[Start Here]
Welcome to The Autistic Culture Substack — Home of The Late Diagnosis Club
We’re thrilled to have you here. The Autistic Culture Substack is one of the core programs of the Autistic Culture Institute, alongside the Autistic Culture Podcast Network and the Neurodivergent Voices Live festival.
This Substack is where we host our community, courses, and cultural writing — the interactive, educational side of Autistic Culture.
It’s designed for Autistic adults who want to move beyond the medical model and live inside a cultural one: grounded in identity, creativity, and belonging. If you want to learn more about why Autistic Culture exists, check out our About Page.
What Exactly Can You Expect?
Our goal at Autistic Culture is to support you in the best possible way.
That’s why we show up every single day to help YOU process identity, connect with others who think like you, and build an emotionally sustainable life rooted in self-trust.
This is what you’ll find inside the publication as a subscriber:
Every day, we’re active on Notes. This is where we share quick tips to help you navigate life as an Autistic adult.
On Mondays, all subscribers receive our weekly post to help you start the week feeling grounded in who you are.
On Wednesdays, paid subscribers can join our live Late Diagnosis Club meeting at 4 p.m. UK time—a gentle, guided space to unmask safely, share insights, and connect with others on the same path.
On Fridays, all subscribers get a new episode of The Late Diagnosis Club Podcast, where we meet a different member of the community each week and explore the stories, struggles, and joys of late-discovered autistic life.
And our subscriber chat is active multiple times per week — a low-pressure way to check in, ask questions, and be part of an ongoing conversation
Your Learning Tracks
Now that you know what to expect from Autistic Culture | The Late Diagnosis Club, let’s dive into the areas where most of our members want support right now.
Many of us join this community to:
Understand what being Autistic really means for us personally
Rebuild trust in ourselves after years of masking or misunderstanding
Find community and creative expression that feels safe and intellectually engaging
That’s why we’ve designed three Learning Tracks. These are structured paths through our most-loved resources, courses, and community spaces to help you explore what you need most right now.
🧠 Track 1 — Managing the Identity Shock of Late Discovery
Goal: To feel grounded, validated, and at peace after realizing you’re autistic.
Make sense of your diagnosis or self-identification and begin integrating this new understanding into your daily life. This track helps you unpack the emotions, beliefs, and patterns that surface after discovering you’re autistic.
Start here:
Read Am I Actually Autistic? (ebook or audiobook)
Take the Managing Identity Shock self-paced course (8 classes)
Attend a Late Diagnosis Club weekly meeting (Wednesdays 4pm UK / 11am ET)
Use the Unmasking Diary and Adult Autism Home Assessment tools
Listen the Autistic Culture 101 podcast series in the Podcast Archive in your Members’ Library
💬 Track 2 — Making Friends Through the Late Diagnosis Club
Goal: To find connection and belonging without forcing yourself to “perform” socially.
Build meaningful, low-pressure connections with other autistic adults who share your curiosity and values. Learn how to communicate comfortably, set boundaries, and nurture community without masking.
Start here:
Join the weekly Late Diagnosis Club Calls (Wednesdays 4pm UK / 11am ET)
Explore our Autistic Friendship & Connection discussion series
Read the essays on Autistic Communication and Double Empathy
Share your reflections in the Members’ Chat or on Notes
Attend Neurodivergent Voices Live to meet fellow members offline or online
✍️ Track 3 — Improve Your Writing with Storytelling for Self-Discovery
Goal: To express your truth through writing, build confidence in your voice, and join a community of writers who “get it.”
Turn self-reflection into storytelling and connect with others who write from lived experience. This track helps you develop your voice, experiment with creative nonfiction, and publish your work in community spaces.
Start here:
Follow the weekly Writing Prompts posted in Substack
Get a Journal for the Neurodivergent Narratives Writing Circle Prompts
Listen the Summer 2025 Neurodivergent Narratives podcast episodes
Submit to our Monthly Writing Contest
Read the 2025 Neurodivergent Narratives Anthology (coming soon)
🧭 Membership Options
Free Subscribers
Access to weekly essays and podcast announcements
Public threads and cultural commentary
Paid Members – The Late Diagnosis Club Plus
£8/month or £80/year
All member-only posts and recordings
Access to the Members’ Library and Book Club
Entry to all writing contests and festival ticket
Community chat and live sessions
Free eBooks
Executive Producer – with Podcast Credit
£1000/year
All of the above benefits on Substack
Complimentary Supercast membership which includes - ad-free listening, early access, and behind-the-scenes briefings
Podcast Producer credit and our thanks for your investment
Optional (U.S. only): Request a receipt to claim this as a tax-deductible donation to our 501(c)(3).
🎧 BONUS: Join Us on Supercast
Want to go deeper into the world of Autistic Culture?
Our Supercast platform is where you can support the podcast directly and unlock ad-free listening, early episode access, and exclusive bonus content across all five shows in the Autistic Culture Podcast Network.
Choose your level — from monthly Culture Builder memberships to the lifetime Pillar of Autistic Culture tier — and get behind-the-scenes conversations, bonus episodes, and your name listed in the credits as part of our founding community.
👉 Join the Autistic Culture Podcast Network on Supercast
📬 Stay Connected
Autistic Culture Institute: AutisticCultureInstitute.org
Podcast Network: TheAutisticCulturePodcast.com
Listen Ad Free: Autistic Culture Plus
Merch: Autistic Culture Shop
Email: admin@autisticculture.co.uk