#avoiding stereotypes

This had been sitting in the inbox for a while, and I wound up connecting with another lgbt writing blog, so shoutout to @lgbtqwriting for helping us out! 

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So, first things first, it’s okay for bi characters to be promiscuous as long as that’s not portrayed as a negative quality. For example, they can be the type that prefers one night stands to relationships, or be in a polycule, but don’t have them cheat. I and so many other Bi people have been abused simply because our partners think we’re more likely to cheat on them due to liking more than one gender.

That said, if someone physically cannot seem to write a bi character who isn’t promiscuous, that’s a problem.

hey! i’m planning on writing a book, and i want to include poc representation. do you have any tips that could help me with like, describing them and representing them correctly? i don’t want to misrepresent any group. if you could help me i would appreciate it so much!

First off, let me start off with saying that I am EXTREMELY honored by you saying this. I put my answer under the read more cause it got a little long. 

For starters I would consider what kind of POC characters you want to write for because POC is a vast group. Are you writing for African-Americans/Africans, Latinx, Asians (although there is some debate about whether or not they are considered POC, you should ask somebody who is Asian on their views since i’m not Asian myself and I can’t speak for the Asian community), Native Americans/First Nations, Middle Eastern, Pacific Islander/etc. When you figure out what type of POC you’re writing for, I suggest using these two posts, Creating BIPOC Characters and this Character Chart you can further deepen your character.

Representation, or the lack of representation in writing is very evident. You have to realize that not every POC have the same cultures, backgrounds, history, etc. skin color, hair color, etc. I think the biggest mistake that non-POC make when writing for POC is the fact that sometimes we’re all generalized into groups based off of the writers preconceived notion of what they know about said group. Is your POC the villain, if so why can’t the non-POC be it? Same thing if you write a non-POC as the hero/ine. Does the POC in your story die or suffer some kind of tragedy that further develops the story line of your non-POC? Why do they specifically have to die, suffer, endure, etc. for the non-POC to futher their story? It’s questions like these that you need to ask yourself as you come to think about your character(s).

Take me for example, I have a fic that i’m in the process of doing for the British actor Dev Patel. Dev is not only English, but he also comes from immigrant Indian parents who are both from Kenya. In my mind when writing about him, I have to take into consideration that he grew up as a first gen-English/Indian, possibly have some sort of African influences because of where his parents grew up and potentially brought with them, etc. I also have to take into account that I as a biracial black woman, have to also remember that how he interacts with other Indians, be them English-Indian like himself (the younger gen), how he interacts with non-Indians because he’s a POC (if that makes sense?). There are so many different things to think about, and once you do, it helps to flesh out your character.

I will say that knowing certain stereotypes about whatever POC character you write and being able to a.) acknowledge them as a non-POC, and b.) break them and not continue the cycle of repeating them. Here are some articles that suggest how to do so. Dear White Writers, this post that I found has links that can really help you with Writing Characters of Different Races and Ethnicities.

You can even watch videos on YouTube or online that you ca watch if you’re more of a visual person.

I would suggest these (x) and (x)

Even stereotypes of PoC that seem positive on the surface (a really smart Asian person! A sassy Black woman!) are still harmful if they are stereotypes. This isn’t about censorship or being PC, but being extremely aware of the fact that as a non-PoC person, your depictions (or lack thereof) of less represented people can carry untold consequences to the people of that community who do not have the privilege of having diverse mainstream representations of themselves to choose from.

—Yumi Sakugawa, author and illustrator of I Think I Am in Friend-Love with You

I usually tag anything for characters or character creation on my blog, so you’re more than welcome to search the tag. The more info you gather, the better you can fill in any holes for that character. I would suggest doing research and if you come across something you don’t know or understand why a POC/culture/community does something, you can write down questions and ask. For me personally, I feel like it’s sometimes the small details like those that really mean a lot and shows that the writer took the time to learn and develop their characters. Like any great writing, the Who, What, Where, When, Why and Because can be even better tools to figuring out your character, their motivations and themselves as well. Also having a strong beta reader whom you know won’t sugarcoat things can be an extraordinary tool you can use as well.

race stereotypes can be difficult, but definitely not impossible, to navigate, especially if they’ve been written into canon. That doesn’t mean you can’t change canon occurances that feed into that stereotype! 

