where I did a whole video addressing that because I just got sick of being asked all the time. (For the curious, the video is here) But what does that have to do with disabled characters and why you should write them?

I'm glad you asked. It's as simple as this. A lot of the time, I'm seen as tragic and/or inspirational because I both write and exist while being chronically ill and in a wheelchair. A lot of the unsolicited messages I get are from people unaware of what my deal is, and therefore asking what's up with me and how does it get fixed. And there in lies the problem. You can't "fix" me. I am, firstly, not broken, and secondly, there is no known cure. And I'm okay with that. There are some days when I'm not, but for the most part, I am okay with the way my life is going. Because of getting sick, I was able to start my writing career and if that'd not happened, I wouldn't be where I am today. But before you start telling me how inspiring that is, read on a little further.

A lot of the time, when people like me are in stories, they're seen as a warning, or a tragic ending. People fawn over them, feel sorry for them, use them as a way to build themselves up and generally the disabled character isn't at all well-rounded, because they are, at the basic, a prop to spur on the protag and save the day. And that's a really hard pill to swallow as both someone who grew up chronically ill, and someone who writes young adult fiction. As I mentioned last week, I don't think abled people should be writing about the struggles of being disabled, but that doesn't mean we have no place in your story. It also doesn't mean that for a happy ending, the disabled person has to be cured or die so that they are "no longer suffering."

I say it like that but I know there are a wide array of views when it comes to both the disabled community and the chronically ill community, the crossover between the two is a lot and everyone is different. I am not, by any means, claiming to speak for anyone but myself. I'm not the voice piece and I am only going by my own feelings and thoughts when it comes to disabled characters in fiction that I've read or seen talked about.

So what are my tips when it comes to writing disabled characters and how can you avoid falling into a trope plot hole that makes it more cringey than readable? Glad you asked, because you know that I love to give out tips on these posts so here's my top five when it comes to writing disabled characters.

#1 - NO INSPIRATION PORN
If you're not disabled, then you've probably never heard this term thrown around. Lemme break it down for you, inspiration porn is when you see a photo or video of someone in a wheelchair or visibly disabled doing something completely ordinary. It's then held up for all to see, usually with the words: What's your excuse? It's the bane of disabled lives because we're seen as so tragic that we simply exist to build up abled people and show them that if we can do x then they should be surpassing us by miles. It's a similar kinda thing to that saying: The only disability is a bad attitude. Which is crap and allows me to use this gif to convey it.

 
But this is something you should be avoiding at all costs when it comes to writing disabled characters. You should not be putting them up as the standard to live by, unless they're doing something exceptional for anyone. It should never be despite their disability. Of course mileage may vary here, but personally I find characters who are super awesome at what they do well-rounded when they're not being touted as so inspirational because they got the thing done while also being disabled.

#2 - CHECK YOUR TERMIOLOGY
This is something that applies to a lot of marginalised characters, and that is making sure you're using the right words to describe them. I can't talk on writing characters of colour and how to describe their skin tone and hair, but I can tell you that a lot of disabled people prefer being referred to as just that: disabled. Not differently abled. Not person with a disability. But disabled. Again, mileage may vary and it's not something you have to take my word for, as I said above, do your research and talk to people with that disability when writing these characters, especially if you're not disabled yourself.

Another word that I would rather not be used by those without a disability is the word cripple. It's been a slur against disabled people for a long time, and while some have reclaimed it, myself included, it's not something that should be thrown around. On top of that things like wheelchair bound are seen as a no-go. My wheelchair frees me, it doesn't bind me. In that regard something as simple as switching it to wheelchair user, can be a better idea.

#3 - HAPPY ENDINGS ARE OKAY
As I mentioned above, a lot of the time, disabled characters don't get happy endings. They either die tragically and that is seen as a happy ending, or they get erased from the whole thing. It's okay to write a character who doesn't get cured and yet still survives to tell the tale. On top of that, it's more than possible for someone in a wheelchair or with a disability to have a good ending. To have been part of the action and gone on to have a rich, fulfilling life. It's okay to let us be happy and it's okay for us to stay disabled.

