#disability writing prompts

[rjalker]

I want a werewolf story but the person wears glasses and still needs them when transformed but their face changes shape so drastically there's literally nothing they can do short of buying another pair of glasses, taking the lenses out, and trying to jury-rig a set of goggles that will A)fit them correctly in their transformed state B)not fall off C)actually let them see D)not get destroyed when they transform back

And that's not even getting into the fact that their normal glasses probably wouldn't even work because their eyes have changed structure and would probably need whole new lenses.

if they can't figure out how to do this or just straight up don't have the money to buy an extra pair of glasses they're just. fucking incapable of doing jack shit while transformed because they can't see anything clearly even if it's pressed against the end of their new muzzle.

This would get even worse if being transformed affects what colors they can see in any way, because now not only can't they see things, they can't even rely on memory to recognize things until they get used to the new gradient of grey to yellow to blue.

No magic exists that fixes this. No it does not magically get fixed after they transform enough times or any other magical related stuff.

They either have to get werewolf-accessible glasses or goggles, or not be able to see. Those are the only two options. And no, sense of smell and hearing do not somehow magically compensate for their inability to see. That's not how this works.

Anyways yes I did combine my visually impaired flags and the all-inclusive werewolf flag.

Here you go:

[ID: Three flags.

The first has nine horizontal stripes, combining the visually impaired flag, and a werewolf flag. The stripes are, in order from top to bottom: Light purple, dark purple, black, grey-blue, white, grey-purple, black, light brown, and dark brown.

The second flag is the all-inclusive werewolf flag, with stripes of light purple, dark purple, light brown, and dark brown.

The last flag is the visually impaired flag, with stripes of black, grey-blue, white, grey-purple, and black.

End ID.]

[butchfalin]

the funniest meltdown ive ever had was in college when i got so overstimulated that i could Not speak, including over text. one of my friends was trying to talk me through it but i was solely using emojis because they were easier than trying to come up with words so he started using primarily emojis as well just to make things feel balanced. this was not the Most effective strategy... until. he tried to ask me "you okay?" but the way he chose to do that was by sending "👉🏼👌🏼❓" and i was so shocked by suddenly being asked if i was dtf that i was like WHAT???? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?????????? and thus was verbal again

[fernshawart]

How to write a cane user character

(Written by a cane user)

A few months ago, I wrote a small guide on good disabled characters and why they were good that gathered quite the attention, and I thought that doing another more specific guide this time would be interesting for writers or just people that are curious ! This guide will include general informations, some things to do, some things to avoid and some ideas that might revolve cane users's lives.

Things to know about cane users

Cane users are pretty diverse, and putting us in little boxes usually isn't the best idea if you want to make a character that has substance and isn't just "the disabled one". Here some infos about cane users that might be helpful knowledge !

Canes don't have ages. Most cane users in media are portrayed to be old, but truly, anyone can have the need to wield a cane ! I've been using mine ever since I was 17.

Can users can have a large variety of problems for their canes. Some canes are used to avoid pain from effort. Some canes are used for balance purposes. Some canes are to make walking less exhausting (works the same as walking sticks !) And sometimes, it's multiple problems at once.

Not everyone needs their cane 24/7. Some always need it, some can make small efforts without it but overall often need it, and some people, like me, can spend quite a lot of time without it. I almost never use my cane in my house, and mostly take it outside !

People with canes can run. We're not necessarily slow, I'm even faster than a lot of my friends.

Not using a cane can come with consequences, but not always. Some people might be able to walk without a cane but then suffer horrible consequences, but for others, canes are just a commodity for specific occasions.

Canes don't have to be looked down upon. Look at some characters with canes that look cool as hell ! Arsène Lupin, Roguefort Cookie, Brook ... Their canes serve their style !

We can be pretty healthy. Some people can have canes just because they were born with a bent leg and that's it. Our cane doesn't define our health status.

