A really beautiful, thoughtful essay about the necessity of showing the world as it is, not the fantasy of white, straight, cisgendered, able-bodied protagonists that has somehow convinced the mainstream it is the default.
I don’t think any writer wants a reader to read their book, and think: ‘Well, I’m not there. Guess I’m on the Isle of Issuelandia. Oh man, not again. Kind of like always going to the Isle of Wight for your holidays. We never get to go out clubbing in Spain.’ It is wrong to banish people from the mainland!Sarah Rees Brennan
Is Katniss White?
On the left, Jennifer Lawrence. On the right, my choice for Katniss, Hailee Steinfeld.
Ah, Twitter, you are always good for blog post ideas when I am running dry. Never let me down!
Today I was mostly inspired by this fascinating discussion on Malinda Lo’s blog about the casting of Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in THE HUNGER GAMES. There are some really interesting comments, so I would recommend you go check it out.
But my post isn’t really about Katniss’s ethnicity, so much as readers’ assumptions/expectations when it comes to race in YA fiction and our weird hangups about it.
Not Quite Colored Enough
This morning, there was a guest post on YA Highway on Writing Race in YA. As I always do with these sorts of posts, I read eagerly, looking to see how people tackle this issue and what I might learn from them.
Daniel Henney: A shining example of biracial beauty.
I was on board for the most part, although I will admit I bristled at the first point writer Nicola K. Richardson makes:
The “Not Quite Black” Trope
This happens quite a lot in movies and television. A Biracial character will be used as a stand-in for a Black character. This is done because some assume that white readers will be more comfortable with a character who shares half their racial identity and therefore is less Black.
Now I want to stress that there is absolutely nothing wrong with Biracial characters or people. But this tactic doesn’t work with readers of color at all. It also happens to other minorities, too. A perfect example is Taylor Lautner. He is NOT Native American, but because he had some in his ancestry, he was cast in Twilight. What exactly was wrong with giving a Native American actor a chance since Jacob is Native American in the books? The trope is what’s wrong. Readers of color want to see characters that look like them in books. It also does a disservice to White readers. I am quite sure that many of them won’t run shrieking in horror because they see a character of color.
Hold on just one moment. Can I just deconstruct something here? “But this tactic doesn’t work with readers of color at all.” If a biracial person doesn’t consider him/herself a “reader of color”, then what exactly would s/he call him/herself?
Diversity in YA
Internets! You should check this out.
Dear internet, you have probably seen me tweet about Cindy Pon and Malinda Lo‘s joint venture Diversity in YA, but I want to take the time to mention it again and explain why it is important to me.
Cover Matters: Silver Phoenix
The hardcover of SILVER PHOENIX by Cindy Pon
Recently there have been rumblings in the blogosphere about the re-jacketing of Cindy Pon‘s book SILVER PHOENIX that have been brought to my attention. Reactions have been mixed, from outrage to support, with many bloggers pointing to the re-jacketing as yet another example of publishing cover racefail (the first being Justine Larbalestier’s LIAR and the second being Jaclyn Dolamore’s MAGIC UNDER GLASS).
This is a bit of sensitive subject and I was a little wary of writing about it. It isn’t the topic; I’ve blogged about race and cover matters before and I try to champion novels with POC themes, settings, and characters whenever possible, but this situation requires delicacy for a few reasons.
- This is not directly analogous to situations in either LIAR or MAGIC UNDER GLASS.
- I am not Cindy Pon’s editor or publisher so I obviously don’t know all the details.
- Despite my best intentions to keep neutral, there may be some finger-pointing (not at Cindy or her publisher).
- What I say may come off as a little defensive even though I don’t mean it that way.
- Contrary to what we want the outcome to be, in this situation, we as the concerned reader may not be able to effect much change.
Those reasons aside, I did feel I was qualified to say something about this topic based on these reasons:
- I work in editorial.
- I am a woman of Asian descent.
- I ain’t happy about this either.
Above is the original cover for SILVER PHOENIX. The re-jacketed cover is below the cut.
Pinging Recognition: Faces on Covers
Apologies for not blogging yesterday–I had a horrible, horrible migraine and went home early to sleep for 14 hours. Sleep, best cure for a migraine!
Anyway, this is the last day of JJ-Blog-About-Race Week! Previous posts include:
Race in Fiction Week
- I’m Korean and I’m Okay: A little background information on me.
- Representing Race in Fiction: I’m not very good at titling things.
