Editor’s note: A prolific writer, Gregory Tino is the author of the blog The Autistic Mind Finally Speaks: Letterboard Thoughts by Gregory Tino and of six books—so far! In addition, he has made at least a dozen videos for YouTube featuring his poetry and commentary on subjects introspective, reflective, and with an autism perspective. Gregory and I shared a very enjoyable back-and-forth email Q & A, resulting in the following interview.
— Nick
INTERVIEW
NICK: What is the role of connections–those you have had personally, those you may hope to create, and with people in different age groups, on and off the spectrum–in initiating and shaping your work?
GREGORY: Autistics like myself want to educate the public about nonspeaking autism so we are understood and viewed as we truly are . . . which is an intelligent being who feels deeply and wants a purposeful life like everyone else. Until people understand us, nothing is going to change for us.
I want to be an advocate who shares a positive message and is a good role model. Autistics like myself are met with many challenges on a daily basis. It is very easy to become bitter and I don’t want to do that. I want to educate anyone who is willing to listen. We are all connected, and autism is very common today. One way I like to reach people is through my blog. I love seeing the stats and how many people I have reached. I also love doing the narratives for my videos. Having a way to reach people through a variety of different mediums is fun for me and it is never boring! I think when you do it this way you can connect with many different kinds of people. Talking to people from all over the world is something I never envisioned for myself!
NICK: I’d love to hear more about how you came to be talking to people from all over the world. Are these people mostly spellers? People on the spectrum? Neurotypicals?
GREGORY: Being on social media is a great way to get your message shared. On my blog there is a tab in which I can see which countries my blog has been viewed and read. In the past year my blog has traveled to 115 different countries! That is amazing to me, and I never thought a nonspeaker like me could ever have a voice like that.
I really don’t know what kind of people are reading my blogs but judging by the messages I have received, many are parents or family members of autistic nonspeakers. I hope I have helped them to understand their children. It does feel good to help, because I do know many parents struggle raising a child with autism and especially if they are nonspeaking.
NICK: Many of your books are written with children in mind as your audience. In other interviews you’ve said that you are attracted to children’s openness; they are receptive to your descriptions and explanations about your autistic experience.
Your words about children being so open resonated recently when I met a former staff member’s baby daughter. I find babies, toddlers, and youngsters fascinating to watch, especially as they adapt their play to take in new information such as figuring out autistic differences.
Have there been children in your life who connected with you? Your books will help children become understanding people, but why did you choose them as an audience? Most people on the spectrum tend to write almost exclusively for their peers or adults, whereas your children’s books fill a hole in our self-advocacy!
GREGORY: No children have really ever connected with me. Honestly many of them seem to be scared of me. Let’s face it. I am a big guy and make strange noises. I do weird things that most adults don’t do. So I can honestly say that I wanted children to not be afraid of me, and the best way to do that is to educate them. A cool thing you pointed out is that I am filling an advocacy need. I didn’t realize that!
NICK: You call your series of children’s books “Autism and I,” and in your collection of adult reflections, The Autistic Mind Finally Speaks: Letterboard Thoughts, the phrase “Autism and I” is frequently refrained. You don’t present Autism as dissociative or an alter ego. Autism appears more like a companion character, a duality of self, sometimes struggling against you, sometimes part of a dynamic duo.
When did “Autism and I” appear upon the scene for you? Are you aware of this duality in the moment, when you are not writing about it, or does it operate more like an analytical stance you take about yourself in writing? Does it help you, or is it a literary characterization you solely use for the benefit and education of your readers? I see identity devices as intriguing, healthy ways to figure out and/or explain who we are, so I am curious about their roles.
GREGORY: Feeling overwhelmed by this very layered question LOL!
I am going to begin by saying that I never really put that much thought into it actually. The term began when we started posting my blogs during the pandemic, and I thought it was a perfect way to describe how I feel inside.
Autism is a character and a part of what makes up me, and there is so much more to me than my autism.
Saying what children can understand was the reason that I did it and I am glad that I did it. People seem to have responded to it and have questioned me about it. Every emotion that I feel as an autistic such as anxiety and a feeling of being different than the norm comes from that character.
I think autism and I have challenges but we are a good team and I wouldn’t be who I am without him.
NICK: Am I correct that you self-published your books? How did you decide to do this? Did you already know Lori Hayes, your book designer and sometimes illustrator, and Patittoo and Baginda Adriansyah, your other illustrators, or how did you meet them? What is your involvement like in editing and choosing images? I know that other spellers are looking into publishing and would be interested in your process.
GREGORY: Yes we have self published all the books I have written.
