More Stuff On Diversity in Fiction

My friend and critiquing buddy Nick Mena has just interviewed a couple members of our critiquing group, Nyki Blatchley and Daniel Ausema, about diversity in their own work and in general.

Relatedly, Nyki has just included a post on his own blog which discusses one the most profound and important reason for including diversity in one's work: realism.

Coincidentally, author Malinda Lo said something very similar in her own blog today.

We live in a complex world that has a variety of people in it and always has. There's no reason to suppose that this wouldn't be true in a fantasy or SF world as well (unless, perhaps, you're writing a dystopia where everyone is cloned or something). The idea that only one *kind* of person (or culture) has experiences worth writing about is as ludicrous as it is offensive.

Diversity in Fantasy 2015

My friend and critting partner Nick Mena is interviewing some writer friends on his blog Sanocho Pot this month. It's worth checking out.

Here's a link to his interview with me last year about my own novel, which is now being queried.

http://sancochopot.blogspot.com/2014/02/diversity-in-our-writing-projects_16.html

Fly on the Wall Hears Comment From Girl Gamer

Sometimes life hands you these interesting fly on the wall moments. I waiting for my car to be smogged the other day when a middle aged man came into the shop with his seven year old daughter. While they were waiting their turn, the little girl pulled out a tablet and started playing a game of some kind. Her dad asked her if it was a fun game, and here was the exchange, more or less:

Girl: It's fun, even though it's a boy's game.

Dad: What makes it a boy's game?

Girl: They only let you play a boy [name for avatar or character I didn't catch].

Dad: Ahhh.

Girl (still tapping on her screen): It's fun to play a boy sometimes, but I wish they'd let me play a girl.


Sounds like the gaming industry still has some catchup to do. News flash: girls, even very young ones, do play games. And at least some of them wish there were more with female avatars.