Claire asked Rick Riordan:

Hi! I love the representation your put into your books and I was wondering if you ever thought of including characters in your stories that have chronic illnesses or disabilities (or really any other kind of lesser known medical conditions)?

Rick Riordan We always need more representation in books, and I'm always trying to make sure all kids can see themselves as heroes in mine! That said, I don't usually start with the idea: "I am going to include this particular type of representation," and then build a story around it. I usually start with the story and let the characters tell me who they are as I write them. They are pretty good about letting me know! Nico, Alex Fierro, Lavinia Asimov, Frank, Hazel, Ben the combat wheelchair user in the Tower of Nero, even Sarah (actor Threnody Tsai) the wheelchair user archer from Hermes cabin who we created just for the TV show: all are examples of characters who developed organically in this way. I created the story and the characters within it said, "Hey, this is who I am! Write me as I am!" I think (I hope) that this process makes the characters feel like a natural part of the fabric of the demigod world. It's hard to say will I ever do more of this or that type of rep, because "ever" is a very long time, but the older I get, the shorter "ever" seems. I also have to face the fact that most of the major characters I will ever write, I already have written, and most of the books I will ever create, I already have published. Added to this is the fact that the BEST rep, in my opinion, will almost always come from writers who have lived the experience of their characters, and those are the writers we need to be up-lifting. But of course I will keep writing as long as I can, and will keep trying to be inclusive, and when I don't do the best job of it, which will inevitably happen despite best efforts and best intentions, I will try to do better next time!

flag