Who are we?
NeuroTales is a writers group that connects Neurodivergent and Mad writers, strives to develop their work, and ultimately aims to put Disabled folk behind the wheel of their own narrative.
A silhouette of a woman with a rainbow colored brain walking among other silhouettes.
What do we do?
Above all else, members of NeuroTales aim to lift each other’s work up. We seek to accomplish this by:
Giving writers a group of readers who can give feedback and help further refine their work.
Providing meeting spaces for writers to hear their work out loud and cultivate discussions around them.
Helping each other navigate submission opportunities, connect with potential collaborators, and advocate for the work of our peers when possible.
Creating workshops for those new to writing or those who wish to broaden their writing toolbox.
While these are our starting place, the functions and methods of NeuroTales will naturally shift based on the needs and ideas of those who join us.
What does “Neurodivergent” and “Mad” mean anyway? Is NeuroTales for me?
Neurodiversity is the belief that differing neurologies are a natural part of human diversity, and should not be inherently treated as a disease or defect. Neurodivergent folx are those whose brains and/or behaviors differ from what our culture dictates as normal. One does not need an official diagnosis to be neurodivergent, as such diagnoses are often restrictive, exclusionary to certain classes, gendered, or racialized. NeuroTales seeks to welcome Neurodivergent people from all intersections.
A rainbow colored infinity sign.
Many patholigized people fight to take the word Mad, a word traditionally used to label and dehumanize, and reclaim it as an identity. Mad folx are often psychiatric survivors – those who have been through and abused by the psy-complex – who fight for self-determination in the place of a system that takes away autonomy.
NeuroTales welcomes writers from a wide array of experiences and mediums. Whether you write prose, poetry, plays, screenplays, essays, or anything else, we believe that your insights can inform the work of our other members. Similarly, writers with varying degrees of experiences are also encouraged to join NeuroTales. We hold events for those looking to refine and develop works already in progress, but also events for those seeking lessons, workshops, or a place to start their writing journey.
For more info about Neurodiversity and Madness check out “What’s Neurodiversity and Madness?”
Reason For Being
NeuroTales is built on the mantra of “Nothing About Us Without Us.” The phrase permeated the disability rights movement during the 1990s in the wake of Disabled self-advocates getting the Americans with Disabilities Act passed. The phrase speaks to the need for Disabled people to be in charge of what affects them. It invokes a community based approach where an “expert” based one had previously failed. NeuroTales pulls from this same principle, seeking to put the power of Neurodivergent and Mad storytelling where it belongs, in the hands of Neurodivergent and Mad people.
Highlighting stories written by Neurodivergent and Mad people affect how an entire culture interacts with their communities. Neurotypical writers who don’t consider this responsibility will inevitably regurgitate sanist myths and reinforce stigmatizing narratives. NeuroTales believes that those who encounter writings from Neurodivergent and Mad people, which are writings built on lived experiences, will develop a deeper understanding of Disabled lives.
Stories have the power to dismantle sanist structures and reinforce the principles of “Nothing About Us Without Us,” that Neurodivergent and Mad folk are not only capable of but are uniquely qualified to control their own destinies. Neurodivergent and Mad art – like all other art– need attention, support, and community to grow. NeuroTales was founded because there are powerful Neurodivergent and Mad stories to be written; they just need to be fostered.
For more about why NeuroTales was founded, check out “Why We Exist.”
Do we only write about Neurodiversity?
We foster the work of Neurodivergent and Mad storytellers, so all stories we tell are Neurodivergent or Mad stories in some sense. That said, the interests and perspectives of our writers are just as diverse as Neurotypical writers, and as such, we have write about a vast array of ideas and topics.