Now, before we begin, I am not Latinx/Hispanic, so I cannot speak for anyone of that heritage, but this is what I could get from researching. From what I was able to glean from your description, the main stereotype you’re concerned about is the association between a Hispanic/Latinx character and a gang.  Hispanic or Latino men are more likely to be stereotyped as “unintelligent, comedic, aggressive, sexual, and unprofessional, earning them titles as ‘Latin lovers,“ buffoons, or criminals.’” [x] Hispanic and Latina women, similarly, are typically portrayed as lazy, verbally aggressive, and lacking work ethic [x]. 

Actually, there’s a wikipedia page that outlines several major stereotypes here that might be helpful to look over to see if your writing raises any red flags.

When it comes to avoiding stereotypes, you need to be careful not to let a certain characteristic be a character’s defining personality trait. PoC, especially men of color, tend to be seen as disproportionately “violent” as it is, so if your oc’s brother is a “loose cannon” it would be worth digging into that and making sure that this is not the only characteristic he has. Humans are complex beings, just as you would write a white character and give them a reasoning behind their actions, writing poc warrants the exact same thing. 

That said, I’m not sure about the exact context of the stereotypes you’re referring to, so I don’t know if I was a lot of help to you, but there are blogs out there that have been definitely helpful to me personally with regards to avoiding negative tropes when it comes to writing with poc. 

@writingwithcolor are an exceptional resource and I’ve found some pages that might be helpful to you, specifically with different tropes and stereotypes that might be connected with what you’re thinking. If not please don’t hesitate to message again and we can try to find other resources!!

Criminalization

Violent MoC

Well, I don’t think there can ever be too much diversity in a book, but I get what you mean. You don’t want to come across as a writer who uses diversity to get attention.

I think you should just watch out for not writing too stereotypical. Here are some articles with tips on how to avoid doing that:

https://litreactor.com/columns/storyville-ten-ways-to-avoid-cliches-and-stereotypes

http://www.bang2write.com/2017/10/how-to-avoid-stereotypes-when-writing-diverse-characters.html

https://www.wikihow.com/Avoid-Creating-Female-Character-Stereotypes-in-Your-Writing

https://lhauthor.wordpress.com/2010/03/12/list-of-stereotypical-characters-to-avoid/

As long as you’re writing well rounded characters whose lives don’t revolve around the fact that they’re Asian or bisexual or grew up in a orphanage it’ll be all right. Your story should be about something, like a adventure, with them sometimes talking about their past lives. But the main plot shouldn’t be their diversity.

And let go of your fear of people criticising you for having too diverse characters. Remember, every writer gets criticised for something in the end. If the criticism that you get is that you write too diverse than I think you did pretty great. It’s better than hearing that you’re story is boring or filled with plot holes!

TIP: If you’re going to write LGBT characters, I recommend looking at this blog: @scriptlgbt!

Thank you for the question, and we’re happy to help <3

Even though I’m personally introverted, I’ve worked as an in-home assistant for an autistic teen who told me he is extroverted after I explained the difference between extroversion and introversion. On top of that, even though I’m introverted (I define this as being tired out by and sensitive around people), many wouldn’t guess it, as I’m extremely verbal and pretty outgoing, comfortable talking to strangers.

Any autistic person could be hypersensitive or hyposensitive to any source of stimulation, or even fluctuate between the two. People are a huge source of stimulation - even just being physically around them is stimulating. When someone is hypersensitive to being around people, they may be more introverted, wanting to avoid people, conversation, being touched, etc. When someone is hyposensitive to being around people, they may crave contact, socializing, etc. But even this is a little too simplistic of an explanation, as the divide between extroverted and introverted is pretty fuzzy.

So think about what you mean by extroverted - do you mean confident about talking to strangers, wanting to be around people, outgoing, verbal, or some combination of these? The teen I worked with was shy around new people, but loved to be around them, laughing with them and talking with them, but would stress out in public around too many strangers. It’s entirely possible someone autistic could enjoy the stimulation of being around people, but only certain people, or maybe from being around anyone but only in certain environments where they can concentrate on conversation without getting distracted by the stimulation from the environment. Tease out how your character socializes, what would make them not want to socialize, and what would make them not want to socialize. Everyone has different conditions that make them comfy or uncomfy socializing, including autistic people.

