Updated 1/7/2017: I’m leaving this post up because I never want to forget how much words matter and how ignorance (my ignorance) needs to be addressed and discussed. This post (below) was a failure on my part, but I’m so glad I made this post. Failure provides the best lessons and opportunities to learn and grow. I don’t know what I don’t know. My type of ignorance tends to be blissful rather than willful, but it is still ignorance. Nevertheless, it was insensitive and thoughtless, and for that I am sincerely sorry.
I’m so thankful for those of you who took the time to point out my error and were patient enough with me to use this as a teaching moment. Thank you.
That stated, I’ve decided to write the stories I want to write and stop “asking permission” to write them. I will do my best– to be responsible, to listen, to learn– and that is all I can do.
Here is the original blog post:
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REIDERS!
Specifically I’m talking to Reiders of Color . . . lol! That sounded weird. Let me try again:
Specifically, I am talking to people of color.
Dear all people of color who read my books,
I have a problem.
Let me be clear. First and foremost, I’m not afraid of backlash. I’m afraid of doing harm.
Since I wrote Sienna’s story, I have been at a cross-roads. I’ve been messaged by several Mexican-Americans (and other people of color) expressing concern that I have written about a Mexican-American woman when I am not, in fact, a Mexican-American woman. Additionally, I discussed her plight of being passed over for a major film role because she was a Latina. As such, they have used the term: “Cultural Appropriation”
I understand what this is and I have concern about cultural appropriation. Specifically, I have concern that I am culturally appropriating. I am telling the stories of another culture as a white person, for my own benefit and for the benefit of my stories.
See this most recent article on the subject:
https://medium.com/@yassmin_a/i-walked-out-of-the-brisbane-writers-festival-keynote-address-this-is-why-78a4d8c4b7ac#.oksclwje7
I am at a cross-roads.
I have a story planned for a woman of color (African American) based on emails received from readers, about how– in African American culture– value is placed on being an entertainer or an athlete, but to excel in science and engineering is met with apathy or even sometimes outright dismay (by people within the African American culture). This was a common theme is so many messages, and these women had never spoken to each other.
According to the emails, it’s seen as selling out. Plus there is a lot of prejudice that exists in STEM fields, that African Americans can’t be good at math and science. I received this comment SO MANY TIMES from readers, that I decided to write this story. Because it struck a chord with me. I wanted to write a story FOR young African American women (and all women), letting them know that they are allowed to excel in STEM fields and it doesn’t make them weird or different or less valuable. That they should be true to themselves, and if that means becoming an Astrophysicist, then awesome.
HOWEVER, I am now doubting whether I should. This is a compelling story (I think) but I don’t know whether I should be the one to write it. I haven’t lived it and wouldn’t it be some form of cultural appropriation?
At this point, I’m wondering if (in order to avoid cultural appropriation) I should just stick to white characters and their stories.
That makes me sad.
But my opinion doesn’t matter. And, honestly, other white people– your opinion doesn’t matter either. We don’t have the right to these stories.
So, my question to you my readers who are people of color, should I:
1. Email these women and ask for their permission. Then write the story. Additionally, in my email requesting permission, I would also encourage them to tell their story (write it) and offer to give them a platform for promotion if they do.
OR
2. Not write the story (because even with their permission, it’s still cultural appropriation) and email these women back, encourage to tell their story (write it) and offer to give them a platform for promotion if they do.
If #2, then should I stop writing main characters of color? How do I know when it’s okay/not cultural appropriation?
Thank you for your consideration.
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EDITED TO ADD: After reading an author’s distress re: the above two paragraphs, I want to clarify something because (upon re-reading) I can definitely see how the above two paragraphs are horrible (or may be read as horrible)– it was not my intention to state that African American Culture does not value STEM. But that’s definitely how it reads above. What I should have said: These emails I received mentioned how– in these women’s experiences– that the culture they grew up in placed more value and importance on entertainment and athleticism than the culture placed on STEM careers. These women have been told that they “sold out”
In the paragraph above I also mention “a lot of prejudice” I should have expanded on that statement to say “a lot of prejudice and racism against African Americans” Racism exists. I know this.
I also understand that these readers who responded are not representative of every member of African American culture. Rather, their collective stories in the emails they sent fascinated me and struck a chord. My previous job was in a STEM field and women in general (at least when I was going through the programs) encounter a lot of barriers to success/discrimination because they are women. Will this be every woman’s perspective? No. Got it.
Also, this article is not a “cookie grab”. I promise. You can believe me or not. I can’t do anything about your decision to think the worst of me. I like to discuss things.
In the meantime, for the foreseeable future, I’ve come to the conclusion that it is not appropriate for me to write outside of my cultural experience. The potential for doing harm is too high (well-meaning harm is the worst). I will contact the readers who have shared their stories (African-American women in STEM careers) and encourage them to write their own stories / offer to provide a platform to spread the word.
Diversity in all genres is important, obviously. Diversity of characters is critical, but remains secondary to the importance for diversity of creative professionals telling their own stories. Whether white people should write POC characters is unclear. The hypothesis is that I can write a faithfully legitimate, realistic African American woman and her experience. However, the risks posed by the null hypothesis are too great. I have to default to risk/benefit analysis. In this case, the maximum degree of good is eclipsed by the smallest potential for harm.
Plus, the simple fact remains, it’s not my story to tell. It’s not my cultural experience. Culture is not like a job. I do not appropriate from an architect when I write an architect character because architects aren’t marginalized by society by people like me.
For the record, none of my readers were upset with me about Sienna as a character. The comments I received stated that I did a good job with the character, but that I never should have told the story in the first place. Her story and experience were not my story to tell.
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Penny Reid is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA TODAY Bestselling Author of the Winston Brothers, Knitting in the City, Rugby, and Hypothesis series. She used to spend her days writing federal grant proposals as a biomedical researcher, but now she just writes books. She’s also a full time mom to three diminutive adults, wife, daughter, knitter, crocheter, sewer, general crafter, and thought ninja.
You definitely shouldn’t stop writing them!
As a person of color, I would hate it if you stopped writing about such characters. I love you and I adore your writing and I would be disappointed if you didn’t.
That being said, I understand your concerns where this subject is concerned and your best bet would be tons of research (which we all know you love!) And to talk to people who know more about the subject at hand.
Also, I don’t think you should ask permission. Because if you ask permission from all African Americans, well you’ll waste your life away with just those emails.
