What would you like readers to know about you?
As a kid growing up in the Midwest, my experiences with neurodiversity were woefully limited. I babysat a young boy with Down syndrome for years and marveled at his joyful spirit. He was able to play with kids in the neighborhood, yet I never saw him or any other classmate with Down syndrome in our local school. My own uncle was diagnosed as mentally challenged and sent to live in an institution for most of his life. Whenever he visited us, I marveled at the multitude of facts he carried in his head—stats of baseball players and names of soap opera stars. He was a huge Chicago Cubs fan and lovingly carried a stack of baseball cards in his pocket to show anyone who was interested. Looking back, I see how removing him from society robbed his life of joy and wasted his potential. Parenting in the twenty-first century brought opportunities for watching my own children play with neighboring children, one of whom “qualified” for special education and was bused across town to a segregated setting instead of attending our neighborhood elementary school. I quietly wondered if all the kids lost out with his absence. As a college educator, I have had rare but pertinent opportunities to work with diverse learners and support their capabilities. These experiences have proven to me that including diverse learners brings rewards to all. As a society, we have to ask—is segregation fair to anyone? Who does segregation benefit?
I met my co-author Peyton Goddard 13 years ago when I was writing an article on the Autism Institute at the University of San Diego. I asked the head of the institute if she could introduce me to a family who had benefited from their work. When I met Peyton and heard her story, I was blown away. At a young age, she was diagnosed as autistic and severely mentally retarded. With no dependable way to communicate or control her body, she was placed in special classes and eventually kicked out of the public school system to attend a private special-needs school. Because no one there thought she was capable of learning, behavior control replaced any attempt at an education Despite having loving parents who did everything they could to help her learn and be included, she suffered years of isolation, abuse and even considered suicide. Then in a moment of inspiration at the age of 18, she made a deal with God—she called it her IOU—she agreed to stay on this earth with the goal of helping other kids like her. But with no voice, she felt it was mission impossible.
When Peyton was 22, her mom heard about a supported typing technique that had worked for some folks with sensory-movement differences. Not expecting much, her mom drove her to Whittier, California, where an educator facilitated Peyton’s first supported typing session. Among Peyton’s first typed words was her declaration: I am intelligent. Her mother burst into tears of joy and regret for all the wasted years. Peyton considers this her re-birth day. Finally, armed with a voice, she was able to speak her truth, reveal her hurts and begin to heal. Her first request was to get a real education With little in the way of a formal education to that point, aside from her mother’s devoted tutoring over the years, Peyton bravely enrolled in Cuyamaca Community College in San Diego. Four years later, she graduated with a nearly 4.0 average and was named valedictorian.
Today, Peyton remains a passionate advocate fighting for the inclusion of all people in our schools and communities. She types, “I write to point out that pertinently joined we all are. Treating anyone as less attacks the ultimate truth that I.O.U. and U.O.I. respect and messes our living times. When pertinent is each, together we will greet peace.” I joined with Peyton to help her. We initially collaborated to write and publish her memoir, I AM INTELLIGENT—From Heartbreak to Healing, A Mother and Daughter’s Journey through Autism (Globe Pequot Press 2012). Our new middle-grade novel REAL (Shadow Mountain Publishers 2021) was published in February of this year and has received warm welcome from young readers. REAL is Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection and received the Positive Images in the Media award by Cal-TASH, a leading disability advocacy organization. Teachers and librarians tell us that EVERYONE needs to read this story.
What is your book about for those who haven’t read it?
REAL is a middle-grade novel inspired by Peyton’s lived experiences. It features perhaps the first nonspeaking autistic narrator in middle-grade fiction, Charity. At the beginning of the book, readers can hear Charity’s thoughts and immediately know that she is a clever and funny girl. Unfortunately, that’s not how the rest of the world sees her. With no voice and no dependable way to control her unpredictable body, she’s seen merely as a label and feels poisoned by the pity stares and whispers of people around her. She’s not seen as a REAL person, except by her family. Because she has been kicked out of public school, Charity is attending a special-needs school with an abusive teacher who bullies the kids instead of trying to teach them. When her mother finally learns the truth about this so-called school, she fights to get her daughter into a public junior high. That’s where the story really begins. Charity is thrilled at the chance to finally learn and be included. She’s also terrified of being made fun of and excluded again. Her own cousin Mason who attends the school seems embarrassed to be near her. To make matters worse, a bully preys on her as an easy target. With the help of newfound friends, she will have to fight for her right to a real education.
What has been your inspiration for writing it?
Peyton and I are on a mission to spread kindness and advocate for inclusion. Before Peyton had a dependable means of communication, she was treated by the world as less than fully human, an empty vessel, an ogre. Peyton writes: “Understaters utter I’m no one, I’m broken, moldy bread, throwaway trash, great leper.” Once she gained access to supported typing, she was able to share her story with the hope of sparing other children the pain and isolation she suffered. After publishing Peyton’s memoir, we realized that the message really had to get into the hands of kids. They’re the ones who can really make an impact in how their differently abled peers are treated. By seeing the world through Charity’s eyes, readers can grow empathy for all who are different and discover how including everyone benefits us all. Peyton also reaches out to bullies, realizing that they hurt others because they are also hurting. She hopes that bullies will, as she says, “cool their hate with loud love of others.” About her inspiration to write Peyton says, “Like all kids, I desired reading stories to feel I’m not alone. But denied in literature I was. So the lonely dear in I desiring eases now commits to write so persons like I know they are not alone and persons unlike I know all people feel and are real.”
What was your favorite scene or part of your book to write?
The moment that our main character Charity types her first words is our favorite. In many ways, it mirrors Peyton’s real-life experience when Charity astounds everyone by typing “I am intelligent.” Readers compare the scene to Helen Keller’s breakthrough with sign language. It gives them goosebumps. In our discussion guide, we ask readers to consider what their first words might be if they were in Charity’s place. By letting the world know she has a functioning mind, Peyton and Charity are signaling that they are indeed REAL people worthy of being included. Yet that’s not the ultimate message of the book. They were worthy to be included before anyone knew of their intelligence. Unfortunately, we have a lot of work to do to create a world where all people are treated with respect and dignity.
What books or authors inspired you to become a writer?
When I was a kid, I loved Beverly Cleary. I remember reading Ramona the Pest and the Mouse and the Motorcycle under the covers at night with a flashlight. As an adolescent, I fell in love with Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters. Then in college I was inspired to study French literature, everything from Molière to Beckett. As a student and scholar of literature, I was in awe of writers and never believed I could be one. But I kept that as a secret wish. Once I decided to write a children’s book, I read as many middle-grade novels as I could. There are so many great children’s authors out there!
What advice would you give to aspiring authors who want to write a book?
- Write, write, write. Mine the treasures hidden in your past experiences. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott and Natalie Goldberg’s Writing Down the Bones are full of inspiration and wonderful writing prompts.
- Read the types of books you want to write. Ask yourself, “how is the author constructing each scene?”; “what makes me keep turning the page?”; “what makes the characters memorable?”
- Read books about writing. Stephen King’s On Writing is a good place to start.
- Join a writing group, maybe through Meetup.com or a professional organization like SCBWI for children’s writers—feedback and support are essential!
- Don’t wait for inspiration. As Anne Lamott advises, allow yourself to write the worst junk possible. Even chaotic freewriting will contain seeds and ideas you can explore and develop into a story.
- Most important, don’t expect to become rich and famous as a writer (cue laugh track here). Take pleasure in the journey!
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Maddie M. White 