#4 - LOVE HAPPENS
This is something that is shied away from a whole lot and it's a pain in my backside. Disabled characters can have love interests. We can even have sex should we wish to. We're not so faux pas as to never get the girl (or guy) because we also happen to wheel rather than walk. So if you're thinking that your love interest can't be with a disabled character because of the disability aspect, think again, it's possible, it happens, and it should be shown in fiction!

#5 - CURING ISN'T THE END ALL
I touched on this a little in some of the other points, but not all disabled people want to be cured. It was a big thing for me when J K Rowling announced that there were no disabled people at Hogwarts because they'd all be cured. It left a bad taste in my mouth because it just felt like erasure, which is what it is. Disabilities are real, they have a lifelong effect, and announcing that there are no disabilities in your world and therefore no need for adaptation etc, is lazy writing. There, I've said it, and I know I'm not alone there. Allow your disabled characters to stay disabled, because in the real world there are people reading who never get to see themselves in fiction, and who won't get a cure because there isn't one.

So those are my five tips and pointers when it comes to writing disabled characters. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to sound off in the comments below!

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Spoonie Writer - Being An Inspiration(!)

BEING AN INSPIRATION(!)

This is something I've been wanting to write for a while. It's something that a lot of spoonies (and disabled people in general) will have probably heard of, come across or being the centre of. And that's the idea that just because I'm disabled, I'm an "inspiration" to everyone. You've probably heard the saying: The only disability is a bad attitude. It's crap. A friend of mine did this wonderful gif that basically explains why it's crap. I'll add it below.

I know what you're thinking: what's the big deal? Why does it matter if people are inspired by you? You're badass and write and publish and all that jazz? What's the issue here? Glad you asked, because I'm gonna tell you! And if you didn't ask, feel free to keep scrolling, but if you stick around, you might learn something new and that's never a bad thing, right?

The issue isn't being inspirational because I wrote a book or two and am badass and all that. It's the fact that people who aren't disabled generally look at those who are as a source of inspiration in a way that's harming and pretty damn insulting. You'll have seen the headlines I'm sure, someone asked a disabled person out on a date, aren't they just amazing? Or the ones where you read about someone who did something "despite" their disability. The something can be as big as competing in the paralympics, or as small as getting through exams. The issue there is that, whether meaning to or not, the article is saying to everyone else out there: "What's your excuse? This pathetic being managed it, so should you!" And that's harmful af.

I am chronically ill. I am disabled. I wear oxygen most of the time and I use a wheelchair most of the time. I'm also an indie author with nearly 12 books out and over twenty written. The two have nothing to do with the other. That I'm disabled does not make me some inspiration. I'm not someone to be fawned over because I got out of bed "despite" my disability. I'm not someone to take pity of, or to use as you give yourself a pep talk. "OH Joey managed it and she's disabled which means if I don't, I'm less than her, and no one wants to be less than a disabled person!" You get what I'm saying here?

By all means, be inspired that I've written as much as I have, or that I've done things outside of the realms of the average human. But don't paint me as something to be admired because I happened to be in a wheelchair while I did it. Pity is a powerful thing, as is ableism. I know, I know, I used the a word and there are probably a thousand eye rolls right now. But it's an actual thing. I've dealt with it ever since I become a wheelchair user, even before that when the majority of my conditions were invisible.

There is a lot to be said for people who simply think that because I'm disabled I'm therefore less than. I'm not, and I know the majority of people don't see it that way. However, there are the few who do. They feel like the worst thing in the world is to be disabled. And it's not, quite simply, it's not. I have a full life. Yes, I have limitations in place because of the world not catering to my unique needs, but I'm still having a life. I'm still a person and I'm still someone who makes achievements. And yes, some of those are inspiring, but my very existence isn't.

