Favourite Diverse Books

This list is in order of favourite to least favourite and will be updated regularly.

1. The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater (gay character)
2. Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman (several LGBT characters and POC characters))
3. Eon by Alison Goodman (Trans chaarcter, disabled character, POC characters)
4. The Young Elites by Marie Lu (LGBT characters)
5. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare (LGBT POC main character)
6. Fire by Kristin Cashore (POC main character)
7. The Girl of Fire and Thorns series by Rae Carson (POC main character)
8. The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black (LGBT characters)
9. Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White (POC main character)
10. Cinder by Marissa Meyer (POC characters)
11. The Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan (POC characters, gay character)
12. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (LGBT character, POC characters)
13. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (Gay character)
14. To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han (POC main character)

Let's Talk About Female Characters

I am female. I also like fiction. This post is all about female fictional characters, and stuff that relates to female characters. Please note that I am not in anyway an expert on this topic. These are just the random opinions of a sixteen year old girl.

The Problems:

The vast majority of fiction published today has a larger number of male characters than female characters. This might not seem like that much of a problem to some people, but here's the thing: When female characters are almost always portrayed as being overall less important than male characters, real female people might see themselves as less important too.

"Strong" Female Characters:

"Wait," you might be saying. "I don't actually think that fiction is very sexist, nowadays. Maybe it's true that the vast majority of fiction has a larger number of male than female characters, but that's not what really matters. What matters is how those female characters are presented. And I don't know about you, but recently I've been seeing more and more strong female characters in fiction." You are right. The number of female characters does not matter as much as how they are presented. But I have a question. What do you mean by "strong female character"?

As far as I can tell, the main characteristics that most people think make a strong female character are:

• Can punch people
• Not girly
• Not over-emotional
• Not annoying

Here is the problem: That is not what a "strong female character" means. (Of course people would hear "strong female character" and think that this character must be stereotypically masculine. Of course.) Here is what makes a strong female character:

• Complex
• Dynamic
• Interesting

A strong female character could punch people and be unemotional. But a strong character could also cry a lot and wear frilly dresses. Here are some examples of strong female characters (in my opinion):

Let me ask you one more question before we move on to the next section: Have you ever in your life used the term "strong male character"? Most likely, the answer is no. That's not because all male characters are already strong characters. It's because people see male characters as characters and female characters as female characters.

Perceptions of Female Characters:

A thing that I've noticed is that people (both male and female) tend to hate female characters more than male characters. I have read many negative book reviews in which the reviewer says "the main character was annoying". This is a common complaint, and a valid one. But I have noticed that this complaint almost only arises when the main character is female. (Of course there are exceptions). Is this because female characters in fiction are generally portrayed as being annoying, or is this because people generally tend to see female characters as being annoying regardless of how they are presented?

I'll give a very specific example: Almost all fans of Harry Potter hate the character Dolores Umbridge, who is female. I am one of those people. Umbridge is one of my least favourite characters ever. However, those same Umbridge haters love this other character Snape, who is male. If you actually think about it, Snape and Umbridge aren't very different. They are both teachers who abuse their power. Many people would say that this is an unfair comparison, as Umbridge was always portrayed negatively in the books whereas Snape was supposedly "redeemed" at the end of the series. I agree. It's not a perfect example, but can you see how it's kind of odd that the same people who hate Umbridge completely adore Snape?

Another thing that I have noticed is that the desirable aspects in a female character have changed over the years. It used to be that female characters had to be stereotypically feminine. Now, it's a bit different. Of course I can't generalize about everyone, but most people today seem to only approve of stereotypically masculine female characters, or "strong female characters". These people hate female characters who are feminine or physically weak. In my opinion, this isn't much of an improvement from before.

I'll use another example from Harry Potter. Two characters in the series who everyone seems to hate are Lavender Brown and Fleur Delcour. These two characters are stereotypically feminine. I feel like people treat these characters unfairly, especially Fleur Delcour.

