Originally published at: https://shanniiwrites.com/2018/03/01/episode-interactive-diversity-standards-dont-always-work/
As a writer in the 21st century, tackling diversity should be something we think about. The problem is, forcing diversity on writers can have some devastating effects.
https://shanniiwrites.com/2018/03/01/episode-interactive-diversity-standards-dont-always-work/
They don’t. I have personally seen authors who have been called out for lack of diversity (literally ALL characters are white, even background characters), so they just go in and add a black gay character to cover both LGBTQIA+ and racial diversity. Then, it seems the story goes from being completely white washed Cis-Het to all the sudden a KEY character is diverse.
Nice sentiment, but definitely forced.
Then comes the problem with it becoming stereotyped, as you mention in your article.
Masculine lesbians.
Feminine gay men.
Black people with “attitudes”.
Latino sex symbols.
The list goes on.
They don’t create characters, they have a preconceived image in their head of what that character should be and don’t bother to talk to actual people or research.
There was recently a big issue on IG where a popular author had a male black character with a “large package” that she posted a scene about. She said she created the character before his skin color, but could not understand the history behind why it was offensive.
So no, diversity standards don’t work, because people don’t understand others beyond the own scope of those they surround themselves with.
Hey Annie! I don’t think I’ve seen you around before! Thank you so much for that amazing reply! 
Yeah my biggest problem with diversity standards is that it encourages what I call “shopping list diversity”. Have you ever seen someone ask if their cast looks good on the Episode Forums, only to have someone else say “maybe you should add a gay person” or something? Where the point of diversity doesn’t seem to be to have an authentic, realistic cast that reflects the world and helps to break down age-old barriers, but rather just to treat people like ingredients you can throw into a cast cake?
It frustrates me to no end! And it definitely encourages stereotyping!
I haven’t seen anyone ask if their cast “looks good” but I have seen “how many X characters should I have?” like there should be a quota that is filled instead of characters with individual personalities.
I will say, it also doesn’t help with people saying X needs more diversity, because then the previously mentioned happens and characters become simply quotas needing filled.
I know it’s hard because Episode picks and chooses which stories to feature, but I just simply avoid authors who don’t add diversity (or stereotype) unless it is pointed out to them or they’re called out.
I saw that one time on the forums… I think it was the ‘Share your diverse cast’ thread. Someone posted their cast, and another person said, “Maybe you should add a Muslim person.” Or I’ve seen reviewers say, “Your story isn’t diverse enough because it doesn’t have a (xyz) person in it”. But they have other types of diversity in there.
Just, in general: if you could swap out a ‘diverse’ character for any other race/ethnicity/culture and it wouldn’t effect the story all that much, then there’s no point in making the character diverse for brownie points. Not that having 0 diverse people is a good thing, but you know what I’m saying.
Exactly. This is where I feel the dilemma kicks in.
We are all entitled to write what we wish but on the other hand, we need to bear in mind of inclusivity and diversity.
This posses a challenge to many of us who would be more attuned to our respective kind and communities. As in unless in major cities or countries where there’s a good and healthy mix and exposure to a wide variety of people, there’ s limited for others even in this globalised world.
And when someone writes anything from their point of view or story (let’s say he’s always exposed to the White or Latino community for example), he or she will have a higher tendancy to write based on what he or she knows rather than venturing out because 1) given excuse but secretly lazy research to explore out of comfort zone and broaden horizons thus claiming they don’t know 2) simply don’t want to offend anyone but secretly also lazy research about it. 3)…4)… and other possible combinations in people. However, there are some people who I have met throughout my time on writing apps, who claimed they are uncomfortable to write about things they have no experienced in.
Overall, we cannot pleased everybody and really depends now on the willingness of the author. And it really is a struggle especially with all these stereotypes and the influence to write what sells well on Episode and other writing apps rather.
Doing things right vs doing the right things.