This blog post (not from tumblr) describes one person’s experience being extroverted and on the spectrum.

While there isn’t any evidence for him to be exclusively introverted or extroverted (which is helpfully realistic, as many people are somewhere in the middle), Billy Cranston the blue ranger from the 2017 Power Rangers movie shows some extroverted traits. He is first shown putting some pencils in order and is quiet while focusing, but as soon as he starts talking to Jason, who helped him out, he’s got a stream of words flowing out of his mouth. He wanted to hang out with Jason very much, and is excited to meet with the other rangers.

Here is a short screenrant article about why it was important to make Billy an autistic character.

Something you may want to consider is the connections or lack thereof of your character. A lot of autistic people, even if introverted, get very lonely and that may prompt them to reach out more to others. I have been people-tired and lonely at the same time, and it was pretty weird that I wanted to stay away from people yet be around them at the same time.

The whole thing hinges on how she’s portrayed in combat. I’d recommend studying fighting styles employed by women for reference, but there is a clear distinction between male and female combat. Not sure what Talla’s personality is, but if she’s aggressive in combat just because that’s who she is, offset it with her portrayal outside of combat. Give her a personality that refuses to listen to nonsense, make her state her mind, make her be the voice of reason; make that aggression part of her personality, instead of just pure masculinity.

(2/2) describes her dislike for certain types of clothes for their texture and overly bright colors (her overall color scheme is white) She has difficulty socializing with girls because, in her special needs classes, she was surrounded by boys and had very few girl friends. When in a stressful situation she tends to cry or go completely mute. How does she sound so far? A little too stereotypical?

Hi anon! Thank you for your question. Your character sounds pretty cool! Her characteristics are pretty common for autistic people - sensory problems with certain textures, is semi-verbal or non-verbal when stressed/having a shutdown/having a meltdown, trouble socializing with people she’s not practiced socializing with much - girls, who are often socialized with different rules than boys.

You may want to tease out what specific things make socializing with other girls hard for her as compared to boys. Socializing a a certain way or having certain personalities isn’t inherent to girls vs. boys, like there’s not a clear division a lot of the time between the genders, but gender affects a lot of the way someone is socialized by adults or peers around them, a.k.a. the social rules certain individuals are expected to follow. Though it’s not fair, many girls are taught to not be rambunctious or physically active whereas boys are sometimes encouraged to behave that way. Many boys are taught to not express their feelings whereas girls are taught to be empathetic. It isn’t healthy, but may affect your character in the ways you are discussing. To avoid “boys socialize like this girls do this” stereotypes as well, so some research and thinking about why girls or boys are socialized different in certain contexts.

I wonder what you mean she has that power to basically vocally control people which is “opposite to her personality.” It’s an interesting concept to have characters gain a power which essentially complements something that isn’t a personal strength, but I don’t know if you mean she gets social influence whereas she didn’t have it because she is shy, because she’s autistic, or both. 

Keep in mind autistic people experience empathy differently than average, but this can mean struggling with empathy of any type, struggling with cognitive empathy but being very sensitive to others’ current feelings with affective empathy, or the other way around, or fluctuating empathy, etc. The stereotype for autistic people is they have no empathy, so for her to have a pretty empathic power like influencing people’s emotions with her voice, try to determine why it’s “opposite” to her. Is is because of the lack of social influence, lack of ability to empathize, or something different?

Whatever the reason, there are lots of autistic people who struggle with empathy of any type, so it’s not inherently bad to have her fit that category, but be aware it’s the stereotype. Fleshing out your character or giving her nuance will help prevent fitting into autistic stereotypes just to have her fit them. Make choices as an author, and have explanations or reasons behind them, and that can help you avoid falling into the pitfall of having a shallow representation of your character.

Basically, your character is fine as long as you flesh her out. You don’t want to have Autism as your character, you want an autistic character. The distinction lies in why she has certain traits - does she have only specifically autistic traits because she’s autistic, or does she have depth, creativity, emotion, etc. and experiences those things differently because she’s autistic?