busyThe thing is ... there are people with multiple minority traits. There are gay Asians. There are autistic Pagans. There are poor black lesbians in wheelchairs. And those people sometimes feel overlooked because the stacking effect can change their experiences so much that a single-trait character doesn't feel much like them. I've read essays upholding this end of the debate but couldn't find one to use as an example here.
My stance is that I write characters as they need to be. I have a lot of characters who are female/other trait because roughly half of humanity is female. Other combinations are less common but also appear. Brelig is a normal-sized Duurludirj man (which we'd consider a dwarf) and missing one hand. Maryam Smith is African-British, genderqueer, duoclass, and of illegitimate birth. I'm more likely to focus on minority protagonists than to use them as filler, something my audience seems to enjoy if you look over what's been published. I don't tend to write a lot of straight white Christian men, though, so the core of the mainstream doesn't get a lot of traffic from me. Meh.
Also, if I haven't specified a trait in canon, yes it could fall outside the mainstream. Characters have done this to me often enough, and my cultural awareness is diverse enough, that there's no permanent default. They may pop out an uncommon religion or sexual orientation or invisible handicap or whatnot, and they may do that after two stories or six poems or twenty years. I'm more likely to mention physical features such as skin tone and gender up front, because they're noticeable points of diversity. But I've also had characters refuse to reveal their sex/gender, and not just the ones for whom "I'm not telling" is their gender.
I'm interested in other people's perspectives on the matter of single vs. stacked traits.
June 12 2013, 21:11:40 UTC 8 years ago
Ooo...
June 12 2013, 21:41:42 UTC 8 years ago
However, it reminds me of another quasi-multiple series. Ukiah Oregon is an alien, and he has been physically separated into different people, some but not all of which later rejoin. This series has some of the most fascinating explorations of consciousness and identity that I've ever read. Oh, and his human mother was Cayuse so he is not white. And I think you would appreciate what his other-self Atticus has done to his sexuality in the last book.
Another good example: Aang in Avatar has memory of his past lives, who sometimes appear as spirits he can talk with. This is not exactly the same as single-lifetime multiple personality, but touches on many of the same motifs as experienced by people whose alters are walk-ins or soul groups. And as the whole fandom roared over miscast movie, Aang ain't white.
If I were still going to cons, I'd have the beginnings of a panel rec-reading list at this point.
Re: Ooo...
June 12 2013, 22:31:16 UTC 8 years ago
Re: Ooo...
June 12 2013, 22:40:28 UTC 8 years ago
Re: Ooo...
June 13 2013, 03:14:31 UTC 8 years ago
It's the fourth book in a series that we deeply, deeply love. I've posted about it in the past, and a few months ago, I got one of the books signed by the author, where I got to thank him personally for writing kiddie sci-fi with characters who were queer, other-gendered, and multi, and not have it be such a big honking deal. I highly recommend them.
And me and Sneak have been watching Avatar, actually! We've been really enjoying it, just as a show and also as an exercise in world-building. It also has surprisingly complex morality and ethical questions!
The Ukiah Oregon series also looks promising. Hmmm!
--Rogan
Re: Ooo...
June 14 2013, 07:34:08 UTC 8 years ago
Oh, that's lucky! Meeting authors is fun.
>>And me and Sneak have been watching Avatar, actually! We've been really enjoying it, just as a show and also as an exercise in world-building. It also has surprisingly complex morality and ethical questions!<<
We just finished watching it here. I liked the depth of worldbuilding -- so many original animals! -- and the complexity of the characterization. People really grow and change over the course of the storyline.