The Bechdel Test:

Okay, I'm going to talk about the Bechdel test. If you haven't heard of it, I would suggest searching on Google. I don't feel like explaining what it is. Anyway, I don't really like the Bechdel test. Or, more accurately, I don't like the way that people use it.

I've seen people who act as if a movie or TV show is sexist if it doesn't pass the test and not sexist if it does. I do not think that this is the way to use the test. First of all, there are many movies and TV shows that do not pass the Bechdel test, and yet they have "strong" female characters. Second (and more importantly), movies or tv shows that do pass the Bechdel test can be sexist.

I understand that the Bechdel test is not meant to be used as a tool to decide whether or not a movie or TV show is sexist, but people sure do seem to use it that way.

Female Characters and Diversity:

I want to see more strong female characters in fiction. And by that, I mean I want to see more well-developed and complex female characters in fiction. I want to see more female characters with questionable motives. I want to see more female characters with anxiety. I want to see more female characters who know that they're awesome. I want to see more female characters who are resourceful. I want to see more female characters of colour. I want to see more disabled female characters. I want to see more queer female characters. I want to see more female characters who are respected by their fandoms. I want to see more female characters.

Final Note:

Does any of this really matter? It's only fiction, after all.

Yes. Yes, it does matter, and here is why. Fiction is powerful. Fiction tells people what to think and who to be. I have heard many people on the internet talking about how much fiction has affected their lives. Fiction has also had a huge effect on my life. It has made me think differently about the world and it has given me new perspectives. Overall, fiction has had a positive impact on my life. But not everyone is that lucky. Fiction can send the wrong message.

Don't tell me that it's just a book or just a movie. If there are problems in today's fiction, we will see the same problems in society. What we read in books and what we see in movies has an affect on us, and there is no point denying it. That is why I believe that it is very important for fiction to send positive messages.

My Ten Favourite "Diverse" Characters

It is my opinion that diversity in fiction is important. Here is a list (in no particular order) of ten of my favourite "diverse characters" from books, movies and TV shows. (I consider a character diverse if they are one or more of the following: a person of colour, LGBTQ or disabled.) Most of the characters on the list are girls. Sorry, I just tend to like female characters better than male characters. I am also sorry that there aren't any transgender characters on the list. There are, unfortunately, very few transgender characters in today's media.

1. Clarke Griffin is my favourite character of all time. She's the main character of the science fiction show The 100 and not only is she a badass female leader, she is also bisexual.

2. Lexa is another character from The 100. She is a military leader and she happens to like girls.

3. Raven Reyes is yet another character from The 100. She's a genius and a mechanic, and she is also a disabled women of colour.

4. Monty Green is another character from The 100. He is literally and angel and he is a person of colour.

5. Joan Watson is one of the two main character in Elementary. She was a doctor who became a sober companion, and then eventually became a detective. She is also a women of colour.

6. Guinevere is one of the main characters in the TV show Merlin, and she is a person of colour. Gwen becomes the queen of Camelot.

7. Korra is the main character of the TV show Legend of Korra. Korra is a bisexual women of colour.

8. Toph Beifong is from Avatar: The Last Airbender. She is blind, but she uses her power over the element of Earth to "see".

9. Martha Jones is a character from the TV show Doctor Who. She is a Doctor and she saves the world multiple times. She is a woman of colour.

10. Magnus Bane is from The Mortal Instruments book series. He is a bisexual person of colour.

Different Sexual Orientations in Fiction

This post is about different sexual orientations in fiction and how the topic of sexual orientation is represented in fiction.

I'm not going to be talking about people who are transgender or people who are genderfluid or anything like that. I do believe that representation of different gender identities is as important in fiction as representation of different sexual orientations, but I'm not going to be discussing gender identity in this post because I don't feel like I have the right to talk about this topic. This is partly because I identify as the gender I was born as and also because I do not know very much about gender identity.

Anyway, it is becoming more and more common for fiction (book, movies and TV shows) to include characters who are not straight. However, most of these characters who are not straight are gay men, and, slightly less often, lesbian women. Other sexual orientations are basically not shown at all.I'm going to list several different sexual orientations (or groups of sexual orientations) and some of my opinions on how they should be represented in fiction.

