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Finalist follows creative path to mayor’s awards
By Liz Bell
STELLA Mars has conquered many difficulties in her short life, not the least being literacy and academic mastery that’s not always associated with people living with autism or ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder).
A finalist for this year’s Mornington Peninsula Mayor's Short Story Writing Award in the eight to 12 years old category, the Mount Eliza girl has shown that she has a strong driving force determination to succeed.
The nine-year-old already considers herself a professional creative who knows where her talents lie and the obstacles she faces.
"I really enjoyed writing my story and I am proud of it. It took me quite a long time to write my piece because of my ADHD and my autism,” Mars said. “I would write for 15 minutes on paper with my favourite pens and then I would need to go into our garden and have a movement break. It was hard but fun work. The garden helps me clear my mind to think of new ideas."
Stella is also a visual artist and has sold many pieces of art and exhibited her works in several galleries.
A student at the Retreat to Art studio in Mount Eliza, she attends confidence building classes and spends every spare hour at home being artistic: drawing, painting, writing, singing, dancing and exploring her family vegetable garden with her dog Lola.
"I feel really lucky to have the chance to explore everything I am interested in doing. My parents are very cool and help me so much with managing my autism and ADHD and all the creative things I want to achieve,” she said.
Stella is working on writing and illustrating a picture book about her struggles as a child with autism and combined ADHD.
"I hope everyone who reads the book when I finish it will learn a little bit and become more understanding of it (ASD and ADHD). I want this book to help people like me feel noticed and listened to."