So I was browsing the web as I usually do around this time of day, putting off eating lunch and trying to get over my usual 12-2pm grogginess, when I happened upon a sort of fanfic that looked interesting. So I started reading it.
It was fun and enjoyable and basically everything I had wanted going into it, but I noticed something right off the bat: every single romantic pairing was same-gender. Now, don't get me wrong here. I like all sorts of pairings: het, same-gender, cis or trans*, or anything else you can think of, but I will admit that a part of me wondered, "Wait a minute. Why isn't there a single het pairing in this? We exist too, you know!"
That's when it hit me.
This must be what LGBTQ people feel like all the freaking time.
Now, for me, one fic is not a big deal. But how would it be to watch movies, read books, explore fanworks, when the vast majority don't have a single character I can relate to in that way? Oh, I can still relate to them in other ways: personal, academic, family, whatever. But for some reason, that part stuck out at me even still. So then I began to wonder. How would it feel to be systematically excluded? Whether it's via prejudice or ignorance, it doesn't matter. The answer is, it would freaking suck.
Now, in my own writing, I tend to stick with what I know: cisgender, heteroromantic stuff. I've been afraid to explore writing characters of other orientations and identities simply because I don't want to disrespect anyone by getting them wrong. But now more than ever, I realize that this is something I'm going to have to get over if I'm going to be a successful writer. I need to suck it up, practice, and seek constructive feedback so I can include characters of all identities, orientations, and lifestyles in my works - and do it right.
I've long been a supporter of stronger representation of LGBTQ people in the media. But now I realize that waiting for other people to do it isn't going to be enough. And if I ever get to a place where what I write actually matters to people, you can bet that I'm going to do my damnedest to ensure equal representation in my books. It's something that was important to me before, but now it's vital.
To any other cis, straight creators out there, if you don't understand why it's important to write diversity into your craft, do what I did. Find a work that doesn't include anyone like you, and see how it makes you feel. Oh, you might very well enjoy the heck out of it otherwise, but you'll feel something off. Something unsettling and uncomfortable. Maybe it will feel like, according to that work's creator, people like you don't matter. That according to them, maybe you don't even exist. That feeling is what we've been giving to our LGBTQ readers.
And for any part I may have played in that, I am truly sorry.
2087
theartofmadeline
titsay
germansingergirl
turnnoffyourmind
yousharknotpass
gummygunk
vaporwave