Now, I know that some people will read this and think: Does she mean me? And the answer is, if I'm still speaking to you, probably not. I generally don't have much time for people who view me as a tool to beat themselves up with. Like just because I have the conditions I do and the effects it has on my life, they need to aspire to be better than I am because I'm disabled and therefore less than the average human. See what I mean about it being harmful? I write because it's part of me. I need to tell these stories and I need to tell them the way only I can. I post videos and blog posts as part of building my fan base and my platform and I do that because it's how I manage.

If you wanna be inspired about the number of things I get done in a month, great, but don't add on the caveat that I do it "despite my disabilities". I don't see myself as wheelchair bound. Without my wheelchair, I would be bound. I would be stuck in bed, inside and unable to do the majority of what I love. I wouldn't be able to go to signings or anything like that. I would be in a prison of my body's creation. My wheelchair is freeing. It allows me to do all the things I love and do them better and more often than I could otherwise. The oxygen also lets me do that. Otherwise I'd be stuck in bed. Same as my pump and everything else. All my treatments are there to help me live a full and happy life. They don't bind me, they allow me to be.

So, in short, I'm not an inspiration for simply existing, but I can be for being a badass writer. That's my thought for the day.

Follow Joey here on her blog, or on Facebook or Tumblr to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding Joey and her books. 

Writing Disabled Characters [CC]

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Diversity Matters [CC]

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Questions From Readers - November 2016 - Part Two

And I'm here to answer some more of your questions. I'm hoping to get to the last ones by the end of the year, but of course, it all depends on health, spoons and all of that jazz. So without any further ado, let's get to the second batch of questions!

Why do you call yourself a disabled writer? Isn't it better to not let your conditions/disability define you?
This is something I've been asked before, but I'll go over it again because I don't think it can ever be said too much. I am disabled. And while a lot of people will say that I am a writer/author first, I am both. There has always been a lot of talk from many different people - those with and without a disability for example - about what word should be used to describe people like me. I identify more with the word disabled than I do with the phrase person with a disability. I think in that regard it's down to each individual disabled person to decide which works for them. As for the second part of your question, when you're chronically ill or disabled you often get told to not let it define you. And for a long time I agreed with that, but here's the thing. It does define me. Not because I "let it" but simple because that's how it works. It has a long term effect on the way I live my life and because of that I can't remove it from my identity. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad thing! Again, this is all my personal view on the matter. There are some people who would prefer not to be defined by their conditions, but I'm not one of them. It doesn't mean I'm wrong or they're wrong, just that we view our lives differently.


Do you have any regrets in your career?
Yes! I just did a video about how I regret not waiting for better covers before I pressed published. It's something that has bitten me in the arse and because of that, I am a big advocate for new authors making sure that not only does the content of your book be the best they can be, but also the wrapping too! You can check out the video here. 

Are you nervous about saying goodbye to Tara?
Yes, very much so! In the fifteen years I have been writing, I have been kept company with Tara and watched her grow from the awkward character in First Touch to the character she is in the final book Eighth Ending. She has been my constant companion through writing and it will be hard to end her story. It's been coming for a while and I always knew there would be an end to her story. I also am excited about starting my new series, and getting to know a brand new character whose end I don't yet know.

Have you always told stories? Or was it just a matter of circumstance?
I have, from a very young age, been a story teller. It was something I excelled at at school, and my parents would tell me often that I have an over active imagination, and the way they phrased it, it wasn't good! However, it was always something I enjoyed, and that enjoyment as only grown as I've gotten older. When I have the opportunity to do this with my life, it seemed like such a natural choice.


