forum Things You Want MORE Of In Books
Started by @HighPockets group
tune

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@ElderGod-Icefire

it's a book series that's like "oooOOooO the seven wiccan families and you're one of them so you're a super powerful witch and you can start fires with magic because you're Speshul" even though none of that is how wicca works

wait wat

@Starfast group

Ok here's a few things:

  • First kisses that aren't perfect. Most first kisses tend to be a little on the awkward side (or at least that was my experience) but of course their always perfect in books and it's kinda unrealistic.
  • I feel like I've said this before, but since it's been a while more autistic characters. I'd especially love to see an autistic character in a story where the story isn't about their autism. I want like some fun, fantasy adventure where the MC just happens to have autism.
  • People with wings. Not angels. Just people, but with wings please God.

@HighPockets group

  • I feel like I've said this before, but since it's been a while more autistic characters. I'd especially love to see an autistic character in a story where the story isn't about their autism. I want like some fun, fantasy adventure where the MC just happens to have autism.

It's not out yet, but Stolen City by Elisa A. Bonnin comes out in September and is a YA heist fantasy with an autistic lead. I also thought the autistic rep in The Gilded Wolves was done well (also YA heist fantasy but set in Gilded Age Europe). Otherwise the other good ones I've read have been middle grade

@Starfast group

It's not out yet, but Stolen City by Elisa A. Bonnin comes out in September and is a YA heist fantasy with an autistic lead. I also thought the autistic rep in The Gilded Wolves was done well (also YA heist fantasy but set in Gilded Age Europe). Otherwise the other good ones I've read have been middle grade

👀

brb adding these to my tbr.
Literally the only books I've read with autism rep were Gone by Michael Grant, which was problematic af and The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang, which was better but still a little cliched and the story was not really my cup of tea. I've heard some mixed things about the rep in Gilded Wolves but maybe I'll try it anyways.

@HighPockets group

It's not out yet, but Stolen City by Elisa A. Bonnin comes out in September and is a YA heist fantasy with an autistic lead. I also thought the autistic rep in The Gilded Wolves was done well (also YA heist fantasy but set in Gilded Age Europe). Otherwise the other good ones I've read have been middle grade

👀

brb adding these to my tbr.
Literally the only books I've read with autism rep were Gone by Michael Grant, which was problematic af and The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang, which was better but still a little cliched and the story was not really my cup of tea. I've heard some mixed things about the rep in Gilded Wolves but maybe I'll try it anyways.

I really love The Gilded Wolves but it does kiiinda do the "genius savant" thing with how skilled Zofia is at math. One thing I really loved though is that she gets a love interest and even if her feelings do confuse her a little, she's clearly attracted to him–I feel like whenever autistic characters are in something they're either 1) children or 2) adults who are either dehumanized or infantilized and as a byproduct of that don't get relationships. And even beyond that since obviously romance isn't the end-all be-all, she's valued by the Wolves for more than just her intelligence and shjdsjkg I just really love the characters a whole lot.
I recently read Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen and The Many Mysteries of the Finkel Family, both of which are by Sarah Kapit and I thought they were really well-done. Both MG. Vivy Cohen is told via letters and emails whereas Finkel Family is told in just normal formatting. I related more to Vivy Cohen but I really liked how Finkel Family had two autistic MCs whose autism manifested in different ways–Lara and Caroline are both autistic and Caroline is nonverbal and communicates via a text-to-speech app while Lara is not.

@Althalosian-is-the-father book

Morally complicated abused characters.
Not sad and sweet but not just bitter and cynical
I would love to see a character that is a manipulative person but bc they feel they have to and dislike it

@Nor_bananas

Representation of minorities such as
Gender (Like NB genders)
Sexuality
Aro/Ace pleeeaaassseee (that kinda goes into sexuality but putting it there anyway)
People of color
Deaf/blind
Religion
Body positivity !!!!!
Autistic characters (I've not read many books with an autistic character)
Dyslexic, anxious, depressed
Any mental disorder actually
Physically disabled

There's so many but like here's a small list

Read the webtoon Kiddos it will tear your heart out but it has things like religion disabilities depression people of color and people of LGBTQ and all of them are if you read the title kiddos.

@wordlesswriter

a queer coming-of-age story where the queer mc's main conflict is not coming out or homophobia. we have enough of those, write something else

@Nightmare_Eclipse language

I want more girls that are the hero WITHOUT love. If fell like almost every time the girl is the hero, she ends up falling in love and using the boy's help. I want more independent girls.

Deleted user

Excellent friend group dynamics, with conversations that flow naturally.

@Kefi

This is probably my stress-addled brain showing it's hand but:
Platonic sleepy fluff. Like, falling asleep at your desk and having a loved one carry you to bed or throw a blanket over you. Crashing after a stressful day and just waking up in a dogpile of friends with the lights off. Waking up with your head on someone's lap. That's GOOD stuff, man

@Mojack group

romantic relationships that aren’t shown through typical ‘romantic’ gestures. like they kiss sometimes but one might just think of them as partners in crime when they first see them. bonus points if the people are actually ‘partners in crime’

I’ve probably said this before and this has likely been said anyways in here, but healthy poly relationships please

representation of ailments that don’t go away (scoliosis, for example; my specific type is more severe than my dad’s but not bad enough that it’s stopped me from walking from pain. but it has stopped me from sleeping well. it doesn’t have to be the focus of the story, just a character that mentions it and the conversation hangs on that for a little bit.)
going back to ailments that don’t go away, characters that get injured and dont just recover from it within a week or something.
on that note, loss, a character dies and the other characters don’t just forget about it within a day is nice as well. especially when that death has (good or bad, or neutral) impacts on the world around them

on injuries, characters that may suffer from pain (light or not) years after that injury. I fractured both of my arms at different points and occasionally feel soreness in the area where the fracture was, not often but sometimes

selective mutism, which while its usually not always associated with autism, in my case I have both (I could be very talkative in situations where I’m comfortable in, but very quiet in situations where I’m not)

yeah this has been said before but more asexual characters. aroace characters, biromantic asexual characters, etc, use that split attraction model! i say this as a biromantic ace myself. asexual characters not necessarily repulsed by sex, asexual characters who are, etc.