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write_awayThis is a topic I've been thinking about a lot recently but due to the nature of the topic and the stereotypes about people on different sides of the issue, I want to make it clear that I'm not interested in proselytizing and I am interested in hearing from people who disagree with me.
So, a disproportionate amount of media is about white, able-bodied, straight cis men. There is absolutely nothing wrong with writing characters who fit into all those categories. However there is a discussion to be had about how the media both reflects and influences the way we see the world. I'm sure most of you have already seen these arguments.
Personally, even if I didn't agree with them, I would still want to write about people who aren't represented very often. Female characters who are gay or disabled and written well are very important to me because of the way I relate to them and get so happy to see them treated with empathy. I'd love to give that feeling to other people.
Now this is the part that I'm really interested in hearing about: there are people who agree with what I have said so far but who are afraid to get things wrong so they avoid writing about people they don't have personal experience with. I recently said elsewhere that I don't understand people who do this (and then got congratulated for not having massive crippling anxieties like other artists and I laughed and laughed) but I was wrong. I do understand the fear of getting something wrong.
What I don't understand is what makes this different. I get if you are always afraid of getting things wrong on any topic that requires research. But why does this one get defended where others are met with "just get over it and do the research"? I suspect there are two related reasons.
First is the spectre of the "Social Justice Warrior". I admit they exist and as much as I always end up arguing when someone uses this term, I also argue with people who perform the behaviors it describes. I also think they get more attention than they deserve and reasonable people often get slapped with that label. They are not that difficult to avoid if you know how and I would be happy to give some tips for separating the reasonable people from the ones to avoid (tips that don't begin and end with "if they're visibly angry then don't listen to them") to anyone who wants them. The social justice that I'm familiar with is a productive place that welcomes all voices and I would like to see some people get past their gunshy feelings after encountering SJWs and find their way to the more welcoming brand of discussion that I know.
Even putting aside the whole SJW thing, people seem to be terrified of being called racist or sexist or anything like that. So now I'm going to explain the way these things are seen in the circles I run in. I never use words like "racist" as a noun and I don't use them to describe people, only behaviors. Because everyone is capable of doing things that contribute to institutionalized oppressions and marginalization and that doesn't make you a terrible person. Jay Smooth gave a TED talk about this view of things and I can dig it up if anyone is interested.
Now that I've rambled on about something that is only vaguely related to writing, I want to get to one tip for Doing It Right for those who are nervous: have multiple people who fit into each group. It's fine for some of them to be stereotypical. There are always people who fit the stereotypes in real life. The problem comes when they are the only representation of that group in the media. So have a variety of characters. Strong Female Characters(tm) and women who are delicate flowers, gay people who are obsessed with sex and gay people who are hopeless romantics, butch lesbians and femme lesbians, trans people who are extremely dysmorphic and others who are comfortable in their skin but are still a different gender than the one they were assigned at birth, disabled characters who overcome all their problems and others who make peace with their limitations, and everything else you can think of. I don't like advice that says "stop writing x". I prefer "Go ahead and write x but also try writing y and z to balance it out".
I also want to welcome anyone who wants to try writing about issues that I have experience with but has questions to PM me. I have disabilities that include mobility problems, chronic illness, and mental illness, and I'm bisexual and homoromantic. I will do my best to explain my thoughts instead of just telling you what to write or not to write.
So, um, this got long. Thoughts?
I hope I don't regret posting this
So, a disproportionate amount of media is about white, able-bodied, straight cis men. There is absolutely nothing wrong with writing characters who fit into all those categories. However there is a discussion to be had about how the media both reflects and influences the way we see the world. I'm sure most of you have already seen these arguments.
Personally, even if I didn't agree with them, I would still want to write about people who aren't represented very often. Female characters who are gay or disabled and written well are very important to me because of the way I relate to them and get so happy to see them treated with empathy. I'd love to give that feeling to other people.
