Terry Trueman's Info

Terry Trueman is an award-winning author best known for his young adult fiction. He was born on December 15, 1947, and has been recognized for his novel “Stuck in Neutral,” which is particularly notable for its inspiration from his son Sheehan, who was born a quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. Trueman’s work often explores challenging and poignant themes, and he has also written poetry and short stories for both adults and children¹.

Trueman grew up in the northern suburbs of Seattle, Washington, and faced struggles in school during his middle and high school years. Despite these challenges, he graduated from Shoreline H.S. in 1966 and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing in English from the University of Washington in 1973. He holds master’s degrees in applied psychology and creative writing, and he was ‘lifetime’ certified as a K-12 licensed Teacher in 1973¹.

His career as a writer took off with his first novel, “Stuck in Neutral,” published in 2001. The book was a result of channeling his experiences and emotions regarding his son’s condition into a narrative poem, which eventually evolved into the novel. Trueman has also released companion novels for teens, such as “Cruise Control” and “Life Happens Next,” as well as a non-fiction book about his son titled “Sheehan: Heartbreak and Redemption.” 

Like one of his favorite author's Charles Bukowski, Trueman gained recognition later in life, at the age of 52¹. Not all of his work has related to his son. But all his novels for young adult readers deal with heavy themes and significant issues often avoided in most of what is published as “children’s literature.”

Trueman has always claimed that he has been edited and marketed for teen readers but he considers all his writing to be for smart readers of any age. Despite Trueman’s apparent traditional pathway to achieving a livelihood as a writer (his graduate degrees and wide success), his work has always contained a rejection of conventional morality and a dismissal of capitalist practices. His arrests for protests were numerous and his support of open borders, “good trouble” of the kind that requires political action against fascism, along with his support of Antifa and unions, has always been unwavering. A secular humanist by instinct and practice, Terry Trueman values individual freedom and personal accountability as high on his list of values

For a comprehensive list of his works and more details about his life and career, you can visit his Wikipedia page¹.