The Dyslexic Writer - a Journalist Coping with Dyslexia

When I was little, I was an avid reader, but it took me a long time to master writing certain letters and numbers, especially 3s, Es, Zs, Ns, and Ss. Today if I am very tired, I still get confused about which way Ns, Ss and Zs face. As I grew older, it became apparent I had some grasp of math, yet trying to add, subtract or multiply numbers longer than a couple of digits was a problem. And my entire life I have been easily tongue-tied. I know what I want to say in my head where complex thoughts swirl just wanting to come out, but somehow between my brain and my mouth and fingers, there is a barrier. I suffer from dyslexia and dyscalculia.

What is Dyslexia?

Dyslexia and dyscalculia are brain-based learning disabilities that impair a person's ability to read, speak, spell and do math. Typically a person with dyslexia will have problems reading, however, I always read way ahead of my age level.

I Can't Type!

In my case, I had great difficulty learning which side was right and which side was left. Under pressure, I still can't tell a person which way to turn. I can't add, use a calculator or dial a phone number without getting the numbers mixed up. And I cannot type an email, a list or an article without getting letters out of order and sometimes words out of order.

Dyslexia & Lack of Confidence

According to www.dyslexia-test.com, the greatest obstacle to success for a person suffering from dyslexia is lack of confidence. As a journalist I have often been embarrassed by my inability to type letters in the right order. While printing letters is tricky, I can write in cursive in the right order, but I cannot type. Not only do I consistently type letters out of order, but my particular brain stutter results in double and even triple typing of single letters. To top it off, I can't catch my own errors if I don't have the luxury of stepping away from the article and coming back later when my brain is fresh and slowly going over the article several times. I use spell check religiously, but unfortunately, that doesn't always catch all the errors my dyslexic brain dishes out.

Mocking Dyslexics

The funny thing about being a dyslexic writer is people feel quite comfortable pointing out my errors to me, frequently in a mocking, belittling and judgmental fashion. While they would be aghast if I mocked them for being overweight, acne pocked, slow, crippled or otherwise handicapped, many people don't think twice about making rude comments about a journalist who occasionally mixes up his or her letters.

Dyslexia is Common

After years of being embarrassed about my ubiquitous dyslexic typos, several things helped me go ahead and boldly type without apology. One is the knowledge this disability is so common and effects so many people in so many different ways. Two is finding typos frequently on most of the top publications' websites where typically both a writer and an editor proof the articles (and the writers get paid a decent sum to write).

Not Paid to Proof

Third is the knowledge that when I am being paid to write for someone else, I have the luxury of my time being paid for to proof and edit, but when I am writing for the web, I am trying to crank out a high volume of good content because I only get paid for the page views. I try to be as professional as possible, but let's face it folks, for the $3-$5 an article I earn on many of the articles you read for FREE, you can't expect perfection. I don't have the luxury of stepping back and taking time later to carefully proof -- not for the few dollars I earn per article. Therefore, I have taken the pressure off myself to strive for perfection in an arena where I get paid so little.

Dyslexia & Ignorance

The other thing I realize is the people who mock or belittle me for my handicap are as ignorant as I would be if I mocked them for their obesity, short stature, gray or receding hair, lack of education, low IQ, or their other mental or physical handicaps or traits. It's just rude to mock someone for a handicap, even a dyslexic writer. Frankly, your rudeness makes you much more ignorant than my dyslexia makes me.

Tips for Dyslexic Writers

For other writers who suffer from dyslexia, I encourage you to try as I do to proof your articles in the time you can allow for proofing and use spell check. It helps to have a friend or someone else proof if you know someone who would be willing to help you out.

If you are getting paid for the article, you owe it to your client to be as thorough and professional as possible, but if you are writing for page views and earning less than a penny per view, it is hard to justify spending a lot of time proofing. This may not sound "professional" but it is realistic.

Don't Let Dyslexia Stop You

If you are like me and without a lot of proofing and editing time and resources, don't let dyslexia stop you from speaking or writing if you have a passion to say something. In the same way others expect us to look past their height, weight, education, and whatever other others flaws, traits and handicaps they bring to their jobs, we can expect them to look past a few jumbled letters or an occasional tongue-tied moment in our speaking or writing.

Source

Health 101: What is Dyslexia? Problems with reading & writing can be Dyslexia, Examiner