07-31-2005, 01:00 AM
I've got a great idea for a children's book, and I think it will be useful for both AS and NT children. It would be called something along the lines of "This Person Is Not Your Friend," which would teach children the difference between true friends and bad friends and help children avoid abusive friendships, which is particularly important for AS kids, but all kids get involved with bad friends and so it would show what bad friends are and how to avoid them.
The main character is Freddy Platypus, who is the only platypus in his class and is also the smallest kid in his class, so he gets picked on a lot. But then occasionally, some kids would be nice to him, only to play tricks on him. His parents teach him what the difference is between a good friend and a bad friend, and that a good friend is worth waiting for. They also try to teach him techniques to handle the bullying, with some techniques more successful than others. Unfortunately, some of the biggest bullies are his teachers who insist that it's all Freddy's fault because he's a platypus, and if he would just stop being a platypus, everything would be all right. Of course that isn't possible, his parents point out. He can't be anything BUT a platypus! So another point of the book is to take pride in who you are even if everyone is mean to you because you're different.
Eventually, Freddy does make a friend who does like him, not in spite of being a platypus, but BECAUSE he's a platypus! This friend stands up to the bullies who pick on Freddy, and when the bullies say they will no longer be friends with Freddy's friend if he stays friends with Freddy, (did that parse?), the friend decides that it is no small loss if his only friend is Freddy. The book ends with Freddy and his friend doing something they like together.
Anyway, I think this would be a really cool book that I'm pretty sure I could sell to a publisher without having to mention that it's specific to AS issues. I will be writing for an age range of 5 to 8.
What I really need is an illustrator, because while I'm a good writer, I can't draw for ***. So if any of y'all can draw and don't mind drawing a lot of platypuses, contact me.
The main character is Freddy Platypus, who is the only platypus in his class and is also the smallest kid in his class, so he gets picked on a lot. But then occasionally, some kids would be nice to him, only to play tricks on him. His parents teach him what the difference is between a good friend and a bad friend, and that a good friend is worth waiting for. They also try to teach him techniques to handle the bullying, with some techniques more successful than others. Unfortunately, some of the biggest bullies are his teachers who insist that it's all Freddy's fault because he's a platypus, and if he would just stop being a platypus, everything would be all right. Of course that isn't possible, his parents point out. He can't be anything BUT a platypus! So another point of the book is to take pride in who you are even if everyone is mean to you because you're different.
Eventually, Freddy does make a friend who does like him, not in spite of being a platypus, but BECAUSE he's a platypus! This friend stands up to the bullies who pick on Freddy, and when the bullies say they will no longer be friends with Freddy's friend if he stays friends with Freddy, (did that parse?), the friend decides that it is no small loss if his only friend is Freddy. The book ends with Freddy and his friend doing something they like together.
Anyway, I think this would be a really cool book that I'm pretty sure I could sell to a publisher without having to mention that it's specific to AS issues. I will be writing for an age range of 5 to 8.
What I really need is an illustrator, because while I'm a good writer, I can't draw for ***. So if any of y'all can draw and don't mind drawing a lot of platypuses, contact me.