diversity

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ANNOUNCEMENT/GIVEAWAY: The Hands We’re Given, by O.E. Tearmann

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The Hands We're Given - O.E. Tearmann

O.E. Tearmann has a new MM (trans) hard sci fi/cyberpunk tale out, book one in their “Aces High, Jokers Wild” series: “The Hands We’re Given.” Aidan Headly never wanted to be the man giving orders. That’s fine with the Democratic State Force base he’s been assigned to command: they don’t like to take orders. Nicknamed the Wildcards, they used to be the most effective base against the seven Corporations owning the former United States in a war that has lasted over half a century. Now the Wildcards are known for creative insubordination, chaos, and commanders begging to be reassigned. Aidan is their last chance. If he can pull off his … Read more

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ANNOUNCEMENT/GIVEAWAY: Cleaning House, by Jeanne G’Fellers

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Cleaning House - Jeanne G'Fellers

Jeanne G’Fellers has a new trans-non binary fantasy book out: Centenary Rhodes is an old soul with a well-traveled name, but she doesn’t know this yet. Growing up in southern Appalachia wasn’t easy, so Cent left home as soon as she could, but the post-collegiate happiness she’d expected has never occurred. She can’t find a decent date, much less find that special someone and, after losing her job in a corporate downsize, she’s struggling to meet her most basic needs. Her car has been repossessed, her bills are piling up, and her questionable North Chicago neighborhood is dangerous to navigate. Returning home to Hare Creek, Tennessee, never crosses Cent’s mind … Read more

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So You Wanna Write a Black Person?

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black man - pixabay

Greetings folks. I took April off because of traveling at the beginning of the month. Once I got home, I’d forgotten to post. 🙁 But I’m back, or rather, Sharita is with this very informative blog about writing black folks!  Enjoy! * * * *   So, you’re a writer, huh? You, as a non-black author, want to write outside of your comfort zone and explore someone black, but you don’t know where to start. What are you using for research? Movies? Nope. Not a good source because a large part of movies are stereotypical. Books? Maybe, but not always. There can be books by #ownvoices that are helpful, but … Read more

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5 Things I Learned Writing My First Bisexual Character

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bisexual flag

I’m a lesbian author, and my Lesbian Light Reads series features stories that are deliberately low-drama and filled with beautiful women meeting and falling in love.

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Queer in Color

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Queer in Color

“We need more diverse books!” Books with queer characters have become more popular these days. People are fascinated with the stories about queer people’s lives because, perhaps they finally realized the world isn’t completely hetero. More importantly, they wanted something different than the hero and the heroine or the assumed “straight” characters that dominate fiction. They wanted different, which means more diversity. However, diversity doesn’t just cover queer versus hetero, it also means race, age, culture differences, religion, and able-bodied. That cry should mean we want more stories that represent all kinds of people, not just the majority. As an author of color, I also wanted to see that change. … Read more

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All Covers Matter

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This is a repost. To see the original with the beautiful covers of other authors represented, please click here.  Also please read the message about Queer in Color, coming November 5th! When you think about book covers, it should represent what happens in the book. If it’s a mystery, it might be dark with big letters or some kind of complex scene. Fantasy, perhaps illuminations, bright lights that appear to be magic. In romance, most of the time you have people. Whether it be one or multiple torsos, that usually implies romance. Now, that isn’t always the case. Many romances have no people on them, which is fine too. Regardless … Read more

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Embracing Diversity in Fiction

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Diversity image - Sharita Lira

Good afternoon. With so much chatter going about the need for diversity in books, I had to speak on it again. First let’s start off with a question for authors. Since I’m an author too, I figured I’d begin here. You’re an author and you have an idea for a story which features a character of a race other than your own. Say it’s a black male and you as a white female or male aren’t sure what to write. Do you scrap this idea, even though it could be one of your best books or do you try doing it yourself and using what you’ve seen on TV as … Read more