Interview with local author Chad Descoteaux

This is beyond exciting for me! I have asked a few people if I can interview them because I think they are interesting and because I believe in the works they do.

As any regular reader knows, I write about life with my son who is developmentally delayed. He was originally diagnosed with the very broad term Sensory Processing Disorder.  As of this year he got the autism diagnosis. I feel the diagnosis is only a term to help him get help, not a label, not a punishment. A. can be anything in life he aspires to be and I will help him get there.

My other favorite topic is anything nerdtastic. My third favorite topic is books.  If I could mash these three things together what would I get?

I would like to introduce local writer, director, aspiring rapper, and original Gerber baby Chad Descoteaux.  I own two of his early books, watched  The Fuzzy Bunny movies as well as Science Fiction Cereal which are viewable on his You Tube channel.  His more recent works are available on his website.  Chad can be followed on Twitter  as well.  

What I like is he has persevered. He had a small local fan base that essentially started among his group of friends. Soon he was showcasing his books at our city's annual Oktoberfest celebration. He never stopped being creative and has moved his work space from the table in his kitchenette to a an actual writer's office filled with geeky memorabilia that would make the lads from the IT Crowd weep.

I am thrilled that he was nice enough to take time out of his schedule to grant me an interview. Honestly, his stuff is very original and funny. Please take the time to explore his works.

1. Before we talk about your work and the creative process, could you tell me, in your own words of course, which ninja turtle always brings his A game and why?  Well, I would say Leonardo, just because he is the most intense student of the martial arts out of the four.  Between being a perfectionist and the responsibility of being the big brother and the leader, he is always bringing his A game.

2. How long have you been writing?  I’ve been writing since I was a kid.  I always enjoyed creative writing assignments in school.  And it was reading Bruce Coville’s ‘My Teacher is an Alien’ series when I was in fifth grade that made me want to write my own stories.

Out of your books, which was the hardest to write?  ‘Working-Class Superheroes’, That story focused more on the larger world, with a lot of superhero characters, so when I did the rough draft, I had to figure out who the main character was.  I think I made the right choice, picking the most relatable one, but that was the challenge.

Which was the most enjoyable to write?  ‘The Inter-Terrestrial’, because that one is just the ultimate nerd fantasy, between the aliens and the kung fu and the geek getting the girl. Characters I am proud of and very satisfying.

3. Do you plan on making any more movies?  I plan to make one or two book trailers to advertise my work on YouTube.  And I had the idea to make a few short films that take place in the same universe as ‘The Tattler’ to advertise that book.  But those plans are in the early stages.

4. A subject that is close to home for me is autism.  My son was recently diagnosed. When did you discover that you have Asperger's?  I discovered that a few years ago, when I was in my thirties.  I researched the condition because I have a second cousin with a more severe case and I wanted to understand his challenges.  Then, I started reading all of the symptoms and it filled in a lot of blanks going back into my childhood as to why I did/felt certain things.  So, I went to a shrink and got diagnosed.

5. As an adult with Asperger's what are some of your biggest challenges?  Social anxiety.  Any kind of social interaction makes my brain more tired than it does for a normal person.  And it has nothing to do with whether or not I like the person/people I am with.  I could be with people I love to death and I still want to go home and lock myself in my office after a while.  I am fortunate enough to have friends who understand these things, but growing up, I had people (teachers/family) pointing out things that I did well and saying “well, you’re so smart, why can’t you do this?”  Like when I would get poor grades.  That never made sense to me, even before I was diagnosed.  “Why can’t people be good at one thing and stink at something else?  You’re a smart teacher and you suck at being tactful.”  (Aspies thrive on logic.)  As far as advertising my books is concerned, publishing e-books has been a blessing in disguise because I couldn’t do book signings if I wanted to.  It’s digital!  Leave me a review on Amazon, though!

6. Your wife is gorgeous!  Well, thank you!

7. What is your favorite cereal? Corn Pops.  Side note: I am a snob when it comes to cereal.  Any other product, I have no problem buying the generic version, even soda, which I love.  But I want Kellogg's Corn Pops, not Corny Poofs.

8. Marvel or DC?  I like Marvel better because the characters are far more relatable.  Good versions of DC characters (The Flash TV show, Bruce Timm’s cartoons) borrow the ‘relatable secret identity’ thing that Marvel started and are better for it.

9. What are some upcoming projects you are working on?  I am working on a sequel to my book ‘The Tattler’, called ‘The Tattler: Losing Time’.  I just started on the rough draft, but it’s coming along very well.

10. What advice can you give to my son, and other children on the spectrum? Surround yourself with people who get you and do the best you can.

Why so much hate for Suicide Squad?