- Coffee, Chocolate, and Cream: Describing race.
- What’s The Story?: Please no more “problem novels”.
I’ve left covers for last because 1) I’ve already blogged somewhat about it, 2) it’s something the editorial department has less control over, and 3) because it takes the discussion away from words into pictures and that’s something else again.
What’s The Story?
And we come to day 3 of JJ-Blogs-About-Race-And-Then-Ducks-The-Rotten-Tomatoes! To recap:
Race in Fiction Week
- I’m Korean and I’m Okay: Some background information on me.
- Representing Race in Fiction: What it says on the tin.
- Coffee, Chocolate, and Cream: How to describe characters of a different race.
Before we continue, I would just like to say that I don’t want to come across as though I am against explorations of racial tension in fiction. I’m not, especially with regards to historical and even some fantasy and science fiction. In fact, my preferred mode of seeing these issues discussed is through the medium of more figurative genres. To bring up HARRY POTTER again, the pureblood vs. Muggleborn prejudice that runs through the series is a wonderful metaphor for racism and class conflict.
I will explain why: because racism, prejudice, and classist issues still exist in today’s society and most likely always will. If it’s not race, then it’s money, or it’s ability, or it’s where your native planet is located, or it’s so on and so forth. I think it’s in human nature to be drawn to those “like you” and mistrust those who are “different”. The feelings are consistent, even if the values in the equation change over time.
As I said, if we lived in a perfect utopian society where everyone was equal and the same, we’d probably have no more stories left to tell.
Coffee, Chocolate, and Cream
Welcome to day 2 of JJ Will Probably Alienate A Lot of People By Blogging About Race! In case you missed the previous posts:
Race in Fiction Week
Today I want to tackle how to describe race in fiction. There are many schools of thought about this and I don’t think my opinion is the only “right” way to go about it. But my thoughts come a personal place: as someone of a “minority” race in the US who reads a lot of books.
There are (more or less) two schools of thought with regards to describing characters of a different race. The first is DO EVERYTHING BUT MENTION THEIR RACE DIRECTLY. The second is a much more forthright approach.
Representing Race in Fiction
Last week I swore that this week I would blog about race in fiction. I absolutely intend to adhere to my resolutions, but I will need help in the coming days. Today I am going to blog about representing race in fiction, what I’d like to see, what I think (and hope) works, etc. However, after that, I’m at a bit of a loss as to what to blog about. So please, suggest things to me! Ask questions!
Anyway, before I get into the “heavy” stuff, two things of note! The first is Psychic Roommate and I completed our first 5K race this past Sunday! She ran hers in 30 minutes flat, I clocked in at 31:05. Needless to say, we’re quite proud of ourselves.
The second is I saw Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland dressed like this:
Yes, I'm dressed as Alice. And I'm seriously considering going platinum blonde. Yes? No? Bad idea?
Of the movie? Eh. But I’ve always been a huge Alice fan and to date I’ve never come across an adaptation I’ve liked. (Excepting the Disney version, which I apparently watched so often it destroyed the VHS tape. YES, VHS. I’M THAT OLD, OH MY GOD.) As per usual with Tim Burton films, I enjoyed the visuals, Johnny Depp, and Helena Bonham Carter. As per usual (of his recent films), I wasn’t impressed with the rest. It hurts to be a fangirl, sometimes.
Anyway, back to the point: representing race in fiction. I will be upfront in saying that a lot of my impressions come from a YA-bias as that’s mostly what I read outside work, and I was in the age group to grow up with the genre.
I’m Korean and I’m Okay
Pretending to be Edie Sedgwick.
So I have a confession to make.
For most of my life, I refused to identify myself as Asian-American.
I know, right? In hindsight it seems silly, because, well, look at me. Or rather, look at who I wished I looked like. I’ve always wanted to be a gamine pixie sprite, with big eyes and short hair. Essentially, I wanted to be Edie Sedgwick. Or Audrey Hepburn. Or Natalie Portman. (I also wanted to be green-eyed and blonde, but that’s another story.)
I was never one to deny my ethnicity–in fact, I’m quite proud of it–but for a very long time, I struggled with how to describe myself. Because the word “Asian” comes with a lot of baggage and the term “Asian-American” even more so.
Why? Oh so many reasons. I’ve written before on the need for a cultural conscious shift because the way “people like me” (a loaded phrase in itself) are represented in fiction and media contributed a lot to my existential angst.
Show Me Some Love