So, maybe involve these ladies in the story writing process, ask for their input, their stories, make them beta readers for the story and just GO WRITE!
I don’t really know what else to say! I hope this is helpful. If not, I’m sorry!
And I do hope you keep writing such amazing stories with amazing characters whether they’re people of color or not. That said, if you ever write about an Indian character, I will be there in the front row, ready to help!
Thanks a ton for reading my hogwash. Wont waste more of your time! See ya around, Penny. Keep being awesome!
Dear Penny.
I like how you write. The wit, the spirit of it…You named it well ‘smart romance’. You style speaks to me. So, I am only going to give my own point of view here.
The characters you built are often close to what we can see in reality. That is why I like it. The stories you tell, in my opinion, speak to everyone (all ethnicities). And I am glad you try to reach further and go abroad.
In my opinion, a white person can tell the story of a black person (based on what black people explained about their lives to that person) and vis versa. A black person can tell the story of a white person (based on what white people explained about their lives to that person).
I am a woman, I am black, and holder of a research Master degree in a Biology field. I am proud of who I am and my ethnicity. And I would be glad, to read more stories about black characters. As much as I enjoyed reading stories about a lot of different ethnicities.
So please….do write. 🙂
Please write how you feel!! As a woc, a good writer doing her best to write for us is amazeballs!
I’m late on commenting on this subject, so not sure you will read this. This is my first time visiting your website. I’m Mexican American and like the Sienna character born and raised in the U.S., as were my parents. I’ve read all of your books and I am obviously a fan, but I found this book to be cringe worthy at times. It was clear that you were trying so hard to be authentic that you missed the mark. There was a moment in the book where Sienna is getting ready and references what she is wearing “. . . Or hot pink chanclas – flip-flops for non – Spanish speakers”. It was such an unnecessary line that only served to prove you had done your homework. As if you were patting yourself on the back for showing a “real” Latina.
The bigger issue is that you never once made reference to the people in Green Valley and their reaction to her and her relationship with Jethro. Racism is alive and well, as well as just plain ignorance. It doesn’t matter how famous a person is. To not make note of this at all was so odd. You didn’t have a problem speaking for a Latina character, but couldn’t face getting real about what a non-white person may encounter in a small town, or frankly anywhere. I know this is a romance novel, but abuse, biker gangs, etc. are main themes, so why not ignorance?
Also, another pet peeve – I’ve noticed a couple of times when you’ve introduced black female characters you do so by referencing their braids. Why? You can write that they are black. Also, not every black woman wears braids.
I think you are a smart author who challenges the genre, but you shouldn’t write for women of color.
In the name of all that is wonderful about books, PLEASE KEEP WRITING!!! As a black woman who knows other black readers, as a person of color who navigates this world and as a member of an online community that SPECIFICALLY looks for novels with black leads and interracial romance stories specifically, WE NEED YOUR VOICE! We are book fans and more than anything else we want to read WELL WRITTEN depictions of black characters. We do not walk around being black first and female second. We aren’t JUST black readers. We are women with the same fears, hopes and interests as any other character you might write. I hate seeing backlash about this because no one questions it when an author writes about a teen/child or an immigrant even. No one cares an author doesn’t have experience being a witch or a nun…but heaven forbid they write about an entirely fictional life of a black person. Its ridiculous.
And considering the number of interracial relationships in this country, so many of us would love to see OUR KIND OF LOVE written about!
Not a person of color, but i do have a request if you’re willing – post what responses you get, in full or in summary, if they don’t end up in the comments here? I have been struggling with this notion myself: I want to see more diversity in the books I read, but as a pasty muppet I’m concerned that i shouldn’t or couldn’t write them myself.
Write it. Pay homage to the women in STEM jobs -regardless of their color. I work in that arena and there are so few women at my job location that to see any woman, of any color, that I would gladly applaud it. You can write and ask for background information from these women but I think that the very fact that your book is about STEM ANYTHING is amazing.
(PS -I am a Latina. The few women that I work with are system engineers and scientists in the missile and space research fields. All of the brilliant; all of them exceptional.)
Even though, Like Sara Darling I am a “pasty muppet” I want to give you a thought. Two simple words…
The. Help.
Awesome!
I am a Latina and I love reading your books. I may be in the minority here, but I am offended by the idea that a writer of fiction is being told she cannot write about women of color because she is white. That is the most ludicrous thing I have ever heard. So as a Latina, should I not be allowed to write for a white character? One of my favorite books from the past few years was The Fault in our Stars by John Green. The story was narrated by a teenage girl and was one of the most beautiful books I had ever read. Should the author not have written the book because he was an adult male and not a teenage girl? Of course not. What is important here is that you are giving your characters a voice and through that voice you can make people think about injustices they may not experience because they are white. Or, you’re giving women of color the validity to know that they are not alone or that their struggles are real. I commend you if you want to do research/interviews of women of color in to make your characters more authentic. Having said that, everyone has a different background with different experiences that have shaped them into who they are today. Not everyone’s experiences will match up and you won’t make everyone happy. I say just keep writing. I love your books because of the humor, the romance and the strong and smart female characters you bring to life. Don’t second guess yourself because of naysayers or people who feel the need to complain about everything.
I happen to be re-reading Sienna’s story right now. From beginning to end, I read about her as a woman, not a Latina, not a plus size, just a woman with a wonderful sense of humor about herself, her surroundings, her relationships. I also was considered “funny” when I was a kid (yes, I was also the baby in the family) and it got to be a burden when even my mother would say to me (often in front of others/strangers even) “Say something funny!” Please don’t stop writing in your style. People are diverse enough just being people and I don’t think the labels forced on them by others should influence their own “story”, in your case of what you write about and that is finding love. Carry on in your own wonderful style!!!! That’s my vote!!!
Penny, I’ve been a fan of yours since BookBub did a deal for Neanderthal Seeks Human. I purchased book after book pretty much after that (and I will continue to do so!).
As I said on Twitter, I LOVED seeing Sienna as Jethro’s love interest. Granted, I’m a full-sized, Mexican American actress. So there’s that, haha. My only “gripe” (and it wasn’t even a big one) is that most of the Mexican women in my family don’t refer to ourselves as “latina,” but chicana. But that’s MY family. I know plenty of other Mexicans that prefer “latino” over “chicano,” etc.