Canes aren't a curse. Think of them as something positive. It's a tool to make our lives better. You don't see someone sitting on a chair and think "awh, it's sad that they need a chair". It's more something like "hey it's cool that this chair is here so they can sit down"

Things to do

Make them use their cane. And when I mean use, I mean that canes are just funky long sticks usually made out of metal. Have fun with it ! Let them use it as a weapon ! Trust me, one hit in the knees with a cane and you're DOWN. Use it to reach stuff that's too high for everyone ! Have fun. Be creative.

Let them decorate their cane. It's an extension of their body ! You usually put on clothes that you like, don't you ? It's the same for a cane. If they like cutesy stuff, let them paint in it pastel colors ! If they like a more flashy style, add some stickers on it ! If they're a fancy person, give them a beautiful crafted cane with jewels on it !

You can make them a little shy or uneasy about their cane. Some people don't feel worthy of confident enough to wield one. It's not rare to see people think they're "not disabled enough to do so"

But on the other hand, you can do the complete opposite !! Make them proud of that cane ! Make them act like they're feeling pretty and more confident with it ! One thing i like to think about with my own cane is that I look like a cool gentleman. That boosted my confidence immensely.

Things to avoid

Don't make it their whole world. And by that, I do not mean that their cane shouldn't be a defining trait of their personality. Think of Toph from ATLA. She is blind, and you usually can't think of her character without describing her as blind. However, that isn't her entire personality trait. Make cane users have a goal in life, friends who enjoy them for who they are and not just pity them, have fun ... Don't just make them the disabled one.

Don't try to make the character's life just a plain disaster unless it's the focus of your story and you really know what you're talking about. Having a character who's always in pain, who feels bad about relying on their cane and/or who's angry at the entire world for being disabled is a REALLY tricky subject to use if you don't want them to be either a mass of unhappiness and angst for no good reason or some inspirational porn of the character who inside is deeply tortured but outside keeps up a facade because they shouldn't cry to avoid making others uneasy.

Do not, and I repeat, do NOT try to heal them, especially in a magical way. Bad idea. A lot of disabled people's goal isn't to be healed. It's to live a normal life. Making it so the ultimate goal for them is to be healed makes it as if they were worthless as long as they were disabled. Making their situation better physically or mentally is one thing. Curing them completely is really bad. "But some disabled folks want to be cured !" True, true. But if you are able bodied, I'm not sure if you can have the right mind to understand all of the complex details about this situation that leads to someone's life choices and the end result may look like you think the only thing that can make disabled people happy is being freed from their condition. I think it's best to just avoid it altogether. If you need a more nuanced idea, try to give them a solution that still has a few downs ! For exemple, a prosthetic that feels like a real arm, acts like a real arm and basically replaces it perfectly is a full cure. But a prosthetic that takes time to adjust to, needs repairs sometimes and doesn't look 100% like an arm can be a better narrative choice

Smaller thing, but don't make the handle uneasy to wield if you draw the character design. You can decorate most of the cane, but if you have chunky spiky decorations on the place you're supposed to clench your hand over, you're gonna hurt yourself. I've seen quite a lot of jewel handles or sculpted metal handles and usually their not good. If it's detailed metal, your hand will end up cramped in little parts and it can hurt. If it's a jewel, it's so easy for it to slip out of your hand it's unpractical.

List of tropes/ideas of scenes/details about canes to help you write new situations !

If you walk with a cane during winter, you can't put your hand in your jacket to get warm and there's a high chance your hand will get freezing. So after a long walk, you get an excuse for another character to hold their hand and warm them up.

If the handle is metallic, you get the opposite problem during summer. You can burn yourself so easy ! Easy accident if you want someone to help and get closer to the disabled person without it necessarily involving their disability.

Canes are SUPER useful when you're walking upon heights. They make things really easy, just like hiking poles on mountains ! I live on volcanoes and whenever we clim on a harsh slope, I'm always the first to get up there. Good moment for your character to get a boost of confidence if they get all the way up somewhere before their friends !