How do you deal with self-doubt? I have problems with keeping going when I have a bad day and feel like deleting the whole thing. Is that just me?
Not at all! My friends will tell you they've had to talk me down about that kind of stuff. There was a point recently when I was convinced that the eighth Dying Thoughts book needed to be trashed and just rewritten from scratch. I was so close to doing it when a friend of mine told me to step away from the computer. She was right and looking back at the manuscript now I realise that a ton of the problems I see are because I'm only reading a part of it when I write. If I went back and read the whole thing, I'd spot things that needed to be changed, but that's what editing is for. And I'm not talking about the professional edit either. When you finish your first draft, you're going to have to go back and do a bunch of rewrites before it even makes it to an editor. And that's okay. I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say a non zero number of people have to do the same with their first drafts. The point right now is to tell yourself the story by writing it down. Once that's done, then you can go back and fine tune it.
As for dealing with self-doubt, like many other creative people, writers have moments (many many moments) when we start to think that out work isn't all that good and because of that, it's pointless to continue. I deal with it, by telling myself that I just have to get through the first draft and that to do that, I'm gonna have to live with that gremlin named Neil that tells me all the many things I am doing wrong. It's not easy, but writing isn't easy. I wish you the best of luck with finding a way that works for you.


How do you write a blurb that tells enough of the story to get the readers attention, but doesn't give away big plot points?
I'm actually one of the few (or so it seems to me) that doesn't really struggle with writing a blurb. I started writing by going from the blurb to writing the story around it and that seems to have worked for me long term. There are times when I find myself struggling with them, but that's when I get help from other people. The main things you want to remember are that you're supposed to be painting a picture with words as to why someone should read your books. Since I write mostly crime and paranormal, I always try to end the blurb with the hint of a climax. That way it hooks the reader in and allows them to then see for themselves how I deliver that promise. My advice to you would be to look at other books in your genre and go from there. It should give you some idea of what plot points to include without giving away too much. Good luck!


Where do you do the majority of your writing?
I do the majority of my writing at my desk in my office. It's huge and has pretty much everything I need to be comfortable and able to write for as long as possible. I also have a small over the bed desk up in my bedroom where I can work on my tablet, but generally speaking if I'm sick enough to be stuck on bed rest, then I'm not writing at all.

In Destination: Unknown the town of where the story took place is explicitly mentioned, but yet in Dying Thoughts, Blackout and other books, the town is never mentioned, why is that? Or are they all in the same place?
The reason Destination: Unknown explicitly states where the characters are is because of the history of my home town that ties into the story. I haven't ever really felt the need to do the same in any of my other books, except for Waiting On You. In my head, the stories take place in the same town, my home town. However, I left it like that because I didn't want to limit the reader's imagination should they feel like their home town is a better place. I know that some writers are very clear on where the story is happening, but it's never felt needed for me and so I've never had to actually do that.

What do you do when you get a bad review? I got my first 1 star and am devastated by it :(
First I remember that it's okay to get upset by a bad review. Talk to a friend or someone who can help you work through the feelings that come from a 1 star, but do that away from the review itself. It may also help to know that everyone gets 1 star reviews and it does not mean that your work isn't good. It just means that to that particular reader, it wasn't their favourite and that's completely normal. You can't please everyone and fiction, like art is very subjective as to who likes what and why they like it. Even five star reviews won't always like the same thing. 
Once you've had some time to calm down, read it again and see if there's anything constructive you can take out of it, but never, ever, ever reply or engage with the reviewer! The reviews on a book, while nice to get and read are not for us, the authors, they are for other readers to help them decide whether they might like our work. And it could be that what that 1 star review said they hated, will be what someone else is looking for. That's a good thing.

Will you start doing the writing advice pieces on your blog again? Or do you plan to mostly keep that to your booktube channel?
I do plan to continue them, I had a huge backlog that meant I didn't need to split my time in writing more, but now that I've posted all of those, I do plan to keep doing updates here as often as I can. 

Other than the Darker event, are you planning on doing any other signings?
I'm hoping to do a few others, but as of yet none have been confirmed. I would love to do some signings at libraries, but am waiting to hear back. Once I know, you guys will be the first I tell!

How much outlining do you do before you start the book? Any tips on how to keep it all organised?
I do, what feels like to me, a lot of outlining, but yet compared to other authors I know, is bare bones. I think it's better to start with too much and then as you refine and learn how you write, cut back or do more depending on what you find works best. I stay organised simply because my health means I have to carve out time to do all of these things otherwise I will find myself getting lost, frustrated, over worked and sick and that's never fun.