Here’s the thing: I’m mixed too. I’m Mexican AND English (people have a lot of fun with that). So do I have less of a right to talk about the issues because of that? Do I really know what it’s like to be white? Do I really know what it’s like to be Mexican?
Honestly, it’s enough to drive you crazy.
But I digress…
There are those of the mind that you should ONLY write about what you know. Yes, to an extent, that’s very true. As someone that’s finishing up her first novel, that’s definitely always at the forefront of my mind.
I’d say just do what I do when I work on localization scripts (namely Japanese adaptations) and have a consultant handy if you’re worried about misrepresentation. When I worked on a Korean film, I actually contact a friend working in South Korea. When an actor I was directing had to speak German without relying on an ugly stereotype, I called a German translator. In my book, there’s character with an obsession with botany, I consulted an environmental scientist.
Give the consultant credit, maybe even do a blog post or two about them. Introducing them to your readers might be a damn good thing. And you never know, their perspective could inspire a different take on characters you were thinking about.
Keep being awesome!
WRITE IT, person of color but not African American but I was a STEM masters student once and still am a single electrical engineer among in my organization.It will be very encouraging and with your readers I am pretty sure they will love. Your not a man but you do write a mans prospective without thinking twice if they will take offence!I feels its same with race. If you don’t try you won’t know 🙂
I am a Latina and can not thank you enough for Sienna. I am baffled that somebody thought it was cultural appropriation. To me cultural appropriation is when a Kardashian dress up in native head hear for a photo shoot or braids their hair a certain style. You are giving voices to fictional characters that are not being currently represented in the romance genre. Please don’t stop.
Please don’t stop writing people of color. I don’t mind it at all. As an African American woman, I would love to get your take of us in a story.
I was a math major (ended up with a Finance degree) who got a scholarship in the 80’s to study computer engineering, and was one of 4 (African American only students) pulled from regular math classes from elementary through high school to be taught math at a higher level. I can confirm that it’s a crazy myth that African-American people aren’t good at math. I have close to an eidetic memory, so formulas were easy for me and it’s just the way my brain works. Even my mother doesn’t understand where it comes from… LOL.
I agree with Pragati who posted earlier, if you ask everyone you will waste your life. I appreciate you asking the question. I also love your writing and I love your stories. I think you will do us justice. I know there are African American writers out there writing for us, and I read them as well. But that doesn’t mean I can’t love how your words come to life for me, your vision of women in general, and how your characters make me laugh.
I am at your disposal if you ever want to run anything by me.
Have you considered having a group of women of colour and/or women in STEM (of all ethnicities/races/backgrounds) beta read and give you their thoughts?
Diversity in Romance has been a long time coming and it’s a fantastic thing giving people of colour the opportunity see themselves and their experiences in books and for white folk (like myself) to learn about and see more than what we see and experience every day.
I bet you’ll be able to find lots of ladies that will be willing to help. I can’t wait to read this book!
I don’t speak for all people of color but in my eyes it is cultural appropriation when you rely on stereotypes to tell a story. I would encourage you to reach out to people to get their perspective to help you tell the story in a genuine way. I’m not sure that it is about people looking down on STEM in the black community as much as it maybe the access to learning about STEM sciences in schools. Also the fact there may not be many women of color currently in this field so it we are less likely to pursue it. I live near a HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) that has a large engineering department and in my area I feel the educational community is getting better at pushing the kids to at least consider STEM. I don’t think you should let criticism keep you from telling the story you feel compelled to tell.
I’m Mexican and when I heard you were writing about a Hispanic I was thrilled! I loved the book so much. I think you did the character justice. Now as to writing this I would do my research, talk to poc and poc authors. Asking for permission might be a difficult thing to do since not everyone is going to agree and will just have you running in circles. Find people who are willing to help with all your problems and respect what you are doing. There needs to be more poc representation in books and you writing one with your platform will do good and maybe poc authors will be sought out.
I am a white female, and I will argue that my opinion does indeed count in that a: I want to read books with diverse characters because I live in a world FULL of diversity, and b: I want to read your books.
It’s kind of that simple.
Author Brittany Cherry is African American and writes about white characters. Talk to her. Her books are beautiful, and so are yours. Don’t hesitate, just write.
I still struggle with what “cultural appropriation ” mean nowadays , it is so easy to do something wrong unconciously , so I think the main question is : are you doing it only for the publicity ? the sellings ? I am pretty sure that isn’t your goal, I mean yes , writing about WOC would certainly expand your readers demographic , but you are saying that you’re doing it because it struck something on you , those stories ; so main conclusion: yes , ask for permission ( and I’m quite sure that they would give it ) , do your research and write about the things that matter to you because it is for a cause and it could do so much good if you write about it correctly.
Penny, as a writer I’m sure you know you will never please everyone. As a retired military, Hispanic woman, in a medical field, I love seeing strong women characters regardless of color or profession. Do your research, honor these women in controversial professions who aren’t afraid to step outside of the box.
Please write your story. You did an amazing job with Sienna. You focused on her charm, humor, and creativity. It was clear that she was Mexican American. There was no misappropriation of my culture. I was nodding my head at the way she prepared tacos, her mom’s (and my) belief that Vick’s Vapor Rub is a cure for common ailments.
When you wrote about her body, you wrote about the average sized woman and her confidence about it. It could have gone downhill if you there was any reference to curves like J-Lo or that Kim person. And for that I am very grateful.
I just finished listening to Cielo Camargo and am so thrilled about her narration. She was perfect. I am going to let Mariana Zapata know for future works where she has a Latina as her main character. She would have been great for Sal Casillas in Kulti. And I know you stuck to your conviction about a Latina narrator and did not settle until you found her. THANK YOU!
Just the fact that you’re being thoughtful to your people of color readers goes beyond what writers have done. Please don’t sensor your creativity. It’s a huge disservice.
Write it! I am a woman of color and work in a white male dominated field. You are a great writer and you should not sensor yourself because of ‘cultural appropriation’. A concept most likely created to limit the exposure of cultural subjects. I would rather you write a story on my culture than not having a story at all.
Please write it!!
Keep writing the stories! As an individual who is half-Caucasian and half-not-Caucasian, I don’t see what all the fuss is about. You write fiction which by it’s definition is not 100% true so why would anyone have a problem with what you write. You are not writing with malicious intent, you are providing us with entertainment. I learn things from your book and value the way you use your knowledge to make your characters seem larger than life. In my mind, you writing about a non-Caucasian is like a non-lesbian writing lesbian books, females writing M/M books, men writing as women, etc. We all know it’s done and we know the stories are good. Get over your hang-ups about race, sexual orientation and gender. #loveislove
White person here, so I won’t tell you to write it or not, but I would suggest talking to a sociologist who studies race/class/gender and work as another opinion on the matter. Might I suggest Adia Harvey Wingfield. She does a lot of public sociology and would likely be willing to speak with you about women of color in male dominated positions, and would have solid empirically-based insight to offer. https://sociology.wustl.edu/people/adia-harvey-wingfield
And I just read the article you referenced. It’s clear to me that the speaker at the event was inconsiderate to people of color and jumped on the defensive with frat humor about sombreros rather than truly care or comprehend the question. I would be just as livid as Yassmin on how the speaker reanswered and would have walked for the same reasons she described.
That being said, you are not Lionel Shriver. Are you an educated white woman? Yes. Is there a level of privilege that white women have over Reiders of Color? Yes. Do your books exploit people of color? No. Ms. Shriver was dismissive and disrespectful with a lame defense that fiction is fake. If you were the speaker at the Brisbane forum posed with the same question, how would you have answered? hmmm. I’m going to presume, based on my personal experience of you (albeit via FB and your website), that you would acknowledge the concern of cultural appropriation and that you had reached out to your readers to contemplate how you a white woman was concerned about writing about people of color. Sound familiar?
Adelante Penny Reid!
A couple things. Growing up as an African American woman I personally wouldn’t say value was placed on being an entertainment and being an athlete by African Americans. I would say the emphasis growing up was to do well in school and my interest happen to be in math and science. My parents actually put me in summer programs specifically for this that were ran by African Americans to give me the idea that we as a people can succeed in this field. I actually went to a PWI and majored in biology. I think for African American makes the experience maybe a little different. I would be at college and my male friends who were there on scholarship as I was, were mistaken for being there as an athlete. They worked hard to get there just like everybody else.
Again, this is just my experience. I’m sure there are other ladies who maybe had different experiences. However, I think you would have to work pretty hard to do harm. You can just write your character of color and people are smart will realize that you are writing for JUST that particular character. Just as I write this I’m not speaking for the entire African Americann race, you shouldn’t feel this character should speak for the entire race either. This is not cultural appropriation to me. I would love to read any character that you write. Even if you decide to just write white characters. Nothing says that I have to read just black characters. I love your voice and will continue to read no matter what.
Write your story and ask a person or two or three person of color to beta for you. There are a lot of POC betas you can reach out to. I’m a POC myself, and I don’t mind a white cishet author writing a character of color if done well. What usually annoys me about it is when a character of color are depicted in books or in any other form of media, they are usually stereotypes and they are usually just there to lift up the white protagonist. If you can avoid that, then wonderful. But yes, first step would be to hire a sensitivity beta.
I’m one whose opinion doesn’t matter, because I’m nowhere near a person of color (except maybe those 15 minutes I spend in the sun, when I turn lobster red, then after a day or two of peeling and I’m back to glow-in-the dark white). And I get why my opinion doesn’t matter here, you are looking I’m for answers from a perspective.
But…I’m me and I can’t help giving my opinion anyway. I think if you’ve got a good compelling story to tell, you should tell it. I don’t think it is critical for the story teller to have lived the experience to tell it. If the story is well written, if the story doesn’t do an injustice to those who have lived similar experience, and the story doesn’t present falsehoods especially in an effort to exploit others the story deserves to be told.
A historian doesn’t have to be a holocaust survivor to write about the horror experienced during WWII. The stories can be told with compassion and understanding even without the actual experience. In your case, you are writing fiction. There are many fictional stories of characters that don’t match the author. Without the concept of writing about people that are not ‘of your people’, there are entire genres that couldn’t be written (vampires, super heroes, alien life in science fiction, etc). Of course your stories are a little (a lot) closer to reality than vampire stories, and you are tackling real issues. But the fact still remains that you can research, have compassion, listen, and care about struggles that someone else kindle person or a cultural group) without being a part of that group. And with that understanding, if you have a story to tell that fits, why not write it and share it?
I am with Lily, Brittainy C. Cherry is an amazingly talented young African American author. Never once did I read one o f her books and think about the fact she is not white and predominantly writes white characters. The human experience is something we all share regardless of the package we are born into. Giving dignity, accuracy and dimension to any character regardless of color is the key. You do this. Please keep writing all sorts of different people. It is a much richer and greater experience for your readers. “The Air He Breathes,” for me was in my top five for greatest books of 2015. I can’t imagine Ms. Cherry not writing those characters because she isn’t white. Keep being who you are and respecting others the way you do and write those characters!!!
Hello! I think I have read every single one of your books and I love them. I have also met you in person so perhaps I am biased. But as a multi-ethnic woman with an MA in Literature, not science, I am of two minds. I think you should either A) only write about life experiences you have had which means not getting into male characters and following Jane Austen’s advice to her niece to only write what you know; or B) allow that fiction is a genre which is expansive and that the beauty of it is to take you places you’ve never been. I think it’s obvious I want you to go the second route because while I love Jane Austen the way her novels work are not the way your novels work. Your novels work because in each of them you exploit a stereotype across gender and ethnic lines. If you are specially asking this question for the Winston Brothers series then you should probably also be concerned about the white men from Appalaicha potentially complaining about your representation of them as all being musically talented, good with cars, and in tune with nature. But it’s great that you depict the men that way because our racial stereotypes of whiteness are just as destructive as our racial stereotypes of other ethnic communities. Especially in our current climate we need to familiarize ourselves with what portions of the population experience with empathetic eyes, minds and hearts and fiction is one of the best vehicles for doing this. It allows readers to shed their biases because they are in a “safe” space between the pages of a book.
Let’s be honest. If I took Austen’s advice and wrote about growing up in Hawaii as a hapa haole girl who didn’t speak pidgin and visited Atlanta, GA every summer, who was also Cherokee Indian and loved going to Atlanta Braves games with my grandfather who could say some pretty racist things, while also portraying my families struggle with mental illness (including schizophrenia and depression) no one would believe me. My life is at once representative of a larger cultural context while at the same time uniquely mine. I would have people from Hawaii annoyed at me, Japanese people annoyed at me, and people who are mental health advocates annoyed at me. I do not ever want to speak for an entire ethnic group or people group because to do that would mean that my experience is everyone’s experience, which it is and it isn’t. It is because it would be familiar to some and isn’t because it would be foreign to others. But that is precisely why we tell stories. To build empathy and create an identity in which we acknowledge the other as both separate and the same as ourselves. To believe that we can write an “Everyman” character or story is a false premise. And maybe that’s why some chose Austen’s method for writing. But personally, I find Great beauty in reading stories written by all sorts of people, not because they are the truth, but because they hint at the paradoxical Truth of living.
Christine,
I think you really hit on something here: “My life is at once representative of a larger cultural context while at the same time uniquely mine. I would have people from Hawaii annoyed at me, Japanese people annoyed at me, and people who are mental health advocates annoyed at me. I do not ever want to speak for an entire ethnic group or people group because to do that would mean that my experience is everyone’s experience, which it is and it isn’t. It is because it would be familiar to some and isn’t because it would be foreign to others. ”
Something I think I was missing (and would have missed without reading your post) is to make sure– if and when I write about another culture– to ALWAYS state within the narrative that this experience is unique to the character and not reflective of the entire cultural experience. And then to furthermore SHOW that to be the case by introducing another person within that same culture who had a completely different or opposite experience.
Putting this to work/as an example: In Abram’s book, I will have my POC heroine who grows up with certain expectations and then encounters another POC with a completely opposite perspective and childhood. One where the POC was encouraged to pursue a STEM career. Because we are all individuals first and foremost. I am a woman, but your “woman” experiences my not be the same as mine. Except PMS. I think that’s pretty much universal. Sadly.
Yes PMS always makes me sad, although I wonder how transgendered individuals feel about such things. Perhaps there is a female privilege we are claiming here. I mean that both seriously and with a light heart.
I have been thinking more about your question and I read your note above and understand your decision. I am not interested in changing it because either way I know you’ll continue to write and that’s all I care about, since I know you will do it thoughtfully as a matter of course. But positionality is such an important concept when thinking about identity issues. The “solution” you described in your response to me is exactly the kind that helps to acknowledge individual experiences while pointing to larger cultural commonalities. But also, you as a writer clearly stating your own positionality helps readers to place your fiction within the metaframework of writing and romance. You state quite clearly that you know racism (and sexism) exist. You also state clearly that you want to bring a diversity of characters to life in your writing. Now your readers know, and any good critic of literature will take the time to understand both the context of the novel and the context of the author before beginning an anlysis.
I hope you find encouragement and courage from your readers and friends. Much love, Christine
You should write what you want, you can’t take the permission of every single african american. If you can portray the character correctly then definitely go for it, but you should research IMMENSELY.
While reading “happily ever ninja” I read wrong information about Egypt and I was kind of put off.
Mariam!
Please never hesitate to drop me a note and let me know how I got it wrong.
Keep writing diversely! That said, get input/feedback from others in case you’re missing something that might be offensive.
In a related note, on our last girls/moms night out, we saw Ghostbusters. I loved it, especially the camaraderie between the women. My one do-over wish? To make Leslie Jones’ character one of the scientists! Yes, yes I know she’s based on Ernie Hudson’s character, but if you’re doing a reboot, WHY NOT?! Okay, rant over. 🙂
Ugh, Facebook ate part of my comment, so…As a POC, I think there’s no easy answer. I think you should do both. I think we need more diverse characters, and I think white writers with a big platform should give writers who are POC a voice by sharing that platform, for those you believe in. Is it better to kneel with Kaepernick, or better not to, because it’s not you, and it’s more important that people of color take a knee to make a bolder statement? I don’t know. I think what you write could be considered cultural appropriation. I think it could be considered fantastic. I also think, from this point forward, you could do things like point out when white characters are white (because it is the assumption, always, that they are, unless someone has “coffee colored skin” (please don’t use that!). I’m a teacher, and for gifts, I often give graphic novels to students. I teach refugees, and none of my students are white. Do you know how hard it is to find a graphic novel with a brown person? Almost impossible. I usually go with something like a GN with blue or green people, or extra terrestrials, or fruit. There are more GNs with FRUIT as characters than BROWN PEOPLE. My poor babies. They just want to see themselves in books, and that’s what I want for them. I want them to identify with characters on multiple levels. So, I think you should write it. You might know this already, but Octavia Butler wrote SFF because race and equity are actually key themes in this genre. You could create a genre of romance where this is true, too. I don’t know how. It’s not an easy question. I think that it’s important to be transparent and continue conversations, though. If you do publish it (and I hope you do, but I’m one voice, and I’m not speaking for anyone but me and my students), I think it would be great to have a note at the beginning about this. I think you’re a fantastic writer, and I think you’ll do whatever you feel serves POC the best. I do think you’ll get backlash, but I also think you’re tough.
As a Black American who have written books who feature white people as main characters in my books…I’m confused. Who approval do you need? The few who does not represent the many. I am an American, and I write multicultural romance novels. If you want to write about Sophia, a black female scientist…all you need to do is make her hair a bit curly and her skin darker than yours. She is a person, human, like you, first and foremost.
Now…the tricky part is when white authors try to incorporate culture or portray a race’s POV/ perspective related to some injustice or slight based on the color of their skin. Unless you have researched by actually talking to someone This (the topic of your story) has hindered and who is black…then yeah, I see the problem some POC will have with your book.
I often wonder why when mainstream writers write a POC as a main character, the plot often follows them on a racially motivated journey. Why not just write with us as a Doctor facing the injustice of some kind of medical corporation. Or a lawyer fighting for someone’s right to die (or whatever) Why must it always feature our race as an unseen but always present character? Just saying. I’ve written a racially charge book…but I guess I have a bit of experience on both sides of the fence.
But, honestly….write what you will. You don’t need anyone’s permission. Good luck and happy writing.
Could you co-author with a person of color?
Yes, this!! This was the comment I was hoping to see!
Almost eight years late to the party and new fan of Penny’s work. My google search to see if there was a book with a Black FMC led me here. The odds that notifications of this post still being on are slim to none but, hope springs eternal, right?
Partnering with a WOC writer introduces them to an audience that they may have never reached and hopefully, translates to more opportunities for them in them that traditionally POC authours may have been not considered for previously. Similar to the Rugby series you partnered with L.H. Cosway on to get the cultural aspects of the characters and setting just right beyond just doing research Cosway was able to the nuances of lived experiences.
I’ll start by saying yes I’m white so maybe that invalidates my opinion in this conversation but I don’t understand the problem. By the logic you shouldn’t write outside of your racial experience then you shouldn’t write men. I mean you’re not a man. You have no experience being a man. You should strictly limit yourself to white women with STEM or authorial backgrounds Bc clearly that’s the limit of your experience. Obviously that’s complete and utter bupkiss. Of course you can write men. I think as long as you are authentic and respectful, you enlighten perspectives by sharing different cultures. It’s fascinating.
When I think cultural appropriation I think of music, African American artists who had their music blantantly plagiarized and white washed and resold by white artists. That would be wrong. But you’re not plagarizing their stories. By their logic they couldn’t write the story you write anyway because your male lead is a white redneck – youd have to have mixed race coauthors to be allowed to tell that story according to this logic. If logic is legit it should be able to be extended and still make sense and this does not. Are we only allowed to tell stories with whites marrying whites and blacks marrying blacks and Hispanics marrying Hispanics? Bc we can only write our race right? How boring. How 1950s. How damaging to perpetuate THAT stereotype. We are better than this.
Tell the stories that move you to the best of your ability. This in no way stops them from doing the same thing.
I’m a bit sad to know that Sienna had been receiving bad comments. I love her! She’s one of my favorite book heroine. As a brown plus size woman I seldom encounter a confident, curvy and beautiful heroine in books. Most of them are either insecure, rejected and door mat who always been bullied by a sexier woman. I hope you will not be discourage by this and keep writing.
I say write whatever character you want, the important part is doing your research. Also just an idea.. You know how you took real letters and notes written by actual married people and started every chapter of Happily Ever Ninja with them? Well that in my opinion was fabulous and made everything feel so much more authentic. You could do the same with POC in STEM and get that same authenticity.
I’m Asian, not Black, so I may not be exactly who you’re looking to hear from. But I like to see non-White characters in my books, no matter who they’re written by. The problem that gets my hackles up is when I feel like the author is playing into her idea (usually stereotypes) of what non-White people are like. If she’s writing all her Asian women as passive and demure and inscrutable while her White characters have a normal range of personalities… ugh. But the world (or at least, my world) is full of non-White people and it’s strange to read fiction that isn’t.
I think you should continue on writing about smart diverse women. That being said there is a difference between cultural appropriation and writing about women who just happen to be a different race then you. You did your research well and didn’t rely on tacky stereotypes. She was a woman going through changes in her career and falling in love and she just happened to be Latina and that’s something I liked. There will always be criticism and I understand that this is a sensitive topic, but I also think that these are stories that should be told. You have great ideas and I think it would be unfair to you to have to give your ideas to others who have gone through these actual events that you want to write about just because they fit a character.
Maybe something that could help would be making a donation or part of the proceeds that come from the book could go to an organization that helps young girls of color in the STEM or arts programs. Some of the most sensitive parts of cultural appropriation are taking for your own benefit and not giving back. When it comes down to it though someone will always feel offended and hurt when it comes to the topic of race, and you can’t please everyone. All you can do is keep collecting your research to tell the most honest stories that you can.
As many have done here, I can only offer my own opinion and reaction to your post, dilemma, and decision (to not write about experiences, particularly racial experiences, that you don’t personally share). I don’t know if you’ll even see this, given the number of well thought out responses you’ve already gotten, but I felt compelled to at least throw my thoughts out there and hope it helps you grapple with this dilemma.
As context, I have an ethnically diverse genetic background – my family is literally from every continent in the world (except Antartica – dangit!), and a significant part of that background is African American. I’m also a women in STEM and have worked in some kind of technology related job for most of my life. So when I read this post, I felt like you were talking to me – or someone like me – which was surprising and compelling in and of itself. For all the negative commentary you might have received, I hope you can still see that this was a small victory: through just this conversation and your questions, I was unexpectedly given an opportunity for representation and voice. And in this racially charged environment that we live in today, simply having this opportunity really important. So before I even get to the meat of your question, I want to sincerely say THANK YOU, for being willing to grapple *publicly* with this issue.
I was honestly sad that you decided to forgo writing about characters with racial experiences that you don’t share. I think this is a loss, especially for the genre of Romance, which is already filled with characters of similar characterization (especially in the descriptions of a character’s ethnicity – or lack of description and assumed implications on that ethnicity). Of the books I’ve read, the fact that the protagonist was white didn’t stop me from enjoying the story or connecting with the characters, because I am not just my race. I connected with Janie because of her rambling and random facts, with Ashley and Drew because of their intellect and willingness to move slowly, with Fiona because of her struggles, and with Sienna because (as I think you said ) “she had more curves than straight lines”. This is one of the reasons I love contemporary fiction, because can capture the *diversity* of my reality. But privilege and inequality are facets of that reality as well. In “Grin and Beard It” I appreciated that Sienna had to deal with a producer who would forgo giving the right person the role, because of the threat of backlash. While I would have been equally happy for her to face this challenge and overcome it (and get that role!), it would have been inauthentic to assume that these situations don’t exist and happen today. So as your reader, I *love* that your characters have nuance and grapple with issues that aren’t single dimensional (like another commenter said, not every book about an African American needs to be a “racially motivated journey”).
However, if you are trying to make a point – about STEM, about the African American experience in the US, about the intersection of the two – then I would strongly encourage you to *collaborate* with people who do share some facet of that experience, and get as broad a spectrum of experiences as possible (e.g. collaborate with people from different states, from different socio-economic backgrounds, with ethnically diverse genetic backgrounds, with different educational experiences, etc.). This collaboration will mean that whatever you (and you all) write will not be just “Penny’s opinion” or “another white person’s opinion” or “another black person’s opinion” but a reflection on a complex problem and statement on our *shared* reality.
Helping another person find and use their voice is equally important, so I love that you are aiming to help other women to tell their stories with their own voice. But I believe it’s equally important that you use your own voice (and the power that voice has) to be as inclusive as you can. Because it’s that *inclusivity* (beyond just recognizing that we are all diverse and diversity is important) that will also make a difference.
As someone who is of mixed race I can say without a doubt that this shouldn’t stop you from writing Simone’s story! I actually think it is important that you do. Writing from the perspective of a race is not limited to whether or not you identify with that race. Personally I find myself feeling proud when others outside of my race write or bring recognition to challenges/stories (albeit sensitivity to certain topics is key). I think words such as cultural appropriation is largely misused and thrown around nowadays. Writing about someone with Mexican/other heritage does not mean you as a writer adopts a culture as their own. Please don’t let these comments discourage you!
Penny,
I am really puzzling over this entire kerfluffle. I can understand all views and yet wonder where we all go from here. The painter Paul Gauguin painted people of a culture other than his own, yet people do not look at his p aintings and think cultural appropriation. Do I have the answer? No. My own immediate family is multi-racial (four seperate continent represented) and we just mix all of our cultures together and enjoy them all. We love each other, what else would we do?
I discovered Penny when she very first put our Neandathal Seeks Human and have followed her writings ever Since and even pushed people to read her. I prefer the knitting series and the rugby series. But that may be because I am a smart ass myself.
My main concern is I read that Penny was removing any mention of one brother from a book because of this situation. Wow, it pains me that opinions have made her doubt her story threads. For goodness sake just write. Ask someone you trust to review and critic privately, take the input and apply what you think needs alteration but do not give up! What about an editor whe could guide you with your questions?
As I ask my daughter when she appears lost “where is your spine?” This question is not said with condescension but with concern for someone who needs to do what they know inside is true to themselves. Please keep writing, and if not everyone likes it. Well, if you are not true to yourself – you will only be disappointed with the result. Go for it!
Penny, I love all of your books and I continue to anticipate each one. I was especially crossing my fingers about a particular Black woman, you mentioned Ashley’s book, catching the eye of one of the beloved Winston men, and watching their story unfold. I don’t think you should give up on writing this story. There are plenty of Black, female authors writing interracial romance so no one has the right to stop you from doing the same. My only suggestion, since you don’t want to incorrectly portray the heroine, ask the women you’ve been emailing to be your advisory/research source. Still allow yourself all of your creative freedoms, but in your character development & storyline phase run it by them for accuracy. Please, please don’t let anyone throwing around the phrase “cultural appropriation” scare you out of a good story. Fictional characters are just that, and the basis of c.a. is taking something from another culture and passing it off as your own — which you didn’t do. You wrote from what you knew and had researched, and came out with another great story. If it means a lot to you to get it right, and since you’re willing, just create the group. You’ll be able to ask your questions & develop a better character based on a mix of intelligent women of color & even mention the group in your acknowledgments. Just, please write the story. I always get excited to see Black women written in novels by authors not of color. And because your romance is ‘smart’, I’ve truly been looking forward to a heroine of color whose background wasn’t in liberal arts, law or business.
Please reconsider.
Sincerely,
A Wildlife & Conservation Education Specialist
(and) Black Woman
I Love love love your books! I am also a woman of color (indian) and a tv producer. I understand your want to be sensitive but honestly I feel like you are respectful and current with the times. People do unfortunately get passed over for entirely too many stupid reasons in our business.
I actually started my love affair with your books with Jetro and Sienna and went backwards – in a matter of 48 hours – it was a very entertaining but complete unproductive few days as I tried but did NOTHING but listen to your books on tape. I LEFT PARITIES EARLY to get back to your books.
AS long as you have done your research, been sensitive to any issues sensitive to the group – that is all that can be asked.
If any of the winston boys want to fall in love with a South Indian american curvy short woman – I WILL HAPPiLY be your research rosette stone!!
CANT WAIT FOR CLARIE AND BILLY – I HOPE. I so want Billy to have a happy ending!!
Well I am upset that there are so many people who are so racist and think that just because someone is of a different ethnicity they cannot imagine what they are going through. It’s called ‘Empathy ‘ something a good author has in unlimited quantities
I have only recently become aware of your books. Truth or Beard was my first read. Since then i have devoured all of your books. I appreciate the thought and care you have put into not only the written word but the audible form as well. Due to the care that you have put into every aspect of what you present to your readers and listeners, I think that you have to write from the viewpoint of an African American woman. You did such a wonderful job with Sienna. She’s a strong woman, who is confident in herself and abilities who happens to be Latina. You didn’t make her race a character. Often I am disappointed when some of the writers I enjoy write a black character in a way that is not truthful but stereotypical. My example would be to write a character in a way that you have never heard anyone speak, but may have seen stereotypes displayed. The fact that your are sensitive enough to want to be truthful to a Black characters POV means that you will be thoughtful enough to do the research and have conversations that may help you understand. I read the article that you posted the link to. I just thing the author was trying to point out that so many authors may try to write a narrative that they don’t understand and haven’t taken the time to understand. You write intelligently and I think that if you get hung up on somethings culturally, as long as you have intelligent beta readers that can help you with the scientific and cultural matters you will do fine. As a Black woman I like to read about Black women who act in intelligent ways and not a neck poppin, loud, money hungry, or dram laden. That is tedious. Maybe she won’t be your next heroine, but I do hope she finds her way into your line up. Thank you for the fully awesome stories 🙂
One cannot bemoan the lack of protagonists of color in Romance (or really any genre) while also actively discouraging the writing of stories featuring them.
As a mixed race woman, I say go for it. It’s well known and accepted, that except for a brave and precious few, people have their world order defined by the role models they see. There’s more than one way to “whitewash” a story, and one such way is to have people of color only as side characters (if they’re present at all).
Addressing the concern that an author might get a story wrong because she doesn’t share the background of the character in question (ignoring the fact that authors write about people stunningly different from themselves all the time), I personally feel that as long as the portrayal is not deliberately or hugely patronizing, dismissive, and/or derogatory, it’s better to have a slightly wrong story that acts as a foot-in-the-door than no story at all.
So I’m like four-ish races and 100% Okie, but you can really only see the Northern European and Plains Indian in me. Cultural appropriation is a non-native person using (non)physical cultural artifacts as part of their own narrative, e.g. any non-native Oklahoman who speaks about the Trail of Tears as something that happened their ancestors because of their zipcode (or worse, wears traditional ceremonial garb for fashion). Cultural appropriation is NOT a non-native Oklahoman saying “The Trail of Tears was super sad and terrible.” nor “Indians still have inadequate access to healthcare and education, despite it being 2016 and not 1836.” nor even “Hypothetically, if I was Native American, I’d have to deal with a lot of crappy stuff, like poor access to healthcare and education.” Writing a fictional character who is native, when you are not native, who has to deal with prejudice – that isn’t cultural appropriation, that’s checking your own privilege and recognizing the diversity of the world.
tl;dr – I think it’s better to have a story that doesn’t perfectly represent my history than to never have any characters that reflect me at all. Also, it’s not cultural appropriation to have an author write a Latina character who faces problems latin women have to face in the real world.
On a final note, the only problem I have with Ms. Reid’s work is her tendency to slut-shame, but nobody’s perfect.
I am latina and do not feel offended or bothered or anything by other people writing from our POV if they do it with truth and compassion. I think sometimes people are so obsessed with sensibilizing others of the existence and shadows of prejudice, that they get lost and become prejudiced and racist backwards. Of course I have suffered of discrimination and prejudice, more frequently with Americans and Europeans, but also with other latinos, so what?! People can be prejudiced, racists, fanatics, I don’t think it’s exclusive of ‘whites’ (God I hate to use those terms!), anyone can, it’s a matter of beliefs/choice/education or whatever.
Please Penny write your stories as they come to you. You are blessed with the mastery of words, and can write h**l of them! You make great stories, thoughtful, fun, hot, moving, entertaining and full of great and new and useful information! So please do not let some people’s excesive concerns deter you. I am sure you’ll give a great a meaningful and heartfelt story to enjoy and share.
Hello Penny,
*Feel free to skip this first paragraph and go right to the second.
First, i would like to tell you that discovering your books last year has been the best thing that has happened to me in…forever ! (which partly stems from the fact that not much has happened in my life, but then again i’m only 20 ! Plus i am an unapologetic bookworm ). What i love most about your books is that your characters have never seemed clichés or stereotypes to me. Every time i read one of your books i fall in love with the characters (which is my all time favourite thing about reading). Not because they’re perfect, but because they’re complex, and different (but also like me in many ways), and vulnerable, and strong, and flawed…because they’re human. I enjoy meeting them and reading about how their experiences help them grow as people. And i think that is what makes your stories special. That is why certain romance novels are forgotten while others become timeless classics. Like P&P for example. In my opinion, the reason so many people love Darcy and Elizabeth is because they are not introduced as perfect characters, but as two flawed individuals whose interactions together force them to admit their flaws. Their relationship was a source of personal growth for both of them. It is that same quality that attracts me to your books. But i digress.
You asked if writing about an african-american woman would be considered cultural appropriation. I know my answer comes too late but please bear with me. Now i can’t answer that question as an african american because i am not. However, i am moroccan a well as a muslim, which means i have an opinion about how one specific group of individuals is portrayed in books and film. I think that in the case of muslims, the most annoying about how we are portrayed is that we belong in these little boxes, whith very specific labels ( “close-minded”, “oppressed”). We are reduced to stereotypes that almost no one makes an effort to subvert. I am very frequently left with the impression that our presence-if we are present at all- is just an afterthought, that no effort was made to research facts about the culture in my country. So it is not so much the fact that the material was the work of an outsider (for lack of a better word) but that the creator in question doesn’t care enough about the authenticity of their work and how it shapes opinions of my culture. I know that you have stated that you will not be writing outside of your own cultural experience to avoid causing outrage. But i disagree. I don’t think a writer should have to avoid an entire group or race out of fear of cultural appropriation, the same way a male writer shouldn’t shy away from writing female characters because he “can’ t understand them”. Again, in my humble opinion, the key is to know your subject, research it, interview people who can help you understand it, but also remember that no matter how different a person’s cultural and social experience is, we are all fundamentally the same. I genuinely hope you read my answer. It most likely won’t change your mind about writing an african american protagonist but maybe it will encourage you not to discard all minorities.
Thank you and have a nice day 🙂
P.S : I hope you keep writing stories for a very long time.
Hi Penny!
I know I’m SUPER late to this and I really hope you see this! I know you said in this post that it was inappropriate for you to write outside of your culture but in your latest update you mentioned this this :
“That stated, I’ve decided to write the stories I want to write and stop “asking permission” to write them. I will do my best–
to be responsible, to listen, to learn– and that is all I can do.”
Does this mean that you continued write the character in this book as an African American woman? Because I really hope you did.
Personally speaking, as a black woman, it makes me really sad to see the lack of representation for women like me in this genre. I totally understand why you may feel that it would not be appropriate to write from an African American woman’s perspective, however I think that by making the decision to only write about white characters is even more harmful. It’s kind of the same battle that A LOT of films in the movie industry face: all-white casts/little to no diversity. In reality, we don’t live in an all-white world and I think that by limiting diversity in characters, especially leading characters, promotes the lack of importance of cultural/racial diversity. I think that by writing a character from another background other than your own (meaning doing lots of research and speaking to various people of that background) will bring you to further understand a different culture. It could even expand your readers to the possibility of finding more books about people from other backgrounds!
Also, I really don’t mean for this to sound harsh or super critical but by suggesting to only write about white characters and their stories was disappointing to read and came off a bit disingenuous to me. It actually reminded of when I was younger and wrote to one of my favorite authors, at the time, about having more diverse characters in her books. Her response to me was that she would continue to write only with characters from her background as it was too hard to learn about a different racial background. I understand that this situation is a bit different but I certainly don’t think its impossible to learn about a different culture or racial background, especially when it’s done respectfully.
There are definitely ways to avoid culture appropriation if that is really the driving factor of whether or not you choose to write with POC characters. For starters, I think by doing research: Learn about the culture, speak to people from it, formulate ideas based off of individual circumstances rather than stereotypes, understand and *empathize* with their struggles. You can use your writing to help benefit POC: donating some of the profit to STEM programs for POC and encourage your readers to do the same. You can also write with POC without diving to much into culture. Everyone experiences their own culture differently. Not every black woman has the same black experience just like not every woman has the same experience being a woman. I’ve read a few books where there are POC character by white authors and they’ve done a great job at this (a few comments have mentioned some authors). Even what you suggested: Email these women and ask for their permission. Then write the story. Additionally, in my email requesting permission, I would also encourage them to tell their story (write it) and offer to give them a platform for promotion if they do; avoids culture appropriation.
Penny, either way, your are my favorite author and I am a HUGE fan of your books! I hope that you consider to write books with POC because that was something that made me SO HAPPY to read (and tell my reader friends about) after you made that first blog post about it!