Diversity in Media

Being writers, we have to create characters. You can't have a story without a character. Characters drive the story, give the readers someone to root for. But creating characters creates problems in the readerdom. Diversity isn't a thing that really exists. Many people try their best to actually represent everyone, but in doing so they tend to exclude others.

Body Types.
With girls, there's been a big push to love yourself for who you are. Big girls, curvy girls, all of them are being uplifted in this time. But in doing so, the skinny girls are being shamed. You know Daisy Ridley? The wonderful, talented, beautiful actress who played Rey in the newest Star Wars (and also the person in this photo)? Someone posted an image of Rey with a speech bubble saying "what were my casting directors thinking? don't they know real woman have curves?"
Let me just say something.
All women are different.
ALL WOMEN ARE DIFFERENT.
ALL. WOMEN. ARE. DIFFERENT.
Everyone, okay? There are big girls, curvy girls, thin girls, strong girls. Broad shoulders, narrow shoulders, a curvy figure, an athletic figure, a big chest, a small chest–LITERALLY NO ONE IS THE SAME. People say that "real women have curves" when in reality, real women come in every shape and size.
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that we shouldn't promote body positivity. But when it's uplifting some people and shaming others, you really aren't doing anything to help you're just shaming a different group of girls.
ALL Y'ALL ARE BEAUTIFUL.
      And there's the thing with men, too. Most people don't realize that men have to look at the media every day, where they all have abs and muscles etc. and then try to live up to that. They're dealing with the same things we are, ladies! Just differently. A message to all the guys that visit my blog (if any), don't let anyone tell you that you aren't handsome. Just like I said above, EVERYONE IS BUILT DIFFERENTLY. You have a six pack? Good for you. You have some "chub"? Wonderful. Chiseled jaw? Cool. Soft features? Adorable. Strong nose? Nice. Soft nose? Boop! Literally you're all wonderful–so just know that.

Races.
      So many races are getting represented now a days, and I am SO HAPPY about that. But most of the time, it's just African Americans getting the uplift. And don't misunderstand me. They've been treated awfully in the past. But others–Asians, Native Americans, Indians–aren't getting the same representation.
Now, being a Caucasian writer, I find I have the tendency to make all my characters of European descent. But I'm getting better, I feel. At the end of this, I will list my characters, along with how I try to make them different.

Roles.
      Now, this isn't going to be what I'm guessing you're thinking. I'm not going to talk about who should be the stay-at-home parent and who should work, because that's a can of worms I'd rather not open. This is about parents, children, orphans, grandparents, friends–all those roles you can play in someone's life.
      SO OFTEN writers portray the parents as stupid. Like they don't know anything, like the kids being rebellious is a good thing. And I think that–to an extent–it's true. Parents don't always understand what is going on with their kids. But that doesn't mean that they're tyrants who don't let their kids do anything. They're trying to protect them, give them guidelines so that when they go off on their own they don't mess up so bad that it's something they can never recover from. And this is a problem with YA novels. Most of the time, the parents are in the background and when they do appear they're stupid. The kids have to fix everything. Think about you parents. Is this how they would act? Also, do they play a bigger role in your life? Or, if you're an adult on your own, did they play a bigger role than the media suggests? The answer is yes. Your parents raised you. They had an impact on you whether you'd like to acknowledge that or not.
      Grandparents are always portrayed as loving and wise. But they can be more of the tyrants in reality than the parents are. Yes, your grandma bakes you cookies and everything. But your ex-military grandpa may hate the fact that you want to pursue the arts. Your grandpa may love taking you fishing, but may absolutely hate the fact that you have the radio on in the car because it's "distracting you from the real things in life". Your grandparents may take pride in your writing ability, or your artistic ability, but the second you say you're going to major in Creative Writing or in Visual Arts or in Theatre Arts or in Screenwriting and Film, they instantly say "Well you have a backup right? Those are unstable professions, you should really try for something more solid."
      And that segways into this next section.

Careers.
Let me tell you a little something. I've always wanted to pursue something in the arts. I love acting, but it's more of a hobby for me. Something to help me relax. Same with drawing. I love writing (as is evident by this), but I never thought I could be a professional writer. I've heard of people doing that, but I never thought that could be me. My mom has some health issues. I've helped her with her physical therapy when she'd get hurt or when her MS would flare up, so I thought "hey, maybe I could be a physical therapist." As I looked for majors and colleges, I couldn't bring myself to actually get excited about this. I enjoyed it, sure, but I couldn't see myself being excited to wake up every day and go help people. Don't get me wrong, I'd totally be excited. But I couldn't see me being happy in the long run. I eventually figured out that this was just something I had chosen, and the amount I would be payed was influencing it. I've heard all my life, "Get a good paying job". And I'm not saying that's wrong. But I finally realized that I don't see any point in getting up every morning to go do something I hate just because I'd get money. I'd rather work for my pay. Write books so that I know I earned every cent. And that's what I'm going to do.

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These are my characters. There will be some common elements due to the fact that they're all trained by the CIA.

Harper: 5'2". Athletic yet thin. Small chest. European descent.
Jace: 6'4". Lean muscle. British.
Quinn: 5'10". Athletic, thin. African descent.
Jess: 5'7". Lean. Long legs, hips. Average chest. European/Chinese descent.
Kaity: 5'9". Lean. Small. Native American/European descent.

The parents are important in the story. Jace's uncle is in it, as is his mother. Harper's parents are dead, but she has an adopted mom and dad who are very important.

Diversity is important. And don't just stick to the usual "diversity". Diversity is diversity. So do diversity well.

~Olivia Ann