Why are you always wearing oxygen in your videos? 
Simple, because breathing isn't optional and my lungs haven't upgraded to take the wireless kind of oxygen.


Thanks for all your questions! I will post the next batch in the beginning of December! If you have a question you'd like me to answer you can email me at bugbooks@virginmedia.com.
 

Why Is Representation Important? - The Creative Process

(Image Source)

Why is Representation Important?

If I'm only able to achieve one thing with my writing, I would be happy for it to be the opportunity to show people that they can see themselves in my characters. One thing that's important for all forms of media is that they portray everyday people. Whether they are disabled or able bodied; black or white; religious or not; gay, straight, transgendered or bisexual; man, woman or gender-queer; from all different ethnicities. It's important for people of all ages to be able to read, watch and play media that allows them to see themselves in the story. Representation in the media is important for everyone.

There has been a lot of discussion in recent years about how few female characters there are that are anything but white. Of how many disabled people are equally represented in the films they see, the games they play and the books they read. I could go on and list all the minorities in the world who face oppression and erasure from these platforms, but I think you can tell who I'm talking about. As a white, bisexual, disabled female, I have experienced some of that erasure. While I cannot and will not talk for those who are not me, I can say that in general terms, there is a need to be recognised as a person. That means that there is a need for people reading books to be able to see their own struggles and achievements shown in their genre of choice.

I recently wrote a piece on being a disabled writer (found here) and have spoken somewhat about how young disabled adults and children need to see that just because you have a disability, it doesn't mean your life is over and that you will never amount to anything. As a young adult author, it is important to me that I am able to share characters who have disabilities. As a bisexual woman, I need to be able to do the same there as well. Diversity in fiction is not a bad thing. Why should the default character be a white man or woman? A young black teenager should be able to read a book and not have to accept that they will always be a background character, nor should a gender-queer teenager, or a disabled teenager. I'm not saying that all my characters are from minority groups, but I like to think that there is a mixture of them. I know that one of the books I am working on at the moment has people from a whole array of different ethnicities, religions, and sexual orientations. I can't speak for people from ethnic minorities using my own voice, as that is not my story to tell, but that doesn't mean I should ignore their oppression when I write about these characters and so there has been a lot of research involved, including a large amount of discussion with people from minority groups.

I am disabled though, and I do see a minor amount of disabled characters who don't fit a certain stereotype. I can think of three or four of my books that either have a major character who has a disability of some kind and I know that I will continue to write those characters because I feel that it is my duty to show the young disabled people of this generation that there are people like them who achieve greatness and that with a disability, you are not always condemned to living in the background, out of the limelight. I'm not saying all of this to toot my own horn and collect my trophy for making some of my characters deal with disability. I'm saying this because it's high time that the number of main characters in fiction reflect the number of disabled people in real life. The same goes for those who are a part of any other minority.

Representation matters and it's down to people in charge of the flow of media, such as writers, artists, record labels, toy companies, game designers and so on to start realising that it's no longer acceptable to push people from minority groups into the background, to make them 'redshirts', loveless extras, or the butt of jokes. The young people growing up now need to be able to see a character on the screen at the cinema or on the TV or in their favourite book or even simply in magazine adverts and think "that person's just like me!"

It is 2014, the twenty-first century, and racism is still rampant, gay rights are still being fought for, transgendered and gender-queer people are still scared for their lives, are still abused and ignored, and there is still a wage gap between men and woman. Isn't it time we took a step back and thought about all of this? Realised what we are telling the next generation? That unless they are a white, Western man, then they don't matter. Their needs are not important. They don't need role models because they're always going to be "background" characters. Is that really what we should be telling our children? I, for one, don't think so.

So, yes, representation is very important. The internet is full of places to research and opportunities to talk to people from minority groups, and while it is not their job to educate us just because we demand they do, there are still numerous resources to access to be able to write these characters realistically and give the next generation a chance to realise that yes, they are different, but they are not any less important or any less awesome. That's why representation matters to me.

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