Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses (ADCI)
I founded Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses (ADCI) because I realised there was a need for support and guidance for disabled authors.
ADCI launched in June 2020, at the height of the pandemic, when connection was even more important than ever. The response was immensely positive and the group became a place to meet new people, share experiences and build friendships.
The members of ADCI knew there were issues within the publishing industry and we set out to make things better for all disabled and chronically ill authors.
Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses (ADCI) is open to members of the Society of Authors. To find out more visit societyofauthors.org/Groups/Authors-Disabilities-Illnesses-Network
ADCI launched in June 2020, at the height of the pandemic, when connection was even more important than ever. The response was immensely positive and the group became a place to meet new people, share experiences and build friendships.
The members of ADCI knew there were issues within the publishing industry and we set out to make things better for all disabled and chronically ill authors.
Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses (ADCI) is open to members of the Society of Authors. To find out more visit societyofauthors.org/Groups/Authors-Disabilities-Illnesses-Network
ADCI Guides
- How to be a Good Ally to Disabled Authors (pdf download)
- Making Events Accessible to Disabled Authors and Attendees (pdf download)
My Articles
Claire Wade of the SoA’s ADCI group investigates the barriers and opportunities for disabled authors and their allies. https://societyofauthors.org/news/blogs/soa-blog/july-2022/no-excuse-for-going-back
The Bookseller
I guest edited the first Disability Issues of The Bookseller, the UK's lading trade magazine for the publishing industry.
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The Bookseller 2021 Articles
You can find all the articles on The Bookseller website - there's a limit to how many you can look at in a month, but you can return the following month to check out the rest.
- “If words have power, then the people who publish, promote and sell them have the ultimate power. They choose who is heard and who is silenced, who is seen and who remains invisible. Their choices resonate out across society.” My editorial letter for The Disability Issue of The Bookseller http://thebookseller.com/blogs/rewriting-narrative-1281024…
- "The publishing industry holds enormous power and therefore must ensure that everyone is represented" My call for the industry to adapt to bring real change for people with disabilities, with 11 steps to take. https://www.thebookseller.com/features/disability-issue-how-workplaces-can-revolutionise-their-approach-disability-1281033
- "I now realise how damaging that can be for a child, if you don’t see yourself in books or on TV or in the media… It means you don’t value yourself, and it means it’s hard to imagine how your life will pan out.” Rosie Jones speaks to Lucia Osborne-Crowley https://www.thebookseller.com/author-interviews/rosie-jones-i-wanted-write-book-i-needed-child-1281073
- "Change happens one story at a time, reminding the world what autism is from the inside" A fantastic interview by Lottie Cardew with Holly Smale
http://thebookseller.com/profile/holly-smale-change-happens-one-story-time-reminding-world-what-autism-inside-1281069…
- "It’s important publishers recognise the power of these stories. Disability is a normal part of life" Louise Kenward speaks with Judith Heumann about rights, representation and her memoir Being Heumann. https://bit.ly/3ofeZJi
- "I want to tell people what it’s like to have this disability. I want to change their minds, in terms of how they think about disability more generally, because I think we internalise a lot of negativities about it." Maud Rowell talks to Rosario Blue. http://thebookseller.com/profile/maud-rowell-i-want-tell-people-what-it-s-have-disability-1281071…
- The disabled author experience - Paula Knight, Nydia Hetherington and Liz Nugent talked to me about what it’s like to be a disabled author. thebookseller.com/insight/disabled-author-experience-1281050
- “It is normal to be ill. It is not shameful to admit it, or to take a day off … And it doesn’t mean you need to work harder, or prove you have earned your place, if you need more flexibility than others.” Tackling stigma by Hayley Steed http://thebookseller.com/blogs/tackling-stigma-1281026…
- “I have been surrounded by disability and chronic illness all my life. So why is it I don’t see this reflected in fiction as broadly as I do in the real world?” Catherine Miller talks about disability portrayal in books. http://thebookseller.com/blogs/taking-centre-stage-1281027…
- "The burden of representing every disabled child is placed on too few authors" by Lisette Auton https://thebookseller.com/blogs/difference-and-disability-1281046
- "I believed that being pigeonholed would turn off the hypothetical reading public. In my head, this public was non-disabled and uninterested in fiction about disabled people. " The fight within by David Thorpe talks about overcoming his fear of being pigeonholed and how his experience of disability is an important part of all his work. http://thebookseller.com/blogs/fight-within-1281040…
- “Events are an exciting way for readers to meet authors, and vice versa. For many, though, attending them is very challenging, and sometimes impossible.” Keeping events accessible in a post-pandemic landscape by Helen Barrell
http://thebookseller.com/insight/keeping-events-accessible-post-pandemic-landscape-1281041…
- “The publishing industry has been at great pains to increase diversity but the barriers to entry for many underrepresented groups are time, opportunity and money. Disabled writers are unique in often suffering a combination of all of these” http://thebookseller.com/blogs/taken-granted-1281043…
- “It is hard to find memoirs written by disabled and chronically ill writers” Leaving hero culture by J L Hall http://thebookseller.com/blogs/leaving-hero-culture-1281038…
- “Often when diversity in publishing is discussed, disability is left out, so I was keen to make sure the concerns of disabled people were being heard in this ongoing conversation.” Cat Mitchell unveils disability survey for the trade http://www.thebookseller.com/news/cat-mitchell-unveils-disability-survey-trade-1239426
- "Just 8% of trade employees have a disability or impairment, and 14% of those aren’t open about their health condition at work. It’s important that participation in staff disability networks doesn’t require disclosure and is confidential." by Amy Barrett https://thebookseller.com/insight/progressive-or-performative-disability-staff-networks-come-under-scrutiny-1281045