April Autism Blog Hop

Authors, Reviewers, Publishers...

Every year on 2nd April is autism awareness day and the seventh annual World Autism Awareness Day is April 2, 2014.

You may or may not know that our son, Matthew, has autism and that the last three years I have carried out an autism blog hop where readers can visit everyone's blogs and read a small fact about autism.

There are 48 authors and bloggers taking part and I am so pleased to see this many interested people! The list of participants is below...

Have fun, each post will have a competition attached so loads of prizes to be won!

* The number next to each name indicates the date that the post will go live. i.e. RJ, Amber, and Dawn's Reading Nook will all go live on 1 April at 00:01 GMT.


Author / Blogger Competition Prize Autism Fact
4 x $25 Amazon gift cards Autism is a spectrum condition. This means that while all people with autism share certain difficulties, the condition affects them differently.
$25 Amazon gift card. The contest will run the tour length and random.org will pick the winner. In the US Autism now affects 1 in 88 children and 1 in 54 boys
Win RJ Scott e-books for six months, from 1 April 2014 - 30 September 2014. People with autism are most likely to fulfil their potential with specialised support & a knowledgeable, understanding public
$10 ARe gift card + winner's choice of one of my books in ebook format. Closing date April 15 In the US Autism costs a family $60,000 a year on average
a copy of The Victoria Blisse Collection and Really Cooking Children with autism can find abstract concepts, like Father Christmas challenging (a stranger coming down your chimney)
Book (print or ebook) of winner's choice. Boys are nearly five times more likely than girls to have autism
one eBook away from my backlist There is no medical detection or cure for autism
$10 gift voucher to the ebook retailer of your choice People with autism usually have difficulties with social communication
a $10 GC to ARe, B&N, or Amazon. Closes 11:59 pm 4/15/14 CDT People with autism usually have difficulties with social interaction
five copies of Coming Together: Against the Odds in ebook People with autism usually have difficulties with social imagination
an ebook copy of either FarSeen or Hat Trick Perhaps the best known form of autism is Asperger syndrome. People with Asperger syndrome are often of average or above-average intelligence. They have fewer problems with speech than people with other types of autism, but may find it difficult to understand and process language.
ecopy of Every Move He Makes - closing date 15th April While some people with autism live independent lives, others may need a lifetime of specialist support. Autism can have a profound and sometimes devastating effect on individuals and families.
a $10 Dreamspinner Press gift card There are over half a million people with autism in the UK. That’s one person in every 100. If you include their families, autism touches the lives of over two million people every day.
a copy of 'Tournament of Shadows' Autism is not caused by a person's upbringing and is not the fault of the individual with the condition.
one eBook from my backlist and one audiobook There is no cure for autism. However, there are a range of interventions (learning and development techniques) that people may find helpful.
2 ebooks from my backlist (reader's choice) Autism affects the way a person communicates with, and relates to, other people. It also affects how they make sense of the world around them.
3 $10 vouchers from an ebook retailer of the winners choice Everyday life for people with autism can be confusing, frightening and lack meaning.
4 anthologies to a single reader People with autism often find understanding and communicating with others particularly difficult, which can leave them feeling isolated.
free ebook from my backlist or a new release closing date will be April 13th People with autism may also experience some form of sensory sensitivity or lack of sensitivity, for example to sound, touch, taste, smell, lights or colour.
$25 Gift Certificate to All Romance eBooks People with autism share three main areas of difficulty, which are sometimes called the triad of impairments. Social communication, interaction and imagination.
$10 GC to Amazon (closing date April 15th) People with autism have difficulty using and understanding verbal and non-verbal language, such as gestures, facial expressions and tone of voice, as well as jokes and sarcasm.
postcards, Amazon gift card, and my e-books Some people with autism might not speak or have fairly limited speech. They may understand what people say to them but prefer to use alternative forms of communication, such as sign language.
$10 for ARe or Amazon People with autism have difficulty recognising and understanding people’s feelings and managing their own feelings
Backlist - Closing date will be April 11th. :) People with autism have difficulty understanding and predicting other people’s intentions and behaviour and imagining situations that are outside their own routine. 
an ebook of choice from backlist (not counting the charity anthology Legal Briefs) in format of choice A lack of social imagination should not be confused with lack of imagination. Many people with autism are very creative.
$10 GC to ARe, B&N, or Amazon. Closes 11:59 pm 4/15/14 EDT The world can seem an unpredictable and confusing place to people with autism, which is why they often feel more comfortable with a fixed daily routine so that they know what’s going to happen each day.
$10 Amazon gift card People with autism may experience sensory sensitivity in one or more of the five senses. A person’s senses are either intensified (hypersensitive) or lack sensitivity (hyposensitive).
any ebook from my backlist Many people with autism have intense special interests, often from a young age. These can be anything from art or music to trains and computers.
winner's choice of backlist ebook and a $10 Amazon GC People with autism may have learning disabilities that can affect all aspects of their life, from studying in school to learning how to wash themselves or make a meal.
an ebook copy of Curiosity Killed Shaney It is estimated that around 700,000 people may have autism - or more than 1 in 100 in the population. Read more here about developments in the identification and mapping of autism since Kanner first identified the condition in 1943.
2 free ebooks from the booklist Autism affects over 700,000 people in the UK (more than 1 in 100). 
an ebook of choice to the winner (Social Skills or Silent) 28% of adults with autism surveyed in the UK, 2012, still lived at home with their parents
2 e-book copies of "Running Off the Edge" Having autism is like having blue eyes or dark hair – it's part of you. It is a lifelong condition
$10 Amazon giftcard as a prize, closes April 15th Autism training is not routinely provided as part of police training in the UK
Surprise prize! People with autism can understand humour & make jokes but an often literal understanding of the world can lead to confusions.
$10 Amazon GC and the closing date will be April 15th The UN declared 2 April as World Autism Awareness Day (WAAD) in 2008
ebook copy of Mnevermind 1 or 2 (winner's choice) The idea of an autism spectrum was first introduced by Lorna Wing and Judith Gould in 1979 
2 ebook copies from my backlist, winner's choice. Giveaway will go until the 15th April People w/ autism will often learn a lot about a topic they're fascinated with & be perceived as experts 
$10 Amazon gift voucher Service dogs are now available that are specially selected and trained to support autistic people, to be their unfailing friend and companion, safeguard them and improve their independence. Unfortunately such dogs are very expensive.
a $25 Amazon gift card for comments and the contest will start April 13, end April 27 Special interests may provide structure & predictability to people w/ autism, helping them cope with uncertainties of daily life
first two books in the Cupid Series (ebooks: "Cupid Knows Best" and The Gospel According to Cher. People w/ autism who find social interaction difficult may use their special interests to start conversations & feel relaxed
A copy of the upcoming release, Glitter and Shamrocks - Book Four of the Rescue Twinks series. Difficulties with transition can lead to social isolation, mental health problems & continued dependence on parents Parents of young people with autism have described transition to adulthood like falling off a cliff-edge
an e-copy of one of my books - winner's choice - closing date contest on April 20th at 11.59 PM. Winner announced on the 21st  People with autism who have an extraordinary talent are referred to as 'autistic savants'
Any ebook from my back catalogue or an upcoming book Many parents of children with autism feel they’ve been wrongly accused of poor parenting 
2 ebooks from my backlist (reader's choice) Autism is a hidden condition; a diagnosis does not involve a physical examination
The term 'autism' was coined by Eugen Bleuler in 1911 to describe what he perceived as social withdrawal 
eBook copy of "Paws, Claws, and their Triple-F Some people live with autism for their entire lives without ever getting a formal diagnosis
$25 GC to Amazon, ARE, B&N or Dreamspinner Press (winner's choice) contest ends April 18 Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability

10 comments

  1. I'm glad you're bringing awareness to Autism. I have a neice and nephew who are autistic and they need everyones patience and understanding. Keep up the good work RJ.

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    1. patience and understanding are vital... hugs xxxxxxxxx

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  2. Thanks for hosting this, RJ. My 13 yr old is also Autistic

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    1. My son is 14, 15 on 1 April... :) hugs a fellow mum hard xxxxx

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  3. RJ,

    I love this blog hop, more every year. As I told Amber, I wish you and your son all the luck and happiness you can handle and just enough difficulties to make you appreciate it all. :-)

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  4. This is a wonderful story. A friend of mine has a child who was having problems and I am so glad she took him to the doctor when I ask her about him. Because it was caught so early he is very high functioning like amber's son. I am sure he will do well with all the love ans support he is getting.

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  5. Wonderful hop! If I'd have known I would have taken part, I'll keep my eyes open for next years!

    both of my children have autism, they're 4 & 5 years old, so I know how important understanding autism is.

    Dee xx

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  6. As a sign of gratitude for how my son was saved from autism, i decided to reach out to those still suffering from this.
    My son suffered autism in the year 2013 and it was really tough and heartbreaking for me because he was my all and the symptoms were terrible, he always have difficulty with communication, , and he always complain of poor eye contact . we tried various therapies prescribed by our neurologist but none could cure him. I searched for a cure and i saw a testimony by someone who was cured and so many other with similar body problem, and he left the contact of the doctor who had the cure to autism . I never imagined autism has a natural cure not until i contacted him and he assured me my son will be fine. I got the herbal medication he recommended and my son used it and in one months time he was fully okay even up till this moment he is so full of life.autism has a cure and it is a herbal cure contact the doctor for more info on drwilliams098675@gmail.com on how to get the medication. Thanks for reading my testimony .

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