Now this is the part that I'm really interested in hearing about: there are people who agree with what I have said so far but who are afraid to get things wrong so they avoid writing about people they don't have personal experience with. I recently said elsewhere that I don't understand people who do this (and then got congratulated for not having massive crippling anxieties like other artists and I laughed and laughed) but I was wrong. I do understand the fear of getting something wrong.
What I don't understand is what makes this different. I get if you are always afraid of getting things wrong on any topic that requires research. But why does this one get defended where others are met with "just get over it and do the research"? I suspect there are two related reasons.
First is the spectre of the "Social Justice Warrior". I admit they exist and as much as I always end up arguing when someone uses this term, I also argue with people who perform the behaviors it describes. I also think they get more attention than they deserve and reasonable people often get slapped with that label. They are not that difficult to avoid if you know how and I would be happy to give some tips for separating the reasonable people from the ones to avoid (tips that don't begin and end with "if they're visibly angry then don't listen to them") to anyone who wants them. The social justice that I'm familiar with is a productive place that welcomes all voices and I would like to see some people get past their gunshy feelings after encountering SJWs and find their way to the more welcoming brand of discussion that I know.
Even putting aside the whole SJW thing, people seem to be terrified of being called racist or sexist or anything like that. So now I'm going to explain the way these things are seen in the circles I run in. I never use words like "racist" as a noun and I don't use them to describe people, only behaviors. Because everyone is capable of doing things that contribute to institutionalized oppressions and marginalization and that doesn't make you a terrible person. Jay Smooth gave a TED talk about this view of things and I can dig it up if anyone is interested.
Now that I've rambled on about something that is only vaguely related to writing, I want to get to one tip for Doing It Right for those who are nervous: have multiple people who fit into each group. It's fine for some of them to be stereotypical. There are always people who fit the stereotypes in real life. The problem comes when they are the only representation of that group in the media. So have a variety of characters. Strong Female Characters(tm) and women who are delicate flowers, gay people who are obsessed with sex and gay people who are hopeless romantics, butch lesbians and femme lesbians, trans people who are extremely dysmorphic and others who are comfortable in their skin but are still a different gender than the one they were assigned at birth, disabled characters who overcome all their problems and others who make peace with their limitations, and everything else you can think of. I don't like advice that says "stop writing x". I prefer "Go ahead and write x but also try writing y and z to balance it out".
I also want to welcome anyone who wants to try writing about issues that I have experience with but has questions to PM me. I have disabilities that include mobility problems, chronic illness, and mental illness, and I'm bisexual and homoromantic. I will do my best to explain my thoughts instead of just telling you what to write or not to write.
So, um, this got long. Thoughts?
I hope I don't regret posting this
no subject
Date: 2014-02-12 04:34 am (UTC)Yeah...I can see the reasons behind both sides, though I'll admit I tend to lean towards being supportive *if* you can't find a way to strike a balance. If nothing else, it kind of buts guidelines in place that can be used to rein someone in if they're being almost abusively harsh. [Think: Your writing makes me want to not write anymore! - which is something I've actually seen, sadly.]
And...I forgot where I was going with that. Sorry!
Anyways, I dug around for a link that had an interesting take on things that, personally, I think may also play into why people avoid writing minority groups in some contexts here. It focuses on women, but I think what it's saying can be applied across various groups since it has to do with stories and the impact it has in the stories/roles characters of those groups tend to get that come from the stories we tell ourselves - and how those stories are, at best, wrong a fair amount of the time.
[And I do apologize if I come off snotty, or know-it-all-ish on the first part!]
no subject
Date: 2014-02-12 04:48 am (UTC)I haven't heard that about historical fiction. That's interesting but I also think a little disturbing. I'll fess up to being incredibly sensitive to dehumanizing thoughts though, so that could just be me.
I also lean toward overly nice rather than too harsh. If someone wants more criticism they can always ask for more after people have given their initial comments, but it's harder for people to look at overly harsh comments and ask people to be nicer if they don't want to deal with that. And then of course there are the people who just use the situation as an opportunity to be a bully.
Did you mean to put that link you were talking about in your comment? I don't see it and I would be interested in reading it.