Finding a publisher is a very difficult job and we could not find one to publish my books. My aunt is Lori Hayes and she helps me for all of my projects since she is very creative and has the knowledge of how to do it.
The illustrators I use come from a website called FIVERR where you can hire people to do freelance work. Patittoo and Baginda are the same person and he is from Indonesia. My illustrator [Ros Webb] for my latest book The Caged Bird is from Ireland. For my first book The Autistic Mind Finally Speaks four of my nonspeaking friends who are artists helped me illustrate, and I would like to work with them again in the future.
NICK: Your videos seem geared toward adults, both fellow autists and a general audience, and the videos take a variety of forms, serving as advocacy, a combination of memoir and reporting, and poetic inner reflection and expressiveness. How did your video team develop, how did you get to know these people, and how do you work with them in the process?
GREGORY: My video team is basically my mom and my aunt, and they jokingly call themselves Two Sisters Productions. For the videos we use the website Envato for the music and stock footage.
I must say that I am not as involved in that part of making the video as I am with the writing of the narrative, but my mom and aunt always run everything by me to make sure I am ok with how everything is. My videos take many hours to do and it is difficult for me to sit there through all of it.
NICK: Let’s continue with process. How do you go about writing? Do you mainly write when you have a specific piece in mind, or do you have a regular schedule for writing?
GREGORY: When I write I usually have an idea in my mind of what I want to write about, and sometimes writing comes very easily when that is the case.
Honestly now that I have written so many blogs I am sometimes at a loss of what to write about so my mom will help me figure out what to write about.
NICK: Are you someone who rewrites and edits? If so, do you change things as you go or, afterward, prefer to rework what you have on the page or the screen?
GREGORY: Edits are done by me in the moment and as the writing progresses I don’t seem to need to edit as much.
NICK: Who is your communication regulation partner (CRP) when you write? Do you use more than one CRP for writing?
GREGORY: My CRP for writing is always my mom, Linda Tino, and we seem to have such good flow together. She helps to keep me regulated and calm if anxiety takes over me. The amazing relationship between her and I is something I treasure. Thanks to her I began this whole journey. How can you even begin to thank someone for that?
NICK: I find that writing often provides one of the best kinds of natural highs. When I began spelling as a teenager, the experience was so intense that I’d become overwhelmed with joy and have to spin around the room before returning to my seat to continue writing before spinning again. I feel liberated and most myself as a writer. How do you feel when you write, and what does it mean to you?
GREGORY: The act of writing is a liberating feeling for me, and as I write my autism and apraxia seem to calm down and I get into a zone that feels very good and purposeful. This is a wonderful feeling for me.
NICK: How does your vocation or role as a writer affect the ways you think and feel about yourself?
GREGORY: The way I feel about writing really has changed as time has gone on. At first it was so exciting and new and fun. Now I see its importance in advocating for others. There are so many people out there who need an education about autism. I am proud to help educate others.
NICK: Your newest book, The Caged Bird, was just published in December 2024. What would you like readers to know about this book?
GREGORY: The Caged Bird is a poetic story that can relate to anyone going through a challenge in their life. Anxiety keeps some stuck in a cage. I was in one for many years. It can be hard to envision what life can look like on the other side, but sometimes you need to take a leap of faith.
NICK: At the beginning of February, you are having your first book-signing event. How did this come about, and how are you feeling in anticipation?
GREGORY: Pete Phillips of Full Spectrum Fitness was the one to offer to host a book signing for me and I am so grateful. He is a good friend of mine who is a supporter of nonspeakers.
I am excited and a bit nervous going in, but I know it will be a very momentous occasion for me. This would be the first time in my life that people will be wanting my childlike apraxic signature in a book. How crazy is that?
NICK: Do you have anything you wish to add?
GREGORY: Life sure has some wild twists and turns. Love autism and all of its surprises for me.
Links to Gregory’s blog, books, and YouTube videos:
The Autistic Mind Finally Speaks: Letterboard Thoughts by Gregory Tino
ABOUT GREGORY C. TINO
Gregory Tino is a nonspeaking autistic who has been spelling on a letterboard to communicate since 2017. He is an advocate for other nonspeakers, presents at conferences, and his goal is to educate people on the incredible capabilities of people with autism. He has written six books, all available on Amazon at Gregory C Tino. He also has written the narrative for multiple videos on his YouTube channel which is entitled Gregory C Tino. He is a proud member of the Spellers & Allies advocacy group and SEEN (Spellers Empowering Education for Nonspeakers). In his free time he enjoys writing for his blog The Autistic Mind Finally Speaks on WordPress and spending time with family and his Inside Voice friends.
Leo in Bloom Magazine 
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