Gay Characters: There are actually many gay men in current fiction, which is great, but I've noticed that they often have similar personalities. They tend to be shown as stereotypically feminine. There is nothing wrong with gay men being stereotypically feminine, the problem is when all gay men are shown with the same personality. Gay men in fiction should have all different kinds of personalities, as should characters of all different sexual orientations. Gay men are also almost always white in fiction, which is obviously problematic. We need to see more queer people of colour.

Lesbian Characters: We definitely need to see more lesbian women in fiction. Often times, women are only present in fiction to be the love interest of the main male character. How about we put women into movies or books to be the love interest of the main female character? Also, we need to see more lesbian women of colour.

Bisexual/Pansexual Characters: There are significantly fewer bisexual characters than there are homosexual characters. I think this is because a lot of people think that you're either gay or straight. You can't be both. I've seen this stereotype so much in fiction and it bothers me to no end, especially because I am bisexual.

Asexual/Graysexual/Demisexual/Aromantic Characters: Asexuality (and all related sexual orientations) is not really shown in fiction at all. While I do not like this, I realize that it can be difficult to represent characters as being asexual. Of course, a character could just come right out and say they are asexual, but sometimes this just wouldn't work. If the character doesn't say they are asexual, it's pretty much impossible to know for sure that they are. If I hear about a male character in a relationship with another male character I think "Oh, he's gay (or bisexual)." If a character shows no interest in romance and/or sex I think "Oh, maybe they are asexual. Or maybe they are just not interested in romance and sex right now." I think that there need to be more characters in fiction who are not romantically or sexually involved with anyone. They don't necessarily have to say they are asexual. They just have to be not romantically or sexually involved with anyone. Seriously, romance is not necessary for a plot to function.

FINAL NOTE ABOUT SEXUAL ORIENTATION: I am no expert in any of this stuff. I just feel really strongly that different sexual orientations should be represented in fiction, and I'll tell you why.

I am not straight and I only realized this recently. Part of the reason I never thought to question my sexual orientation was because I did not see many characters of different sexual orientations when I was younger. I did see a few queer characters in the books that I read, but they were so few and far between. I thought of queer people as somehow different, a group of people that I would never be part of. I wasn't exactly homophobic, I just didn't consider the fact that I myself might be part of the group of people who are not straight. Because of this, the lack of different sexual orientations in fiction is very personal for me. I want queer characters to be normal in fiction. I want queer people to be seen as regular people.

I am only fifteen and I have never dated anyone, nor do I plan to in the near future. I have been told that I can't know my sexual orientation at such a young age. While this statement annoys me, in my case, it is true. I am still not entirely sure what my sexual orientation is exactly. I think that I am somehow in the area between bisexual and asexual. For now I am calling myself asexual and biromantic. I don't believe I have ever been sexually attracted to anyone. I don't actually understand what this would mean. I do think that I understand romantic attraction better. I think that I have liked a few people romantically in the past (mostly girls). I have been told that I might be too young to be sexually attracted to people and that I might become less asexual over time. Maybe that is true. I guess I will just have to wait and see.

Anyway, sexual orientation isn't really some clearly defined thing. Every individual person defines their own sexual orientation differently. Some people prefer not to define themselves at all. But I think that we should start seeing more fictional characters that are confident in their sexual orientation (whether that be homosexual or bisexual or asexual). I think that this might help real people understand themselves and other people.

Diversity in Fiction: My thoughts

In this post, I'm going to consider "diverse characters" to be one or more of the following: Not white, LGBTQ or disabled. I'm also going to be mainly talking about books, and not so much other forms of fiction.

I never used to think about diversity in fiction. That has been changing recently. When I was younger, I never really noticed that the books I read had mainly straight, white, able-bodied characters. That isn't to say that I disliked books with diverse characters, I just didn't really notice either way. I think there are several reasons for this.