Just added a couple tags
Whoops, sorry @Bloggers, a little later in the day than I had planned. However, our second day is for Shani’s second blog post. Though this one is about Episode, I still feel that there is information here you can still use in your own writing. Though I am interested in hearing from those who still use Episode and if you think much has changed since Shannii wrote this blog.
Remember that if you really enjoyed this blog, feel free to recommend it (it’s similar to liking it). This will help with it being higher in the results of search engines too.
okay here we go
i hadn’t actually read this one, given how i haven’t played episode in years
now that i did give it a read, i can say it’s very good and raises some important points about what the aim of diversity should be
i’ll try not to make this so long, as i’ve already written most of my opinions about writing with diverse characters here and i don’t wanna repeat myself
but i do wanna point out two things for aspiring writers
1.
Stereotypes are also an issue. I mean, when is it ever good that all members of a specific minority group act in a certain way in media? Who wants to see all black characters as criminals or all gay male characters as flamboyant and effeminate?
yes, stereotyping is bad, and most of the time it’s a reflection of bad writing, we should aim for well rounded characters, not caricatures
that said, you CAN make characters who are somehow stereotypical
it’s not necessarily wrong if there’s a flamboyant or effeminate gay character, gay men can be flamboyant or effeminate (a close friend from uni is and i honestly look up to him so much bc he’s living his truth), why can’t characters?
the important part here is: don’t make that their entire personality, make them feel human
and 2.
As I have said before, being part of minority groups should not define us.
again, yes
in general at least
however, @ writers, don’t let this discourage you from exploring HOW being a minority has affected your character, because it does affect us
it obviously doesn’t define 100% of who we are, but it defines some experiences, interactions and perspectives
Yes, completely agree. You can make stereotypical characters so long has the character has depth and it’s just two dimensional.
I personally prefer stories where you choose gender or its a female li from.the start (although those can fall into lesbian stereotypes) . Another problem is when you can choose a woman li out of 4 male ones, they can be uninteresting at times. (If you are going to do this, have at least two female li, so its not just one li for the gay readers)Also how come fat or trans characters are never the li? Including them is the bare minimum but it says alot when you can have them as side characters but don’t consider them desirable enough to be dated. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk
Yea, as much as I love the intentions behind diversity standards, they just don’t work in reality, for all the reasons stated in your post
Why would I suggest this? Well, sadly, you can’t wave a magic wand and make the world more accepting.
Honestly couldn’t have said it better myself 
Using my own experiences in my local community as an example; it’s clear that humanity has a long way to go on the path the becoming accepting to those outside of the ‘norm’.
Furthermore, diversity standards also run the risk of causing more of a rift between the writer and the various minority groups that they are tirelessly trying to capture correctly.
Thisss!
I see it so much that people begin viewing us as the ‘other’. We become the ‘extras’ who no one sees in real life - because they don’t know where to look. Stereotypes have warped their perceptions, allowing the real people to slip through undetected.
And the fetishization is just 
It’s quite a common thing where I live for girls to pretend to be bisexual to make their boyfriends fancy them more, and it’s both gross and pathetic, honestly. Not the way to go when it comes to trying to accept people.
Stereotypes are also an issue. I mean, when is it ever good that all members of a specific minority group act in a certain way in media?
Exactly! Stereotypes aren’t all bad, but only when they’re portrayed well and within reason. Maybe your gay character is feminine, but that isn’t his entire personality! Your black character may be aggressive, but they have other personality traits too! Stereotypes become problems when they’re constant, and they never allow for any other personality traits
As I have said before, being part of minority groups should not define us.
This bit is a bit more iffy, as honestly it depends on what minority your character is a part of.
For example, an autistic character - the fact that they are autistic will have a much greater impact on their personality and life than it would be for a bisexual character, for example. That being said, these things should not be the be-all and end-all of someone’s character ever, because it just doesn’t make sense
But yea this is a very interesting topic with a lot to talk about :]
BY THE WAY: DID YOU KNOW THEY’RE… LESBIAN???
xD
The “Bad Lesbian” story seems… questionable to say the least. Chida does have better stories though.
