The 28-Year Journey of an "Un-boxable" Brain: Why I Wrote How the Platypus Became

The duck-billed platypus is truly a little bit of everything. As a child I was drawn to the physicality of this incredible animal. As an adult, recreating my childhood book, I realised I felt a much deeper metaphorical connection to this fantastic beast. 

As we enter Neurodiversity Celebration Week, I’ve been reflecting on why I was so drawn to this "misfit" animal when I first sat down to write this story in a school notebook back in 1998. At ten years old, I didn't have the words "ADHD" or "Dyslexia", I just knew that I felt like I was constantly being measured against a yardstick that didn't fit.

The Labels That Didn't Fit

Growing up, the world tried to put me in boxes that were too small. Because I had too many ideas and couldn't keep them in my head, I was labeled "disruptive" or "badly behaved" for talking too much in class. When I struggled with tasks that seemed easy for others, I was often accused of being "lazy," when in reality, I was paralyzed by the sheer overwhelm of procrastination.

There was also the confusing conflict of my dyslexia. I would do well in certain exams because I took my time to deeply immerse myself in the details of a text, yet because I couldn't read out loud without struggling, I was sometimes accused of cheating or lying about my abilities. This disconnect led to a cycle of frustration and emotional dysregulation; I couldn't understand why the "simple" things felt so difficult.

From Internalisation to realisation

Unfortunately, many of those labels turned into internalised negative beliefs that followed me well into adulthood. For a long time, I carried the weight of feeling "less than" or "difficult."

It is only now, in my late 30s, that I am finally giving myself the grace and the space to understand and accept these parts of me. I am learning to move through life in a more positive way, and even (hopefully) finding ways to celebrate the neurodiverse parts of my brain rather than hiding them.

Seeing the Hidden Magic

Because I am a visual thinker, I always knew this had to be a picture book. Working with my illustrator, Ffion, we included hidden UV-glow elements on the cover of the book as a nod to the amazing biology of the real-life biofluorescent platypus. I also like to see this element as a metaphor for neurodiversity itself. It represents the idea that when we stop trying to force people into standard "boxes" and look at things through a different lens, we reveal a hidden magic that was there all along.

A Hope for the Next Generation

My hope is that as we all understand more about our differences, the next generation won't have to carry the shame and labels that those before them did. By celebrating these differences now, we can help children learn to embrace their neurodiversities from the start.

If we can give them the space to be "un-boxable," I truly believe they will create stories and ideas more amazing than anything we’ve seen before.

My "Un-boxable" Reading List

If you or your child are navigating a path that feels a little "mismatched," remember the platypus. You don't need to fit into a box to be a masterpiece. I’ve put together a selection of books over on Bookshop.org that either directly celebrate neurodiversity or that I’ve enjoyed reading as someone with dyslexia and ADHD.

View The Bookshelf here

(Note: This is a personal list of books I’ve enjoyed or heard great things about for neurodivergent readers, not a formal academic recommendation!)