Monthly Archives: May 2015

autism, hautism, Novel

Summer School Autism

Summer School Autism

Time for summer school autism. I sense my son’s relief now that the last day of school for the year is behind him. Not that he has a hard time at school, he has taken to it quite well by now but if given the choice, he would rather be home.

By now he understands that he will be attending summer school once again as he has every summer for the past few years. He enjoys it, but he also knows that he has two weeks of time off to enjoy the day as he pleases.  He will have two weeks of half day sessions to keep him in the frame of mind that school is still part of his routine.  I think he gladly makes this trade off in his mind. (I am his father so I can read his mind.)

As he enjoys his days off I will be continuing my work, writing fictional accounts of a boy with similar challenges. I am writing the next novel after my first called Fortune on the Spectrum. Toiling away with purpose this time around.

summer school autism
Fortune on the Spectrum

Mark Ferdinand lives on the Padre Island with his wife, daughter and son. Fishing the surf, hunting, gardening, carving, auto and home repair occupy his spare time. He has written on the topic of autism spectrum disorder from a father’s perspective in parenting articles and in other non-fiction venues.

Having limited typical communication skills, his son introduced Mark to new ways of interpreting his needs and aspirations. As his son grew older Mark became fascinated by the story potential within these amazing children. This prompted the creation of a dynamic adventure story focusing on a character with autism.

Mark is about to publish his new non-fiction work entitled You’re Gonna’ Get Bit! Harrowing Tales of Herpetology.

From chasing frogs as a child, to milking venomous snakes for a living, Mark Ferdinand explores a lifetime of tales from the world of reptiles and amphibians. Whether it’s a quest for his first turtle, keeping crocodiles in his closet, or chasing snakes around the workplace, You’re Gonna’ Get Bit! has a story that all “herpers” and nature lovers can relate to and enjoy.

Mark Ferdinand writes on topics considered unusual for South Texas authors. Both Fortune on the Spectrum and You’re Gonna’ Get Bit! are available through Amazon in both paperback and Kindle.

 

autism, Novel

Autism books fiction

Image

Autism books fiction

Fortune on the Spectrum is a new novel featuring a character with autism. This character becomes the youngest self-made millionaire in Texas history and endures multiple challenges both before and after his great achievement. Autism books fiction.

Autism books fiction
Autism books fiction

Books and novels abound these days with themes relating to autism spectrum disorder.  A large percentage of these books are in the non-fiction category which give advice to parents and loved ones of children with autism. Doctors, therapists and other professionals also have added their take on the subject in great numbers of published works.

My novel is obviously a work of fiction, but so much of it is drawn from real-world experience raising a son with autism. Many of the interesting quirks and behaviors of the main character were inspired by my son. Of course I gladly ran with the fleshing out of an interesting adventure for all readers, but knowing parents with experience with such things will recognize familiar themes as well.

Author Mark Ferdinand

Mark Ferdinand lives on the South Texas coast with his wife, daughter and son. Fishing the surf, hunting, gardening, carving, auto and home repair occupy his spare time. He has written on the topic of autism spectrum disorder from a father’s perspective in parenting articles and in other non-fiction venues.

Having limited typical communication skills, his son introduced Mark to new ways of interpreting his needs and aspirations. As his son grew older Mark became fascinated by the story potential within these amazing children. This prompted the creation of a dynamic adventure story focusing on a character with autism.

Mark is about to publish his new non-fiction work entitled You’re Gonna’ Get Bit! Harrowing Tales of Herpetology.

From chasing frogs as a child, to milking venomous snakes for a living, Mark Ferdinand explores a lifetime of tales from the world of reptiles and amphibians. Whether it’s a quest for his first turtle, keeping crocodiles in his closet, or chasing snakes around the workplace, You’re Gonna’ Get Bit! has a story that all “herpers” and nature lovers can relate to and enjoy.

 

autism, Novel

FISHING AND AUTISM

Video

Me and my son finally went out to the beach for the first time in the 2015 season. The water was warm enough to swim in for him and warm enough to attract a few fish to me and my 12-foot rod setup.

We did not catch anything impressive or exotic but it was great to be out on the water again. Some fishing needs to be done before the sargassum season begins when more seaweed is caught than fish at times.

The gulf whiting were biting and at one point my son pulled in a double hookup! He was not as excited about it as I was but such can be the case with fishing and autism. I was able to put together a nice video summarizing the outing.