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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/43412
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/43412
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

 **Who is your audience?**

The audience for any kind of porn is not the character. (I'm speaking of the intention of the author, not who might actually end up watching it.) The intended audience for actual pornography, for example, is not 19 year old large-breasted women with insatiable desires.

In inspiration porn, the audience is nondisabled people. The work is not meant to inspire those of us with disabilities, but rather those amazing enlightened people without disabilities to whom all praise is due because they...talked to us, noticed us, were nice to us. Or it's a work meant to shame people with disabilities for not trying hard enough to "overcome" their conditions.

**Are your disabled characters subjects or objects?**

In a real story, the characters are subjects of the work. In porn, they are objects. Objects of desire, objects of ridicule, objects of pity, objects of inspiration.

The sweet girl with Down Syndrome inspires everyone around her because she always has a smile on her face. I've actually had people argue this with me, telling me that people with Down Syndrome are always happy. That is one of the most harmful myths about disability I know. Because it is incredibly dehumanizing. Every person I know with Down Syndrome has a full range of emotions, just like anybody else. Anger, sadness, joy, curiosity, boredom, love, and annoyance.

If you feel inspired by someone with only one emotional state it's a sure sign that you and your emotional states are what the author of the work considers important. The person featured in the work is an object, not a subject. It's not about them, it's about you, the audience.

**What is your message?**

Is your disabled character symbolic? Does she exist to setup a philosophical pondering? Does he learn to believe in himself so he can work hard to free himself of his limitations? Or maybe he just knows when to quietly off himself so he he won't be a burden on his nondisabled family and friends. Those are all signs that a disabled character isn't there to be a regular character.

We all struggle. It's part of what it means to be human. You can show the unique struggles of disability without making it "special." Pretending that someone never struggles is the other side of this and also something to avoid. It's just not realistic. Authors who insist on having unrealistic characters are using them for a reason. Be honest with yourself and, if you find you're doing this, you can rework your story.

Original score: 2