Margaret Chiavetta publishes her first book and discusses why kids need more fictional characters with special needs

Margaret Chiavetta (MFA in Creative Writing & Poetics ’14) has published her first book, The Alchemist’s Theorem: Sir Duffy’s Promise, which is the first book in a planned five-part series. The series features a middle grade hero who registers on the autism spectrum. Recently ParentMap.com conducted an interview with Chiavetta to find out why kids need more fictional characters with special needs. In the interview Chiavetta says:

"A new government survey found that 1 in 45 American children have autism. That’s a lot of kids who are looking for stories with characters they can relate to or identify with. The stories we read as kids help shape who we become. It’s important to put stories out there that allow all kids to see strong, positive characters [with special needs] as more than stereotypes."