The first time using your cane feels magical. If you have chronic pains, it makes you feel like your pain disapear. If you can't walk right, it feels like everything is suddenly alright. The moment where a character chooses to wield a cane can be huge for character development. It's a moment of fear because of the impact a cane has on their appearance, but also a moment of confidence and relief.

Canes fall. All the time. And after a while, it becomes fucking comical. Trust me, putting a cane against the wall, seeing it fall and doing it three times again in a row while it doesn't want to stay up makes you embarrassed but also makes you want to laugh because of how stupid it looks.

When you get a cane, you stop being invisible. When you walk outside, generally speaking, people don't look at you. They don't care about you. But when you get a cane, people start to stare at you for no other reasons that you have a cane. Half of them are just curious, especially if you're young. The other half has a very specific look. The "oh, you poor thing" look. Which is, trust me, particularly awful to get, especially when you're just existing and doing nothing special. How does your character react to this ? How do they feel about it ?

I believe that is all I had in mind. I may add some more details in the future if I get other ideas, but this should already be a good start. I would be thrilled to answer questions if you have some, either in my askbox or through DMs.

I will tag this post with characters holding canes that aren't necessarily considered cane users but that some people may be interested in writing as such. Feel free to tell me if you'd like to see tags being added !

Edit : I'm highly encouraging everyone to look at the tag section under this post where a lot of other can users are sharing their experiences !!

[daybreaksys]

Neighbourhoods of poor vampires in the lowest, ever-dark parts of fantasy cities, vampires who aren't wealthy because they're a racial minority and the system was designed to keep poor people poor.

Poor vampires who are functionally disabled because they can't take sunlight in the only hours services are open and have to fight stereotypes of them being all snob nobles.

A nonprofit program immersed in the neighbourhoods paints portraits of vampires for free so they can see themselves for the first time because they can't use mirrors or cameras. Some cry, some don't recognise themselves, some are weirded by their unexpected appearances.

Mixed-race vampires who struggle to navigate their neighbourhoods having to advocate for themselves reminding people they are vampires as well as their other ethnicities.

[gaynaturalistghost]

More disabled characters and stories in fantasy or ttrpg’s!

[five-thousand-loaves-of-bread]

sometimes say worry about able do something because disabilities. often many people (nondisabled & yes disabled people too) feel like this invite for them tell me “aww i believe in you, you can do it”

two things:

1. sometimes truly cannot do something because disability. and that okay & deny that is not kind help need, will not magic give ability

2. other times can do it but issue is not whether not can do, but whether not someone will let me do it

caregivers, family, agencies, teachers, doctors, employers, program directors, admissions, government people

whether actual can or cannot do not matter if someone decide i cannot do or will not succeed (even if overqualify) or too difficult accommodate

[dragonindigo245prompts]

Villain: Today's the day I'll finally get rid of you!

Hero: Okay but could you be gentle?

Villain: ... what?

Hero: I'm kinda dealing with a lot of chronic pain and don't really feel like being bashed around.

Villain: Dude, why did you even come out here? Do you need ibuprofen? I keep some in my belt. You're such a fucking dumbass.

[imsociallyanxiousgetoverit]

Trailblazer has full body chronic pain from the Stellaron (as did Cocolia in specifically her head from the influence) so when one day they’re injured enough to pass out and is healed using futuristic tech (or the more realistic route that they’re given pain medication) they freak out once awake because everything feels very different in an almost too good way (maybe they feel too light, floaty, like dissociation, since they aren’t used to that lack of constant grounding) so they struggle to understand they aren’t like in a bad situation; WHICH means we can have others realize they have chronic pain (including them btw they didnt know they were in pain constantly cuz they legit Woke Up Like That) and like ya know everyone together having to figure out how they feel about it and what can be done to help, if anything

[doorlampwrites]

I love the idea of a disabled character taking too long or straight up not realizing they've been drugged because actually they feel like this very often

Brain fog? Vertigo? Muscle weakness? Drowsiness? Shame it happened during dinner. Eh, well there isn’t always an obvious trigger. Time to go lay down like usual

The drugger either intentionally taking advantage of this or doesn't know and is baffled that they aren't alarmed

[rjalker]

Giving this part its own post.