First, I never noticed that most of the characters in the books I read were white. I think that the main reason for this is that I did not (and still do not) pay attention to the way a character looks when I am reading a book. When I read physical descriptions of characters, I kind of ignore them. I know that many people automatically picture characters as white if they aren't told otherwise, but that's not really what I do.The thing is, I don't picture what book characters physically look like when I imagine them. I just kind of picture them as their personalities. I don't know if that makes sense. The way people look has never mattered to me. I think this is partially because I am visually disabled. When I meet someone, I do not notice their hair colour, their height or their race. The first thing I notice about a person is the first thing they do or say. This is the case for fictional characters too. I just don't really pay attention to what they look like. It doesn't matter.

However, I recognize that most people do pay attention to the physical descriptions of characters. I also recognize that it is not good that so many book characters are white. Representation of everyone is important in fiction.

I also did not notice that pretty much all of the characters I read about in books were straight. This is partially because I, like many people who do not know better, thought of "straight" as the default state for a human being and anything else as something... extra. When I realized that a character was not straight, I was often surprised. I remember that when I was younger I learned that Dumbledore was gay. This actually kind of upset me. Was this because I was homophobic back then? Partially. It also upset me that a writer would know something like that about a character and not put it obviously in the actual books.

I was kind of homophobic when I was younger. It wasn't that I hated queer people or was against gay marriage, I just didn't really think about the fact that some people are queer. I did not think of queer people in the same way I did other people. I think that many people who claim they are not homophobic actually think this way. This way of thinking actually made it difficult for me to realize that I am not straight. All my life I have just assumed that I am heterosexual. When I joined tumblr, I started to see sexual orientation and gender differently. I started to think of queer people in the same way I thought of cisgendered straight people. Today, when I think about Dumbledore, I think of him exactly the way I would if he were straight. But despite all this, a few months ago I still thought of myself as heterosexual. Only in the past few months have I begun to think more about myself and my sexual orientation.

How does this relate to fictional characters? I think that many people assume that a fictional character (or real person) is straight unless they are told otherwise, not because they are homophobic, exactly, but because they believe, like I used to, that heterosexual is the default state for human beings. This is not a good mentality. Being queer is completely natural and assuming that people are straight and cisgendered contributes to homophobia and transphobia.

Finally, disability in fiction. I am disabled, and so you would think that I would have noticed that very few of the characters in the books I read were too.But I didn't. Maybe it's because, unlike many other children who read books a lot, I did not think of book characters as reflections of myself. I don't really think of them as "friends" either. I've always been drawn to books because they are more interesting than the real world. But, the thing is, characters are in a way a reflection of ourselves and fiction is in a way a reflection of our world. The characters in the books we read might not be exactly like us, but I think that the best fictional characters can tell us something about humanity.

So, why is diversity in fiction important? Because our world is diverse, and fiction is a reflection of our world. It doesn't really matter if you view fiction as a reflection of yourself or a reflection of humanity. The point is that everyone wants to see truth in fiction, and truth is diverse. The people in our world are diverse.

Recently, I've been looking for books with diversity in them. One of my reading goals of 2015 is to read as many diverse books as I can. I also write fiction myself, and I've been trying to make my writing more diverse. If I ever publish anything, I don't want to contribute to the huge number of books with characters who are mostly straight, white and able-bodied. I look forward to a time when diversity in fiction is seen as "normal". It would be nice to be able to pick up pretty much any book and see a reflection of our world that is diverse.

Many people seem to think that diversity in fiction is not important. To them I say, almost everyone (at least in North America) is exposed to fiction of some kind, and, as I said before, fiction is a reflection of our world. When I was a child, I learned a lot about the world from reading fiction. The trouble with that is, fiction can be misleading. It's true that fiction is "fiction" and so it is not, strictly speaking, true, but I think that the point of fiction is to show the truth whether it is historical fiction or high fantasy. I want the next generation to be less sexist, less racist, less homophobic and less transphobic than people are today. Making sure that fiction is diverse will, in my opinion, help make this possible. It will at least be a step in the right direction.