Neurodivergent Futures
One of the most common requests I've gotten over the years has been to do an episode about why so many autistic people are drawn towards science fiction, and these suggestions have come from listeners who are autistic or have autistic children. Fiction writer Ada Hoffmann, writer and professor Dora Raymaker, YouTube presenter Quinn Dexter, and author and professor Nick Walker, who co-runs the publishing company Autonomous Press, have each given this subject a lot of thought. Their experiences and perspectives as autistic sci-fi fans and creators overlapped in many ways, from the joy of complex worldbuilding, to identifying with fictional characters like Data or Spock, to wanting to imagine a future where aliens, humans and A.I. can coexist without a hierarchy of neurotypical perspectives. Featuring actress Shannon Tyo reading passages from Ada and Dora\u2019s novels.\nDora Raymaker\u2019s new novel Resonance has just been published through Autonomous Press. Dora and Ada have also contributed short stories to Autonomous\u2019 anthology series Spoon Knife. Quinn Dexter\u2019s YouTube channel is Autistamtic.\nThis episode is sponsored by Backblaze, Echoes of History: Ragnar\xf6k\xa0and Squarespace. Our ad partner is Multitude. If you\u2019re interested in advertising on Imaginary Worlds, you can contact them here.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices