I'm currently trying to write my first novel and I could use your advice! It's a paranormal romance centering around a young African American boy living in a small,predominately white, community. I'm trying to avoid my character coming off as being written by a white woman. I have the plot already written out, but as I'm writing I feel like it doesn't read very authentically. Do you have any tips that can help me? Thank you!
What a fantastic concept so far. You had me at “paranormal” and then it just got better after that. Anyway…
One thing about writing that you probably hear a lot is the “advice” to “write what you know.” That is one piece of advice that I will never give, because if we wrote what we know, we wouldn’t have almost all the stories that we have today. So first of all, good for you that you are expanding beyond your what-you-knows.
However, it’s also good to keep in mind that with different people of different traits there are different experiences. Obviously, based off of the way you worded your ask, you are aware of the challenges of writing from a perspective that you don’t have experience in. And that’s good! The fact that you are aware shows that you are on the right track. As a white person writing a person of color, the idea to keep in mind is that this is not your experience, this is theirs- you are merely a conductor that takes this experience and portrays it in such a way that it reaches an audience.
A good place to start in looking for how to write a person of color- the blog writingwithcolor has lots and lots of great posts and has some great resources for you.
This is, as you described it, a paranormal romance. Be careful that you’re not forcing in racially charged scenes just for the sake of making a statement. This paranormal romance is your story. And that is what is yours. Be careful not to invade on what isn’t.
Really, the only tip I can give you here: When writing with color, as a white person,use your resources. Listen, learn. Have people review your work when you need to and do your job as an advocate by really listening.
In the case of this particular story: ask yourself if you’re writing racial scenes because they need to be there or because you want them to be.
Thank you for taking the time to ask! That’s a good step in the right direction. Keep that awareness. Take advantage of writingwithcolor.