Another tip: Let your fucking characters become disabled over the course of the story! If they get their fucking leg chopped off, even if it gets magically fucking reattached, there should be fucking evidence that they lost the fucking leg in the first place! Pain! Reduced sensation! Trouble moving it! Anything to fucking show that the injury fucking happened! Otherwise you just fucking did that to them for no point but to cause cheap, meaningless drama! That's just shit fucking writing!

I don't care if there's magical healing in your universe. I don't care if it's a Super Scifi Future and your character is a robot. (Yes, I am looking directly at The Murderbot Diaries!)

Getting a brand new fucking arm attached after the first one got blown or ripped off should still have physical fucking symptoms! The character noting that it's a different weight from before and constantly being distracted by this! The new arm has faster or slower reactivity to its attempts to move it! Having to learn anew how to do basic shit with a whole new system! Having to try and work with technology that's not actually compatible!!

If your characters receive massive injuries, let those fucking injuries have permanent effects. Stop fucking acting like being disabled is the worst fucking fate imaginable.

And if you don't want your characters' massive traumatic injuries to result in them being permanently disabled........don't fucking have them sustain massive life altering injuries. It's that fucking simple.

By handwaving this shit away and magically fixing everything back to normal, not only are you being ableist as fuck, you're just being an absolutely shitty, lazy writer.

Let your fucking characters become disabled over the course of the story. Your fucking audience will thank you for giving a shit about not only continuity and stakes, but disabled people.

[bloodybloody]

Blind whumper and the guide dog whumpee

When they first meet, the whumpee finds out that they are blind, so they stay very still, hold their breath, and hope that the whumper can't find them. But they are tied up, so they couldn't go too far, and thus whumper finds them anyway.

Whumper checks up on whumpee with their bare hands to comprehend whumpee's physical characteristics. They slide their fingers into cuts and press over wounds to understand how healed they are by analyzing the structure of them and the whumpee's reactions. But poor whumpee doesn't know how to handle being touched and gets frustrated every time the whumper interacts with them.

Whumper asks for whumpee's guidance to hurt them in specific places and dare the whumpee to mislead them. Who knows where the next cut will be if whumpee tries to trick them<3

Ohh nooooo, the medications were not labeled properly, and whumpee's conditions are getting worse day by day because of the false treatment :3

DEHUMANISATIONAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!?! Put a muzzle and a leash on them, feed them dog food, and wash them in the backyard with a garden hose. Don't let them talk; they can bark to warn the whumper about the obstacles around them.

And finally, when the training is done and our doggy dog is faithful enough to go outside, they can lead the whumper in public on their four feet.

[publicdomaindisabledcharacters]

Oswald the rabbit is public domain, and now, trans and a cane-user! In the first short film, Oswald has a detachable leg, which I've decided is a prosthetic :)

Here's a link to the HD version of this file on the web archive for you to download and do whatever you want with. Literally anything!

You can also buy this design from my Threadless store!

[ID: A digital drawing of Oswald the rabbit, a black and white cartoon rabbit on a white background. Oswald has black fur, white shorts, and a white face, with round black eyes and nose. In his left hand, which we see on the right, Oswald is holding a sign that reads, "Disabled trans rights". In his right hand, which we see on the left, Oswald holds a cane with a black tip. Oswald's chest has two top surgery scars from a double mastectomy, and his left leg below the knee has a curved line going across it to mark a prosthetic shin and foot. End ID.]

[fernshawart]

Prompts to develop a cane user character

Hey there ! You may know me for this post, how to write a cane user character :

Over the past year, this post has gathered quite a lot of traction and people seemed to really enjoy it, and I thought I could do more to help all of my writer friends out there ! This time, I decided to give you a bunch of situations a cane user may face to give you some directions to go with your story, and a few exemples to add-on to the idea !

These are overall very focused on young cane users because that's what I am, but I feel like they can mostly be used for characters of all ages.

