Tips on Writing People of Color | Writing Diversity
Transcript:
Hey guys, welcome to the second video in my series on writing diversely.
Today, I hope to talk to you about some things you should keep in mind when writing characters of a different race than yourself. Most of my tips are probably going to rely on things I know or have experienced personally, but I’ve tried to make sure they’re general enough to be universal.
First off, let me please say that I don’t speak for all black people.
I really shouldn’t need to say that, but I feel like I really have to.
Here’s the simplest tip: It’s kind of weird to describe brown character’s skin colors with food items like coffee, caramel, etc.
That would be like if I described pale skin as like butter, or coffee creamer, or milk that had been left out too long and had slightly discolored.
Wow, that last one was a really disgusting and creepy example, but I think you get my point. The only time any character should describe another with food terms is if they are a cannibal.
Next, don’t include people of color as props for your main character.
It’s really obvious and a bit unnerving if the only diverse characters in your story are your white main character’s best friends in an otherwise large and expansive world. It’s even more frustrating if said diverse friend dies to further your main character’s story, whether or not that character is conveniently replaced with a new brown friend.
That doesn’t mean diverse characters can’t die, but it’s important to think of the implication of minorities dying for a white character’s growth, even and especially if your story doesn’t claim to carry the same oppressions as our real world.
It’s really important to be aware of racist implications even if you’re writing a science fiction or fantasy novel with characters of blue, grey, or green skin.
The colors may not match, but that doesn’t make the same issues fade away. A character of color is still a character. They deserve to be treated and developed as well as any other character you’d write about. If you’re writing about a brutal world or an oppressed society, someplace on the brink of war—it’s fine if everyone is treated terribly.
You’re not going to get accused of racism if your POC are treated just as bad as everyone else.
It’s when your characters of color are consistently the ones treated worse than any one else that you’ll start to have issues.
Racial oppression is something that is steeped in so many different intersections it’s very difficult to dissect in fiction. The last thing you want to do is play the White Savior trope, which is exactly what it sounds like. Implying that people of color don’t have the tools, education, or strength to save themselves is never cool.
I really don’t want to tell anyone what to write, or to say you can’t write the story of your heart, but it’s important to consider whether the story you are trying to tell is built around an experience that’s not yours to tell.
Stories involving slavery, segregation, internment camps, are very hard to get right.
I’m not trying to make you feel guilty for things your ancestors did, but understand that the consequences of those things are not over. I can trace my mother’s genealogy back to the revolutionary war, but my father’s records are much harder to know. I know what that his last name matches a plantation, but even recent information is damaged by families pulled apart and records not given as much care as my other relatives were.
Racism even feeds into a diverse author’s ability or opportunities to write.
As you know, when I was homeless last year, my biggest fear was not living on the street but that doing so might cause me to disappear from the publishing landscape.
Everyday I face my computer with deep anxiety that I’m not educated enough to write as well as my peers and I’m so neurotic about money I feel guilty for buying myself anything. I’m obsessive about learning about writing and investing in my career because I’m terrified I don’t have enough to make it work.
These worries are likely familiar to most writers, but for me they are deeply entrenched in ways I’ve been let down before.
Stories that deal with consequences of racial oppression head on are almost always going to be more accurate and genuine from a voice that has lived these experiences.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t write characters of color!
Please, please don’t be afraid to do so. Just because some topics might be better suited for someone else doesn’t mean your stories don’t deserve a diverse world. The easiest way to do that is to populate your world. There’s no reason why a side character can’t be a person of color. All you have to do is give them a relevant name and/or identifying features.
As long as all your diverse throwaway characters aren’t just maids, janitors, convenience store clerks, or so on, that’s a quick way to make your world more inclusive. But one liner characters shouldn’t be your only diverse characters.
Just as it’s important to make sure minor characters aren’t falling into stereotypical or offensive career roles, it’s important to be cautious of stereotypes when developing larger characters.
No one is perfect.
It’s okay to mess up, but it’s important to look for, catch, and fix these mistakes as soon as possible. No one wants harmful representation on bookstore shelves no matter the intentions. I know all this advice can start to seem overwhelming, but I swear it gets easier with practice.
We’ve all internalized some prejudices and even I do my best to be careful and attentive.
It’s a process to unlearn and improve upon past mistakes, but I’ve found it not only makes us better people but better writers, too. You don’t have to pretend that racist ideas don’t exist, you just need to address them in text.
For example, in Harry Potter the Death Eaters often talk about pure blood wizards and refer to muggles or muggle born wizards as lesser. If they said things like this and no one reacted or contradicted the statement on the page, that would be very bad.
However, consistently, from the first book to the very last, most characters are visibly and instantly disgusted by such a mindset and often immediately respond in rebuttal.
It’s important to understand that what your characters say and do is the clearest example of what your story condones as acceptable to readers.
If you go hundreds and hundreds of pages before ever critically examining harmful language or behavior, that can be taken to mean that certain levels of intolerance are okay.
Especially if you are writing children’s or young adult literature, it’s important to realize the influence your words and ideas can have on developing minds.
I’m not saying that you need to purify your work or become a paragon of virtue and positive intent. I’m not saying a lot of things here. I don’t have nearly enough time to cover all the things you should consider when writing outside your own experience, but I know even a little can help.
I’m definitely open to doing more videos on this subject if you’d like.
Please let me know in the comments if you liked this video and what you’re still curious about. I can’t promise to answer all questions or know the right answer to everything, but more than anything I’d like to help others so I’ll do my best.
If you really like this video and haven’t already subscribed, please do so.
Thank you so much for watching. I’ll see you soon. Bye.
