My Autism Journey. It is a spectrum.

 Welcome to my new newsletter all about autism and what I have learnt during my journey since I was diagnosed in 2011.

One thing that I have learnt recently, and I know it has often been said by others, is that all autistics are different from one another. That is so true. Over the last month I have had the opportunity to work with two different groups of autistic children. One at a school and one at a library from a school. Both of these groups have been different from one another. Not just in their age but their abilities. The classes at the school were aged from 7-9 years-old and the group at the library were in their teens but had a lower learning age. Seeing these children made me realise that, yes, we are all different and it is a spectrum. Here are the differences I have seen. Not just with me at that age but between the groups.

When I was 7-9 year old at primary school I was really shy and quiet. I wouldn't talk to others. I found it hard to make friends. At the school I visited as an author, in the class I was in there was one little girl who was friends with another girl. She helped the girl put her hair up in a bun to appear like her book character she was dressed as. This was World Book Day. One girl from another class who had joined in actually read out her story she had written to me and told me what she likes writing about. At that age I wouldn't have done that. I was too shy to do that. I would ask my teacher to read it for me. I think there were these differences for two reasons. The class size was only of eight children whereas when I was at school, a mainstream one, it was about double that. Also this was a special needs school so the children were supported for their needs.

Then there was the other group of older children. They were also from a special needs school but their learning ability was lower than their ages. They were a group of six children with a teacher of their own. They could read and write but not like any other teen could. They were friendly towards me. Again as they were a smaller class and had the support they each needed, they were less shy than I was at that age. One boy asked me a question, another shook my hand and spoke to me. Even at that age I was too shy to speak to other people I didn't know.

I enjoyed working with both groups, and look forward to seeing the second class again for their next workshop which is booked for end of this month.

Then there is a non-verbal autistic eleven year old called Josh Harris. He is the son of Dan Harris, the founder of the charity Neurodiversity in Business. Although Josh doesn't speak he can communicate via his AAC talker device, gestures and his cooking skills. Josh can make cakes, bake pies and breakfasts for his dad. At that age I couldn't make cakes or pies. The only thing I recall making by that age was peppermint cream sweets which I did at primary school.

As I have said, it is certainly a spectrum. One autistic child can do one thing, another can't, and yet another child might be able to do both.

Me, Asperger's and primary school

Following on from my last post about a workshop on group dynamics, I thought I would write about what the group I was in at primary school was like. I told the interview group in the workshop this, and I think I might include this in a memoir as part of my Asperkids series of books. Here goes:

At primary school I was very quiet. I went round with two other girls, whom I shall called J and K. One was white, the other black. The white girl I felt was the leader of the two. When I was with them, they wanted me to do things with them, their way, and it included some not nice things. Wanting to be friends with them I went along and did them. When I was on my own, I used to either be on my own and do other things such as dance or play recorder, or play with the younger children. Looking back now, I don't think they liked me doing things on my own without them, so they made me stop going do barn dancing, which I liked, and stopped me playing recorder, which again I liked and was good at. (I remember playing the theme tune to Match of the Day).

I only saw the white girl only once or twice after we left primary school as she went to another secondary school as me, but the black girl went to the same secondary school but was in another group.

The above incidences I still remember all these years later, and I will put them in my children's series 'The Rainbow School' as things to happen to the main characters but something good will come out of it for them.

So, there you have one group dynamic I belonged to. Because of my Asperger's, I just tagged along with others, wanting to be friends with them.

Social Media by Talli Roland

Last Saturday I went to the London/SE chapter of the RNA. The talk was on Social Media by Talli Roland. Here are her main points.

You should be on the sites where your readers are. So, if they are on FB, be there. If they are on LinkedIn, then be there.

Facebook
Readers can expect you to be there 24/7. Build a core loyal readership. Join forums. You can find different readers in topic groups eg if you write a romance that also has knitting groups in, then find a FB group about knitting.
Don't do too much promo on your profile page, do it on your author page.
You can boost your page. When you do, choose friends and friends of friends. It costs £10. You can see how many see and share your post. And you can get 3000 per click.
When it comes to choosing friends, look at 'mutual friends'. If it's low, then don't friend them. Be positive.
On your author page, you can click on the icon at the top of the page called 'shop now' and you can put a link to your books on Amazon etc. Or you can put a link to your newsletter - that was something I added to the talk.
When you get a certain no of followers, you can't change your name. And on your profile page you have to have your real name or FB might check up on you.
Make your followers feel special and your posts useful.

Twitter
Find content that relates to your book and tweet. You can put on there the first line and last line of chapters. Post pictures of the locations in your book (made a mental note to do that in future). Take photos of where it's set.

Blogging
Still good to do.
For readers - have photos, keep it short and turn off the verifications.

I shall write part 2 on Sunday when it goes into Amazon and other sites that are useful.

I'm no longer a tortoise

Bet that got your attention? Well, it beats saying, 'I've come out of my shell.' Get it now? lol So, what do I actually mean when I have come out of my shell? I shall explain with what a friend said to me last Saturday at a writer's talk.

As you all know by now I have Asperger's Syndrome, so I find it hard to communicate in groups and with new people. Well, my friend Marjorie, a fellow romance author, who I've known for years since I joined the RNA said this to me. She was pleased that I have come out of my shell. She said that when she first met me, it was really hard to get me to talk. She described it as trying to get blood out of a stone. I had to laugh. I knew what she meant. Now that we have been friends for years, I can chat to her without a prompt. I said it was down to my AS. When I meet people for the first time, I find it hard to talk to them. Once I start getting to know them, and do so over time, I find it easier to talk, and esp if they are writers - like-minded people. I find it easier to talk to people after I've known them for a time, and if they do and enjoy the same things I do, mainly writing.

So, I have come out of my shell, and no longer a tortoise or turtle.