The character just got their cane. How do they react to it ? The way someone first reacts to getting a cane can say a lot about them. Exemples :

- They don't see it as a big deal, mostly like yet another test to see if something may work. It's kinda like swallowing a pill when you're sick and thinking "here goes nothing". After that, you can also develop on them being very pleasantly surprised that it worked or to stay with the nonchalant style, make them think "oh. It actually worked. Guess I'll be using that from now on"

- They get uncomfortable. They don't want to be seen as weak and look at them using a cane as a kind of failure to be normal. They may even refuse to use it despite clearly needing it out of pride.

- They get extremely excited and immediately try to make it THEIR cane. If it's a metal cane, they play around with the sliding part and move it around a bunch to see how it works. They may try to play with it like a sword to get used to having it in hand (and may even accidentally break stuff with it). If they like colorful outfits, they may doodle on it or add a bunch of stickers/charms to it.

- They take it in front of a mirror and try to pose with it to fully comprehend that this is them now. They can struggle with their vision of themselves because seeing this weird stick always with them now is really weird. But on the other hand, you can also make them try a bunch of poses and have them think "wait ... This is actually really cool. I love how I look now"

See how they react to other people's looks. If a character has a cane, especially when they're young, they're bound to get weird looks. There's always someone looking at you obviously thinking "Why the hell are they using a cane, they probably don't need it" or "Oh no, poor them, they don't deserve to be in so much pain..." What's their reaction to it ? Exemples :

- They get angry. They confront the people staring at them with a "what are you lookin' at, fucker ?!" or just glare at them. They do NOT want to be pitied.

- They get playful and try to act as if these people are only interested in them by their physique. "Oh, I know I'm good looking, but you can stop staring at me darling~" if your character is kind of a classy cane user, it gets really fun to play around it and after a while, their confidence may get a real characteristic of theirs.

- They feel miserable. They don't want to be pitied just because they exist. They're walking outside for five minutes to get groceries and people are pitying them, and that hurts.

- They really don't care. They've seen it all, and don't let the stares affect them anymore. If they did, it would probably drive them mad.

One thing that happens ALL THE TIME with canes is that they fall. And overall, it's really funny to watch. Watching a cane fall down five times in a row is an embarrassing situation and can make some fun interactions ! Exemples :

- The cane user is trying to have very serious talk with someone else. They walk towards them, sits down in a chair, glares at them, puts their cane down against the wall and ... It falls. They put it back. And it falls. They can stay as serious as they want, the other person in front of them is no longer afraid of them.

- The cane user is taking someone on a date at a fun restaurant. They try to sit down on their chair and put their cane away and it falls repeatedly and they start panicking to make it stay up. Their date is very amused by the situation and finds it cute and/or charming.

- The cane user puts their cane against the wall and it falls. Their friend immediately goes to pick it up, but they stop them from doing so by saying something along the lines of "Don't bother. It won't stay up." Or "Heh, it can't fall any lower now."

Oh no, someone is trying to steal your character's cane for some reason ! Maybe it's because they think it was left behind by someone else ? Maybe it has a high market value because it's made of gold ? Any way, they will have to do something about it. Exemples :

- they grab the cane back and just beats the crap out of the thief. You know, it's not rare to see stories where grandpas use their cane to hit people as a joke. But it works ! It's a heavy stick, and often made of metal. You're bound to get some good hits with that.

- They immediately panic and/or cry. Canes can be extremely precious to someone, often because of emotional value. It's something you wear every day, you can easily get attached to it. A lot of people even decorate it, so loosing something you crafted yourself hurts.

- They heavily play the victim to either make the thief regret their action, or people get on their side. It can stem from a genuine emotion, but also from acting if they want to just use the situation to their advantage. Either way, if someone has the audacity to steal from a poor "defenseless" disabled person, the crowd will most likely help them.

- They can just ... Not care much. I mean yeah it was stolen and it sucks but you know, most canes cost what. 12$ ? They're annoyed but they won't make too much of a fuss about it, and running to catch the thief may not be worth it if their legs aren't really healthy.

