I demand an explanation for this shit.
May. 2nd, 2009 06:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
megwritesDear Authors of the World,
If I read one more novel where the only openly gay, lesbian, trans, or bi character in the book dies, somebody's getting a fucking slap. I'm getting tired of this. That makes two books in a row, and I've lost count of how many in total.
I'm not asking that no GLBT characters ever die. But maybe if there's only one in the whole book, they could, I dunno, live to see the sequel. Or you could have more than one token queer. Whichever.
And yeah, same goes with race and gender. If the straight, white males or straight white people or straight males (or any permutation therein) have a higher survival rate than everyone else? Then the problem is with you and not me and you need to get some help for that.
Because I promise you that it will translate into your sales being at least one book less than they would have been.
Love Conditional On Compliance,
Me
If I read one more novel where the only openly gay, lesbian, trans, or bi character in the book dies, somebody's getting a fucking slap. I'm getting tired of this. That makes two books in a row, and I've lost count of how many in total.
I'm not asking that no GLBT characters ever die. But maybe if there's only one in the whole book, they could, I dunno, live to see the sequel. Or you could have more than one token queer. Whichever.
And yeah, same goes with race and gender. If the straight, white males or straight white people or straight males (or any permutation therein) have a higher survival rate than everyone else? Then the problem is with you and not me and you need to get some help for that.
Because I promise you that it will translate into your sales being at least one book less than they would have been.
Love Conditional On Compliance,
Me
Re: Try this...
Date: 2009-05-03 04:21 pm (UTC)Re: Try this...
Date: 2009-05-03 04:33 pm (UTC)Another good background-parity example is Wen Spencer's "Ukiah Oregon" series about a young man raised by wolves. His adoptive parents are a Lesbian couple, with a mutually genetic daughter (yay, technology!) named Cally. Ukiah's family makes occasional appearances in the books, but it's very clear that home life with them contributed hugely to his personality.