Friday, June 17, 2016

Do You Disclose?

The majority of publishers in the world today ask for a potential contributor's biography to accompany their submission.  A lot of writers, especially those starting out, have to decide which details about themselves to include.  For disabled and/or neurodivergent writers, the question of whether or not to disclose their differences is a weighted one.

Some disabled and/or neurodivergent writers proudly list their status on everything (submissions/their blog/social media), not caring what anyone could potentially say.  Others, list it on their personal blog or social accounts without mentioning it on submitted work.  And the rest keep their status as hidden as possible.

If an editor knows you are disabled/neurodivergent, they may see your work differently.  And, most of the time, they will not take the most positive view.

As a disabled person, I like to see other people with my differences in media.  I know I'm not the only one who feels this way.  But, the potential prejudice from editors and the public make the desire to have minority anonymity paramount for certain individuals.

So, what do you do?  Is it more important to you to represent yourself as accurately as possible, or to have a safer online environment for yourself?    

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