Discovering Your Child's
Superhero Identity
The Foundation of Every Great Comic Book Character.
Every superhero has an origin story.
Spider-Man was bitten by a radioactive spider.
Batman witnessed his parents' murder.
Wonder Woman was sculpted from clay by the gods.
These origin stories aren't just backstory—they're the foundation of who these characters are, what they value, and why they fight.
Your child has an origin story, too. And it's more powerful than any fictional tale because it's real.
In this blog post, we're going to do the most important work of the entire comic creation process: we're going to discover your child's superhero identity.
Not the identity you wish they had.
Not the identity the world expects them to have.
But the identity that already exists within them—their authentic, beautiful, powerful self.
This is sacred work.
This is the work of truly seeing your child.
Are you ready?
Real Name: Sam Patel
Age: 7 years old
Superhero Name: Compass
Superpower: Identity Discovery
Compass can see the hidden strengths in everyone.
They're surrounded by five glowing orbs representing
different aspects of identity (patterns, music, nature,
creativity, connection). By touching someone, Compass can
help them discover their true superpower—the trait they
thought was a weakness but is actually their greatest strength.
Why This Step Matters More Than the Art
I know you're excited to start generating AI images and designing comic pages. I get it—that's the fun, tangible part. But here's the truth: if you skip this foundational step, your comic will fall flat.
A comic book without a well-developed character is just pretty pictures.
But a comic book with a character who is deeply understood, authentically represented, and emotionally resonant?
That's a story your child will carry in their heart forever.
When you take the time to truly discover your child's superhero identity, you're doing three profound things:
You're seeing your child through the lens of their strengths, not their challenges.
Instead of focusing on what they can't do, you're celebrating what they can do, what makes them unique, and what makes them magnificent.
You're giving your child a mirror that reflects their truth.
When they see this character, they'll recognise themselves—not a sanitised version, not an idealised version, but a heroic version of who they truly are.
You're creating a foundation for connection.
This character becomes a bridge between you and your child, a shared language, a way to explore emotions and experiences together.
So let's do this right.
Let's take our time.
Let's discover who your child's superhero truly is.
The Five Questions That Reveal Your Child's Superhero
I'm going to walk you through five powerful questions.
For each question, I'll explain why it matters, give you examples, and provide a reflection exercise.
Grab a journal, a notebook, or open a document on your computer.
This is work worth writing down.
Question 1: What Makes Your Child Unique?
Every superhero has something that sets them apart from everyone else.
Superman can fly.
The Flash is the fastest man alive.
Your child has unique traits too—things that make them distinctly them.
These might be things the world calls "symptoms" or "behaviours," but we're going to reframe them as superpowers.
Examples:
• Does your child line things up in perfect patterns? They have the power of Order and Precision.
• Does your child notice sounds that no one else hears? They have Enhanced Sensory Perception.
• Does your child flap their hands when they're happy? They have the power of Pure Expression—they show joy without filter or shame.
• Does your child remember every detail of their favourite movie? They have a Photographic Memory.
• Does your child have an intense focus when they're interested in something? They have the power of Hyper-focus.
Reflection Exercise:
Write down three to five unique traits your child has.
For each one, reframe it as a superpower.
Don't worry about making it sound "cool" yet—just practice seeing these traits through the lens of strength.
Example:
• Trait: My daughter spins in circles when she's excited.
• Superpower: She has the ability to channel energy through movement—like a human dynamo.
Question 2: What Challenges Does Your Child Face?
Every great superhero faces challenges.
Peter Parker struggles with responsibility.
Bruce Wayne battles his inner darkness.
Your child faces challenges too, and acknowledging them doesn't diminish their power—it makes their heroism more real.
The key here is to name the challenges without shame.
We're not listing "deficits." We're identifying the obstacles your child's superhero must overcome, just like every hero in every story.
Examples:
• Challenge: The world is too loud, too bright, too overwhelming.
