#writing ninja turtles as neurodivergent symbolism

[brightlotusmoon]

(he's my height)

(Zen master party dude pizza lover sounds good)

[brightlotusmoon]

Hello, this is probably really random, but you’re one of my FAVORITE Mikey writers / theorizers lmao. I’ve read a ton of your works and I loved the analysis posts I got to saw :D I wanted to ask if you’ve seen the rottmnt mikey character analysis by skulltrots yet, since I’m coming straight from that video (as in, it’s playing in the corner of my screen as a type this lmao) and really wanted to start seeing peoples opinions on it! If you haven’t yet, no biggies! Thanks fam :D

—fellow Mikey enjoyer of every iteration

First of all, AAAAAA thank you thank you thank you, I'm so happy when people in the fandom tell me that. My Mikey posts have been more and more about awareness and understanding of my self and others, too.

Second of all, wow, you're in my head, because I just blogged that exact video and nodded along until my neck cramped. What timing! 🧡

[brightlotusmoon]

In honor of my state legalizing cannabis, I'm going to post a long scene from the Rise/Bay crossover RP turned fic I've been writing with @remmushound for years. The Bayverse Turtles are nicknamed while the Rise Turtles are fullnamed. They're all a little older and wiser. This includes Baron Draxum, who takes edibles for the first time with the experienced Bay boys while the Rise kids are napping.

Should I put the scene on Tumblr under a cut, or in AO3 as its own scrap?

[brightlotusmoon]

(he's my height)

(Zen master party dude pizza lover sounds good)

[brightlotusmoon]

Hi! I just wanted to let you know that your work on AO3 means the world to me. When I'm not feeling good, I can always count on your writing to cheer me up. So thank you so much for continuing to write such amazing fanfiction.

🥺😍

*wibble*

Thank you. I really really really needed that. Especially because I have been having the worst writers traffic.

[brightlotusmoon]

In Discord I'm chatting with @ravn-87 and @hummerhouse about the Bayverse Turtles and Splinter remembering songs that young April sang to them when they were in the lab.

And we got to talking about Rush, which had been a favorite band of mine since the 80s. And that made me remember that I named my first TMNT fanfic after a Rush song, way back in the 90s when it was weird to do that.

[brightlotusmoon]

Hey! Do you think you can write a chubby reader x the bayverse tmnt, maybe the reader has autism, I have autism btw, and I also have tics or seizures because of it, so I wanna know what the four would do if they caught the reader mid seizure, if that’s ok with you of course, I don’t want you uncomfortable

I'm not taking writing requests right now, but I am taking ideas! I can pass along your request to others in the fandom.

I actually already write characters who are autistic and epileptic, if you wanna read through my AO3! 2012 and Bayverse so far. And I'll hunt down some little oneshot imagines with an epileptic self insert that I wrote a few years ago. Your ask just reminded me.

[brightlotusmoon]

My Discord friends about 2003 and Mikey being ADHD Poster Child.

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Leo: Watch this. When's Klunk's birthday?

Mikey: GASP. Klunk was born September 19th at 9:01 AM, I know this because of his STAR SIGN.

Leo: Cool. What'd we eat for breakfast?

Mikey: lmao we ate?

_

"And I appreciate Leo because he actually tries really hard to cater to Mikey's ADHD. He may not realize it, but Leo was awesome for making training sessions to stimulate his baby brother."

[brightlotusmoon]

[brightlotusmoon]

YES.

[brightlotusmoon]

Me, remembering that in the newest chapter of the RP fic I made all the Bay Turtles Autistic and or ADHD:

I must share this on Tumblr!

-

"We're not even certain of reptile neurology regardless," Donnie smiled. "I can't imagine they have migraines for example. We only very recently realized what neurodevelopmental phenomena we all have. Mike with ADHD and Autism, Leo and I autistic, Raph potentially ADHD and an anxiety disorder that may or may not be intermittent explosive disorder."

Raph narrowed his eyes. "It's not that bad."

Don gave him a quiet and level look. "I only interpret data, admittedly with some bias."

Raph just lifted one eyebrow.

-

(Bay Raph's ADHD might be confirmed later anyway as more of a large cluster of related processing disorders depending on where I want to go)

[brightlotusmoon]

Psychology Says We'd All Hate The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles In Real Life

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From an in-world perspective, though, the Turtles would likely freak you the hell out if you met them on the street. And that’s because there’s no real understanding that they’re fictional, right? In that context, they’re real and very, very unfamiliar. Remember: according to Jetsch’s very early discussion of uncanny, things that are unfamiliar to us, which don’t fit into understanding of the world, have the power to make us deeply uncomfortable.

All of a sudden, were faced with something that walks, talks, fights, and moves in a pretty-much-human-but-not-quite-human way, and our fear essentially comes down to expectation and judgement. Sure, they don’t look like humans, but their display of human behaviors without being human is going to create some serious unfamiliarity and discomfort.

When we see humans, we expect human behaviors. But to see something that is unquestionably not human acting human and taking on human behaviors (see: androids, zombies), it makes us super uncomfortable. It’s not surprising that Laura Linney’s character, Chief Vincent, was unnerved. If you saw a giant muscle-y turtle walking and talking, it’s doubtful that you’d react any better.

Ultimately, it’s your brain’s fault. It’s just trying to categorize things and people around you to help you understand, interpret, and gauge threat levels. When something presents human behaviors but is not immediately familiar or easy to understand, it’s going to send up some red flags.

You might be able to get used to it if you ever found yourself in a situation where you were repeatedly exposed to IRL Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but make no mistake: upon first meeting, those Turtles are probably going to scare the hell out of you.

-

[brightlotusmoon]

Re: TMNT Michelangelo having ADHD in canon and being autistic in fanfics.

I found this comment in an ADHD support group, and it describes Mikey perfectly.

"I can often tell by looking at a person that they have ADHD - that they are empathic, that they have high intuiton and are very "imaginative". Sometimes, a photo will catch it, too!"

More and more people in the fandom headcanon Mikey with ADHD, but they don't have to, it's already canon.

I've been nudging Mikey's Autistic traits for years, because Donnie was stereotyped as an autistic nerd since the late 2000s. In 2012, 2003, and 2016, I like to think Leo is also autistic. Rise Raph, too.

There are many ways to be autistic, not just Donatello.

See. As a spectrum we're a Mobius Strip, an Ouroboros, a color wheel, never a line. No mild or severe, no high or low, just varying traits and presentation.

(The autistic advocate community as a whole prefers " is autistic" to "has autism" since we see it as defining and identifying, how our brains are wired. It falls on the individual to say if they prefer Identity First Language or Person First Language.)

[brightlotusmoon]

"Your dark history is not a hindrance ... grab hold of it."

"...I learned to accept this darkness and use it. So harness your darkness, and be magnificent. All of you."

"When I'm working on my writing, it lets me put my feelings, thoughts, fears, all those things into a different, more tangible form. It's easier to grapple with that way."

"...and both those feelings can exist at the same time."

[brightlotusmoon]

Honestly, if you ever need turtle facts speak into the void and I'll probably respond with answers sooner or later. I could write a good amount on characterization through species facts on each brother

Hey, fandom, come on over here and hang out with questions for our new resident turtle expert! This is golden. With all the fanfics being written, especially the crossovers, your info will be very helpful.

[brightlotusmoon]

Attention Bayverse Leo lovers: I need to give him a really dorky habit. I need suggestions.