I saw Suicide Squad with a good friend who is a Batman fan a few weekends ago.  We both entered with no expectations. Her familiarity with Batman is essentially based on the cartoon that aired in the '90s. The cartoon is exceptional as has been noted many times by people much more eloquent and with more nerd cred than I, if you are not familiar with it, it can be viewed on Amazon.  One of the more notable aspects of the show is it introduced  Harleen Quinzel, better known as Harley Quinn.  All Harley Quinn needs to make her happy is her Puddin'....the Joker.  Their tempestuous love, and Harley Quinn's backstory were excellently explored in the Mad Love comic. What drives a woman in love crazy? How can a woman so smart enter such a self-destructive relationship? Dark themes for a comic story steeped in psychological storylines.

The only other member of Suicide Squad as portrayed in the movie was Killer Croc. I have to say I heaved a sigh of relief when I discovered his cannibalism would not be explored in this movie.

I was trepidatious of  Will Smith as deadshot only because I was worried that he would be playing Will Smith, not Deadshot, but his over-the-top acting lends itself well to the character.

I have not read the Suicide Squad comic books so I don't have anything to relate to, but I enjoyed the story thoroughly. I walked in with no expectations other than Harley Quinn would be amazing. The reality was I left more in love with the Joker's main squeeze and I desire to read more books featuring Diablo. This Mexican gang-banger lost literally everything he loved because of his own doing. I felt unlike the other characters in the movie who embraced their dark sides (Deadshot saying "You know the dark places, too." comes to mind) he saw his strictly as a business. When he realized this other thing lived in him, it was too late.  I like Harley Quinn because I identify with her self-destructive side. As someone who once hinged everything on the wrong guy, I totally get it. The draw of the uncertainty and the desire to tame the wildness sucks one into the madness of the wrong person. It is strongly implied that Harley Quinn suffered a miscarriage or according to comic book cannon, had a child she kept hidden from the Joker that she sent to be raised by her sister. The overwhelming guilt of either of those scenarios could easily make ones feel the only way to serve penance is to remain in a relationship that constantly punishes them.

Believe it or not, but my favorite part of the movie was the much panned soundtrack.  It kept the movie going at a fast pace. Even if some of the songs are over used in other movies, again it is the over-the-topness that appealed to me. This is a movie based on a comic book series about the craziest of villains in the Batverse. They aren't underdogs, they aren't antiheroes, they are villains. They are villains with their lives literally on the line. If they go against the cutthroat Amanda Waller, its off with their heads. The theme of evil versus evil is explored to great success.  The movie may have undergone edits to reduce run time, but the fast pace helped keep the feel of the movie being a comic book. Out of all the current DC movies, this was my favorite.  Batman vs Superman was just too long and the action was far and in between. Superman felt like they were turning Supes into Batman.

The only criticism I have is I do not like the trend of these ensemble movies that multiple characters must be in one movie. It makes the movie claustrophobic to have that many characters in one movie at one time.

All in all though, this movie gets 10 stars. Does the movie deserve the negative press? Perhaps, but I feel it is worth a watch.

Great thing happened today piano lessons started! Also, chew tubes!

Good things are happening here!

Sorry for lack of posts lately. Life with an autistic three year old and four month old are crazy making times!

A. loves music. He has always had a special relationship with it. The husband of the woman who ran the daycare he went to would play acoustic guitar for him and he would hum along.  When my son hears songs that he is familiar with he settles down rather quickly.

I have been trying to encourage this love of music. We have three different toy pianos, maracas, four different drums, two xylophones, a toy trumpet, and a toy flute. The instrument he gravitates to the most is his piano.


The piano was actually mine when I was his age. I kept it in the hopes my children, if I ever had any, would enjoy it.







M.P. is someone I have known for a few years now. She is extremely kind and warm hearted. I didn't know she taught piano, but I worked up the courage to ask her if she could be the Anne Sullivan to my son's Helen Keller. Taking on an autistic non-verbal toddler as a client cannot be an easy task.  She told me she worked with children with ADHD so she knows some techniques to use to get a child to focus. We showed up at her house today with the kids, A. working on his new chew  tube (more on that later). I got nervous because she has a beautiful home with lots of glass and shiney things that A. was more interested in than the piano.  After M.P. demonstrated how the piano makes actual songs, A. was all in. He allowed her to use the hand over hand technique for finger placement to learn C,D,E and taught me and my husband how to do the proper hand placement so we can practice on our toy piano.  The lessons will be short, but I feel that with time this will be helpful to A.






The newest adventure in life with autism is the chew tube! A. grinds his teeth incessantly and is constantly mouthing. The speech therapist at his school suggested chew tubes. Not having heard of them before I did some research. These silicone tubes come in different textures and can be attached to clothing using a strap or can be used on a necklace with a breakaway clasp.  They come in different firmness and texture options and can be a little pricy depending on where purchased. I use Amazon and am an Amazon Prime subscriber because these things are lifesavers. He can chew on them until they show signs of wear, then they need to be replaced.  This is a must have for an autistic/SPD child.


Coming soon: The long awaited Paul Bateman interview!!!