Heroic framing: They navigate a world that wasn't designed for their sensory system.
• Challenge: They can't speak with words.
Heroic framing: They must find other ways to communicate in a world that expects verbal language.
• Challenge: They're misunderstood by most people.
Heroic framing: They persist in being themselves even when others don't understand.
Reflection Exercise:
Write down two to three real challenges your child faces. Then, reframe each one in heroic terms. How would you describe this challenge if your child were a superhero in a story?
Example:
• Challenge: My son gets overwhelmed in crowded places.
• Heroic framing: He must navigate environments filled with sensory chaos that would overwhelm most people, yet he finds ways to cope and survive.
Question 3: What Does Your Child Love?
Every superhero has something they love, something they protect, something that motivates them.
For Superman, it's humanity.
For Batman, it's Gotham.
For your child, it might be dinosaurs, trains, certain textures, specific routines, or particular people.
The things your child loves reveal their heart. And a superhero without heart is just a person with powers.
Examples:
• Does your child love animals? Maybe their superhero has a special connection to animals and can communicate with them.
• Does your child love water? Maybe their superhero draws strength from water or has water-based powers.
• Does your child love a specific toy or object? Maybe that object is their superhero's talisman or source of power.
• Does your child love routine and predictability? Maybe their superhero has the power to create order out of chaos.
Reflection Exercise:
List three to five things your child genuinely loves. These can be objects, activities, sensory experiences, or people.
For each one, consider: how could this love be woven into their superhero identity?
Example:
• Love: My daughter loves soft blankets.
• Superhero connection: Her superhero has a magical cloak that provides comfort and protection—it's both her shield and her source of calm.
Question 4: What is Your Child's Emotional Superpower?
This is the question that often brings parents to tears when they answer it honestly.
Beyond the visible traits and behaviours, what is the emotional gift your child brings to the world?
What do they teach you?
What do they embody that the world desperately needs?
Examples:
• Authenticity: Your child doesn't pretend. They don't mask. They exist in radical, unfiltered authenticity.
• Persistence: Your child faces a world that's not designed for them, and they keep showing up, keep trying, keep existing.
• Joy: Your child experiences joy in its purest form—uncontaminated by self-consciousness or social performance.
• Presence: Your child lives fully in the present moment, not worried about the past or future.
• Unconditional Love: Your child loves without judgment, without conditions, without keeping score.
Reflection Exercise:
Close your eyes for a moment.
Think about who your child is at their core.
What is the emotional truth of their being?
What do they teach you about how to live?
Write it down. This is their true superpower—the one that matters most.
Example:
• Emotional superpower: My son teaches me that joy doesn't require words.
He shows me that happiness can be found in the simplest things—a spinning wheel, a ray of sunlight, a favourite song. His superpower is Pure, Unfiltered Joy.
Question 5: If Your Child Could Save the World, How Would They Do It?
This is the question that brings it all together.
Based on everything you've reflected on—their unique traits, their challenges, their loves, their emotional superpower—how would your child's superhero save the world?
This doesn't have to be literal. It's not about fighting villains with punches and lasers (unless that resonates with your child).
It's about: what does the world need that your child uniquely provides?
Examples:
• A child who loves patterns might save the world by restoring order to chaos, fixing broken systems, or solving impossible puzzles.
• A child who is deeply empathetic might save the world by healing emotional wounds, bringing people together, or teaching others how to truly listen.
• A child who loves animals might save the world by protecting nature, communicating with creatures, or restoring balance to ecosystems.
• A child who experiences sensory input intensely might save the world by detecting dangers others can't sense, or by experiencing beauty so fully that they remind others what's worth protecting.
Reflection Exercise:
Imagine your child's superhero in action.
What problem are they solving?
What are they protecting?
What makes them the only ones who can do this?
Write a paragraph describing their heroic purpose.
Example:
• My daughter's superhero, "Pattern Girl," saves the world by seeing connections and patterns that others miss.