You know, if your cane user is a little young, some people are bound to think that they are "too young to be disabled". How do they react to that ? Exemples :

- They heavily mock the person who said that. What, just because you think someone is too young to be disabled, they're no longer disabled ? Ha, I wish it could work like that !

- They reply with a good old "If I break your legs, I guess you'll still be able to walk ? Cuz you look too young to be disabled too."

- They get doubts and question if they're really disabled enough to wield a cane. Usually, people only use it when they have big problems or when they're old ... Maybe that person's right ... (No they're not, of course)

- They get extremely serious and explain their situation is nothing to be discussed by people won't don't know them personally.

And that's it for today ! I hope you enjoyed this little guide <3 if this gets a bit of traction as well, I may write more in the future ! Good luck to all of the writers ~

Oh and one more thing ! Feel free to link your stories down below for everyone to look, will it be a Tumblr post, an AO3 link, a google doc ... I love to see your creations, and I think sharing ideas with people is a GREAT way to develop more varied representation.

And if you want to thank me in a way or another, you can always take a look at my art on Twitter (@FernShawArt) !

[sammy-writes-sometimes]

Invisible Disability/Flare Up

Word Count: 175

---------

“Bad pain day?” Skizz asks quietly.

Impulse sits on the couch, rubbing his knee slightly as he flicks his tail. He sighs before nodding. “Yeah.”

“And you mock me for being old?” The angel jokes.

“It's not my fault my knee doesn't work!” The demon spits back, though there's a slight smile behind it.

Skizz giggles before sitting next to Impulse, helping him lift the sore leg onto the couch as he groans.

“At least it isn't dislocated?” Skizz tries to reassure.

(It happened once before, a joint popping out of place in Impulse's foot and hurting so bad that he had considered leaving the server he was on to visit an actual hospital.)

Impulse only leans back, his tail flicking in annoyance.

“You had plans today, didn't you?”

“Yep.” Impulse sighs. “I was going to Hermitcraft today but I can't even fly if I risk tripping when I land.”

“I feel ya, homie buddy.” Skizz reassures quietly before sitting up. “Want me to get the heat pack? Maybe some pain meds?”

“That'd be nice.”

---------

Our ko-fi

[skarlettskwrl]

Prompt: What if Danny had a secondary nervous system that was connect to his core. But suffered a spinal injury that had more of of an impact on him than he ever would have thought.

Fast forward to Vlad using the Plasmius Maximus on him, Danny is horrified to discover that he no longer has any use of his lower limbs.

This discovery could also come about for anything that weakens his ghost half. Eg bloodblossms, ectoranium, etc.

[a-little-revolution]

to celebrate open anon!! do you have any kind of wishlist of how you’d personally like to see little people portrayed in media??

Hello!! Goodness, I do indeed!!

I'd love to see a little person fall in love (and have it reciprocated), particularly as a coming of age story - highschool me would have lovvvvved to see representation of a body like mine being healthily romanticized.

A period piece staring a little person would be amazing as well - they could be in an accurate field such as a seamstress, midwife, blacksmith, etc. or detail our history of enslavement. (They could even do it as a spin off of Game of Thrones or The Last Kingdom)

I'd especially love to see little people of multi minority, in interabled relationships. I've been at a point with my media consumption where it isn't enough to simply see a token disabled/little character. They need to have more to them and they need to be in a rich, diverse community. Diversity doesn't live in a bubble, and disabled people attract other disabled people. Along with queer people, trans people, neurodivergent people, etc. Show complex characters in your writing, and build complex communities because we're out there.

And mostly I just want to see more characters with dwarfism across all genres of media - ones that are taken seriously. There's hardly any good representation for little people out there, and it greatly affects the community. I can trace back so many of my struggles in life with people's perception of my disability, which could have been so easily turned on it's head if I had better representation.

Hope this helps, and thank you so much for this ask :) xoxo - elliot (they/them)