Writing 101
How to Diversify Your Writing, Without Miss Representation
Diversity isn’t one-size-fits-all!
An earlier version of this story was first published on Willow Dickerson’s tumblog Writrs to promote the release of my books with Dreamspinner Press in 2016. In 2023, I am rereleasing my former-DSP titles with JMS Books. Both the books and this article have been updated to reflect my growth as a writer.
One of the major compliments I received for my debut novel, Out of Order, was for the diversity of its cast. Of the five main characters, two are women of colour, two are queer, and one has a chronic illness. The protagonist is a biracial, bisexual teenage girl. In my second book, Order in the Court, she also struggles with mental health issues.
Being a bisexual woman myself doesn’t mean I don’t still struggle with “doing” diverse representation in my books — and doing it right.
Diversity is important in all genres, but especially in YA. Whether you’re 15 or 85, you want to see someone like you in the books you read. If you’re straight and/or white, odds are you see yourself in most protagonists. If you’re a disabled lesbian of colour, you probably haven’t. But this isn’t because you don’t exist — far from it.
