Writing in the Face of Discrimination Blog Series: An Introduction

On February 4th, Sierra Lesley Books is hosting a virtual Fireside Chat to discuss the challenge of writing in the face of discrimination. This discussion will follow a four-part blog series covering subjects under this title.

·       Writing for marginalized characters.

·       Writing for marginalized audiences

·       Writing for marginalized communities

·       Writing as marginalized authors

These topics address the issues we as authors face in our writing and our lives as we navigate how we write and the environments we write in.

Over the past couple of months, our country has been through a tumultuous time. We have seen an increase in hostility toward gender-fluid and transgender individuals. We have seen continuous and increased discrimination toward Black, Arabic, and Asian communities. These are only a few of the hostilities that have grown across our country. As authors, we have seen increased book bans and burnings. We have seen pressure to restrict public access to diverse literature topics and free speech. All these varying forms of hostility and discrimination make our work, creativity, and lives increasingly difficult.

When I think about building an authentic and honest character who lives a marginalized life or comes from a marginalized community, It scares me to think about the pressures that I must depict in my writing to present the authenticity of their lives. I do not want to alienate any reader, but at the same time, I also do not want to portray fallacy in my writing. I do not want to create gloom and doom or simply create another, “woe is me” book, but I want to write historical accuracy in my story. All of these things are relevant to my characters, my audience, and the communities in which they reside. Then I also must think about myself as an author.

I live in a community that is less than supportive of my writing or who I am. I have watched the comradery in my specific neighborhood decline since the recent election. While this has saddened me, it has also frightened me. As I write, I worry that my protagonists, often transgender, will be overly scrutinized, and my books, almost all LGBTQ in focus, will be banned from markets or shelves. I worry that my readers will be targeted and that I, myself, will be targeted for writing the art I love to create. While little of this is yet to transpire, the threat has been made.

These are the topics that I will discuss over the next several weeks as I explore each focus area more academically. These are the topics that I would enjoy discussing with a group on February 4th. Please note the fireside Chat is on a first come basis. Please RSVP at https://sierraburke.org/event-list. I look forward to exploring these issues further.