Writers! Do you worry about writing NT characters?

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DuckHairback
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07 Feb 2021, 12:54 pm

Just a question for the writers on here.

I used to share my short stories with a writers group. One frequently raised point was that my characters seemed isolated, operating in a vaccuum, to the point that it seemed to be a theme. I realised that I wasn't doing this consciously, it was just how I operate and what I consider normal - so I wrote characters like that.

And then I started to wonder whether it's possible for me to write a convincing character that doesn't have these traits, or whether my difficulties with social skills is going to bleed into my fiction whatever I do. And is that ever going to connect with a wider audience of neurotypical readers.

Do you have any concerns about writing neurotypical characters? Do any of your ASD traits creep into your writing without you being aware?


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NaturalEntity
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07 Feb 2021, 1:54 pm

I don't have concerns about writing NTs exactly. ASD traits possibly seep in (a couple of my characters are in fact autistic). But I look for advice, questions and prompts when fleshing out a character to avoid pitfalls.


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DuckHairback
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07 Feb 2021, 2:48 pm

Thanks. I didn't notice that there's a sticky on this forum covering almost exactly this topic in detail! Perhaps mods will delete this duplicate (if there are mods? New here!)


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NaturalEntity
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07 Feb 2021, 2:51 pm

Yeah, there are mods. Unsure what they'll do though.


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Joe90
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07 Feb 2021, 3:39 pm

In my experience of reading, some (NT) writers seem to unintentionally make their (main) character seem Aspie-like. Like Jeff Kinney, who wrote the Diary Of A Wimpy Kid books. Greg was not supposed to be an Aspie but he seems so relatable to me when I read the books. He reminds me of how I was when I was in high school (we don't have "middle school" in the UK).

But anyway, I do enjoy writing (and reading) psychological drama sort of things, so to write things like that the characters need to be emotionally atypical in some way. But I have wrote stories about NT characters before and I don't really have problems with it, as I can easily imagine how I'll be as an NT (which is why I get so depressed and "mourn" for my "inner NT self").


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PhosphorusDecree
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13 Feb 2021, 4:58 pm

Joe90 wrote:
In my experience of reading, some (NT) writers seem to unintentionally make their (main) character seem Aspie-like. Like Jeff Kinney, who wrote the Diary Of A Wimpy Kid books. Greg was not supposed to be an Aspie but he seems so relatable to me when I read the books. He reminds me of how I was when I was in high school (we don't have "middle school" in the UK).


I think many authors do have this tendency, simply because sitting alone in a room writing all day is a profession that suits introverts. Which is a problem if you've been working alone in that room for so long you can no longer remember what the outside world is like! Plus, people who read a lot are also often introverts, so there's a certain amount of giving your audience relatable characters....


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Kraichgauer
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23 Feb 2021, 9:30 pm

I had been writing NT characters for years before I ever learned I was on the autistic spectrum. So, no, not at all.


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AardvarkGoodSwimmer
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24 Feb 2021, 12:10 pm

Maybe dive into the Myers-Briggs 16 personality types?

Of course, please take it with a grain of salt. It’s one way to view reality. It is not ultimate reality itself.

Or, since you’re a male, perhaps experiment with different female characters?



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24 Feb 2021, 12:24 pm

I find it pretty easy writing in an NT character as I am a very empathic person, it's easy for me to get into people's heads.

As they say, "write what you know", so if you just can't imagine how a neuro-typical would act, then don't do it, but the caveat there is that it might make your story appear somewhat flat.

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24 Feb 2021, 12:45 pm

Writing an NT character is easy -- just make the character sociable and avoid depicting it as stimming or having a meltdown.

Writing an ND character is also easy -- make it the opposite of an NT character, and depict it as having a few quirks associated with a particular form of neurodiversity.


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