When the world falls into chaos, she's the one who can see the underlying order and restore balance.
Her autism isn't a limitation—it's the very thing that makes her the hero the world needs.
Bringing It All Together: Your Child's Superhero Profile
Now that you've answered all five questions, let's create a Superhero Profile for your child.
This will be the foundation for everything that comes next—the character design, the storyline, the visual elements.
Superhero Profile Template:
Name: (You can choose this now or later—it should reflect their powers or personality)
Core Superpower: (Based on their unique traits)
Secondary Powers: (Other strengths or abilities)
Origin Story: (How they got their powers—this can be metaphorical)
Greatest Challenge: (The obstacle they face)
What They Love/Protect: (Their motivation)
Emotional Superpower: (The truth they embody)
How They Save the World: (Their heroic purpose)
Visual Elements: (Colours, symbols, or objects associated with them)
Example: My Son's Superhero Profile
Let me show you what this looks like using my own son as an example:
Name: Echo (because he repeats sounds and phrases, and because echoes carry messages across distances)
Core Superpower: Sound Manipulation—he can hear frequencies others can't, and he can use sound waves to communicate, heal, and protect.
Secondary Powers: Pattern Recognition, Hyper-focus, Emotional Resonance (he can sense how others are feeling through the vibrations they emit)
Origin Story: Echo was born with the ability to hear the world differently. While others hear noise, he hears music, patterns, and hidden messages. What the world called a "disability," he discovered was actually a gift—a way of perceiving reality that others couldn't access.
Greatest Challenge: The world is overwhelmingly loud, and most people don't understand his language. He must find ways to protect himself from sensory overload while using his powers to help others.
What He Loves/Protect: Music, rhythm, and the people who truly listen. He protects the beauty of sound and fights against the chaos of noise.
Emotional Superpower: Authenticity and Joy—he exists without pretence, experiencing and expressing emotion in its purest form.
How He Saves the World: Echo saves the world by teaching people how to truly listen—not just with their ears, but with their hearts. In a world full of noise, he reminds people of the power of silence, rhythm, and genuine connection.
Visual Elements: Sound waves, musical notes, headphones (his tool for managing sensory input), blues and purples (calming colours), a tuning fork (his talisman)
What Happens Next?
You've just done the most important work of this entire process.
You've seen your child as a superhero.
You've identified their power, their purpose, and their truth.
You've created a foundation that's authentic, meaningful, and deeply connected to who your child truly is.
In the next blog post, we're going to take this Superhero Profile and use it to create your child's AI comic character.
I'll walk you through the exact prompts to use, how to generate consistent characters, and how to bring your vision to life visually.
But before you move on, I want you to do one thing:
Share your child's Superhero Profile with them.
You don't have to read it word-for-word (though you can if your child engages with written or spoken language).
But find a way to communicate to your child: "You are a superhero. This is who you are. This is your power."
Show them the words you wrote. Point to them and say, "This is you." Watch their response. You might be surprised by what happens.
Take the Next Step
Ready to turn this profile into a visual character?
Join the complete AI Comic Book Creation Course (COMING SOON) where I provide video tutorials, prompt templates, and step-by-step guidance for every stage of character creation.
Want to go deeper into understanding your child's love languages?
Read the Connecting Hearts book to learn how Story Love and Creation Love can transform your relationship.
Want to share your child's Superhero Profile with other parents?
Join the Connecting Hearts Community (COMING SOON), where parents are celebrating their children's unique identities and supporting each other on this journey.
Your child is a superhero.
Now the world is about to see it too.
Stuart McGhie
Father, Love Translator, and Guide for Parents of Nonverbal Autistic Children
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autism parenting, nonverbal autism, autism communication, PECS, AAC, visual supports, autism strategies, special needs parenting, autism resources, communication development, autism intervention, sensory processing, autism education, autism family support, autism therapy, autism tools, autism
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