A 'Gush' Post About My Special Interest Basil Brush

 I'm super excited to write this post. As you probably know, special interests are a key part in most autistic people's lives. My special interest for nearly 20 years (!) has been Basil Brush. It all started one cold January day back in 2003 when I watched his new show for the first time on CBBC. I don't know what happened, but I couldn't stop thinking about this show/character. 

I continued to watch the show until it ended in 2007. I was fifteen by then and way too old to watch CBBC but part of me didn't care. Part of me though was horribly ashamed that I was obsessed with a kid's TV show when I should have been more 'grown up.' 

The show eventually ended, but of course, my obsession didn't. Luckily Basil still popped up on TV now and again on various shows, and of course I tried to watch all of them! 

Then in 2014 Basil joined Twitter, and I think I was one of his first followers. He announced he was doing a tour. I immediately bought tickets. I tweeted him that I'd bought my tickets and he asked if I'd like to meet him before the show! Of course I said yes, I'd only been waiting around half my life for this moment.

I've since lost count of the times I've met Basil and hope to meet him again. He even inspired my YA series The Fan, which follows Amber as she meets and eventually gets together with her idol, Jonas James. I am currently working on a spin off as I can't leave these characters alone!

Finally, I'd like to end this post by saying Basil means so much to me, and always will. I can't imagine my life without him. It seems silly, but it's true.

The Pains of Being In Supported Living

 This post isn't about being a writer, but it does touch on my disabilities and it's something I need to get off my chest.

If you know me, you probably know about my current living situation. Basically, I live in my own house (which I rent) and I have support workers come in and help me with everyday tasks, or just be there if I need someone to talk to, because of my mental health.

Last year, I got very attached to a particular SW. I got on really well with her, and I ended up getting a little obsessed. (I'm borderline, so this may be why.) When they took her off my rota I cried for a few days. I just couldn't get over her.

Now they've done it again. Someone who I really like and really got on well with, has gone off my rota. Now, I'd like to say that after over ten years in the care/SL system I'm used to it by now, and for the most part I am. But when you really click with someone, and they disappear (for lack of a better word), it really hurts.

I also want to move on with my life because I have a wonderful boyfriend and I'm imagining a future with him. I can't have a future with him if I'm living in SL. 

Things are getting better. I now have three hours to myself almost every day, and this may seem like a small thing but it's a great step in the right direction towards my independence.

I don't know why I'm writing down these things and sharing them, but if anyone can relate, and could talk to me about it, I would be very greatful.

Special Interests and Writing (AKA How I Got The Ideas For My Books)

 I mentioned in my first post that my stories are largely inspired by my own life. This post digs a little deeper into that. I am mainly inspired by my special interests to write.  Not always, but a large chunk of my writing stems from my special interests. Here's a little delve into the world of my books...

Rainbow Balloons

Hoo where to start with this one??? Like the story itself, my relationship with balloons and balloon fetishism is a long and complicated one. Basically, my special interest was balloons. I say 'was' because it's a minuscule part of my life at the moment. When I was sixteen, I did a Google search for balloons for the first time. What came up was literally dozens of balloon fetish sites. This caused a lot of upset in my family and, long story short, I ended up moving away.

Fast forward to 2014 and I was wondering what to do with my life. As mentioned before, I had tried many things but nothing seemed to work for me. So I turned to writing. They say 'write what you know' and that's exactly what I did for Rainbow Balloons. It follows Anna, an at the time eighteen year old autistic woman with a passion for balloons. Anna's autism makes her very naive, and she unknowingly goes to work for a balloon fetish website. The story was very loosely based on my own experiences (and I say 'very' loosely as I've never met a 'looner' (balloon fetishist) in real life before.) Poor Anna goes through a lot during the series, and some of the contents within the books may be triggering, but if you want to read it I'll leave a link here.

The Fan

The Fan series was a lot of fun to write, mainly because it is inspired by one of my biggest special interests. I've been obsessed with the children's character Basil Brush since I was ten years old, and honestly the obsession has never gone away. (It's more than okay to like things meant for younger people!) Anyway, as I got older and I found him on Twitter, we've built up quite a friendship. I'm very lucky to have him. 

So The Fan follows Amber as she travels halfway across the world to find her idol, Jonas James. Jonas isn't very popular at the start of the series, and Amber helps him find his way back into the spotlight. Jonas and Amber eventually begin a relationship (every fan's dream right?) I love this series and it's become something so much bigger than what it first was. The link for the first book in the series is here

First Post - About Me/My Writing Story

 Welcome to my new blog. I hope you like it here. I had a blog before but it kind of got abandoned, so I thought I'd start a new one. For this first post I thought I would explain a little more about me.

 My name is Asten. My pronouns are she/her and I live in the UK. I got diagnosed autistic when I was four, but didn't find out personally until I was nine. 

I started writing properly about seven years ago (as of 2021). I haven't always been good at writing, and in primary school I would get very frustrated in English class for not being able to come up with an idea for a story. 

When I left school I went to college and took an Art and Design course (I've always enjoyed being creative). I got my Level 2 but in the second year I had some health problems and had to go into a mental health hospital for two and a half months. It ultimately led to me being withdrawn from the course.

When I got out of hospital I moved into a care home, which was about seventy miles away from my home in Suffolk. I attempted college three more times while I lived there. I always failed though and so I was at a time in my life where I was kind of stuck.

I knew of a few people online who had self published their own books. I decided this was the route I wanted to go down. I took some creative writing courses (home study) and really honed in on my writing skills. Then in 2014 I wrote my first book, Rainbow Balloons. It was loosely based on my own experiences. I have since written two more entries in the Rainbow Balloons series and am currently working on a fourth.

In 2018 I got an idea for another book. It was called The Fan. I also wrote a few sequels to this book and again, I am currently working on another (I'm not crazy I swear!)

My books tend to be based on my own real life, or at least inspired by it in some way. I think it makes writing more fun, and realistic.

This blog will feature musings about being autistic, being an author, (or a combination of both), and general life updates.

Hope you like the blog,

Asten xxx