Donna Williams (author)

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Donna Williams (born 1963 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) is a best-selling author, artist, singer-songwriter, screenwriter and sculptor diagnosed with autism after being assessed as a psychotic infant in 1965 at age two,[1] tested multiple times for deafness and labeled disturbed throughout childhood, before treatment for gut, immune and sensory perceptual disorders in adulthood.

Contents

[edit] Books

Williams' first book was the autobiographical Nobody Nowhere: The Extraordinary Autobiography of an Autistic Girl.[2] It was an international bestseller with fifteen weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List.[3] It was shortlisted for the NSW Premier's Prize for Literacy in 1992.[4]

Somebody Somewhere (1994) is the sequel to Nobody Nowhere that picks up the story of getting the first book published, and how that changed her life.

Later autobiographical works include Like Colour To The Blind (1998), and Everyday Heaven (2004).

She has also written several books on autism:

  • Autism and Sensing: The Unlost Instinct
  • Exposure Anxiety - The Invisible Cage: An Exploration of Self-Protection Responses in the Autism Spectrum
  • Autism - an inside-out Approach: An Innovative Look at the Mechanics of Autism and Its Developmental Cousins
  • The Jumbled Jigsaw: An Insider's Approach to the Treatment of Autistic Spectrum "Fruit Salads"

and a collection of her poetry and prose:

[edit] Television documentaries

Williams was in several television documentaries:[5]

  • My Experience With Autism, Emotion and Behavior , 1993, Eye to Eye with Connie Chung, USA (in English).
  • Jam Jar , 1995, by Fresh Film in association with BBC Four , aired in the UK and was nominated for the Mental Health Media Award (in English).
  • Krankheit als Schicksal (also titled Dann Verstehe Ich Auch Nur Bla, Bla, Bla ), 1995, by Spiegel TV, aired January 1, 1997 in Germany (in German).
  • Yokosho Watashi No Sekai E "Jiheisho" Donna Williams , 1995, by NHK TV, Japan (in Japanese).

[edit] Music

Williams' first album, Nobody Nowhere was made in 1999 with Paul Farrer,[6] two tracks from which (Sometimes and Beyond The When) feature in the TBS international TV series Things You Taught Me.[7]

In 2005, she followed this album with a second titled, Mutation which she made with an Australian music composer, producer and arranger named Akash. Both albums feature music and lyrics by Williams with the second album also featuring spoken word poetry.[8]

[edit] Art

Williams is a painter who is self taught and began painting in adulthood. She is also a sculptor who has completed life-sized sculptures. She is the older sister of the award-winning mural artist and Australian graffiti artist, Duel.[9]

[edit] Consulting and public speaking

Donna became a qualified teacher[10] international public speaker[11] and autism consultant[12] She was invited to join the UK's Medical Research Council's review into the causes of autism in 2002, where she was elected to the lay-person's panel.[13]

[edit] Marriage

On December 9, 2000, she married Chris Samuel while living in England. In 2002 they moved back to her native Australia.[14] He helped Donna create the auties.org website, for people on the autistic spectrum seeking to work towards self employment.[15] Donna writes about him in her book Everyday Heaven.[16]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Autism; it ain’t all physical. | Donna Williams’ Blog
  2. ^ A World of Her Own - New York Times
  3. ^ The New York Times: Search for 'nobody nowhere best sellers'
  4. ^ Australian Writers Guild Writers Directory: Search Results
  5. ^ IMDb Pro : Donna Williams Business Details
  6. ^ CD Baby: Donna Williams: Nobody Nowhere
  7. ^ IMDbPro.com Free Trial Signup
  8. ^ CD Baby: Donna Williams: Mutation
  9. ^ Akin to the art of Rafael Villamil - the graffiti art of Duel | Donna Williams’ Blog
  10. ^ Amazon.ca: Reviews for Somebody Somewhere: Books: Donna Williams
  11. ^ Donna Williams
  12. ^ UNH Institute on Disability
  13. ^ http://www.mrc.ac.uk/consumption/idcplg?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=4970&dDocName=MRC002394&allowInterrupt=1
  14. ^ Donna Williams: About Donna
  15. ^ Auties.org - Autism Employment: Meet the Team
  16. ^ Donna Williams: Everyday Heaven

[edit] External links