The Do's and Don'ts of Writing a Story

HOW TO: Making representation obvious

Sometimes you have to code characters, either because the terms they use to describe themselves don't exist (like a secondary world or fantasy), or because they haven't for the words themselves yet (undiagnosed illness and disabilities). But if at all possible, you should make it clear who these people are and own that you're putting them in the story. 

Even if you actively can say tat somebody is part f a certain group, you still have to make sure you're not washing them in the narrative. Be it whitewashing, straight washing, abled-washing, or any sort of situation where you say one thing, but the story itself doesn't reflect that. 

Here are some things to consider that will help you make it obvious that:

This character is PoC

Describe:

 - Skin tone, don't just use food metaphors

 - Hair texture/colour - especially black hair

 - Most commonly eaten foods at home

 - Microaggressions

 - Cultural cues that they would have (either assimilated or not, because both will have tells)

 - Their opinion of white people/things outside of their experience

This character is LGBTQA+

Describe:

 - Who they're attracted to, or lack thereof, past crushes or lack thereof 

 - Their circle of friends

 - For trans characters: hormones, binders, packers, breast forms, tucking. Also, for more subtle clues, pronoun asking, euphoria at gender affirming things (like them being proud of their particularly dapper, feminine, or 'I have no idea what that gender that it but I like it 'style), dislike of off-gender things (like complaining about somebody getting them something that doesn't match how they like to present).

 - The actual orientation of what they are

 - their opinion of straight people/things outside their experience

This character is disabled

Describe:

 - Their disability. Preferably in the actual labels, or make up your own labels for a secondary world fantasy 

 - Any mobility, hearing or speaking aids

 - Behaviour that come with a disability (i.e. stimming such as rocking or flapping for autistic/ADHD people, navigating through appropriately wide paths for wheelchairs/walkers, sitting on one side of the group conversations to make sure their good ear catches it etc.)

 - Levels of aid needed and any accommodations 

 - Avoiding things that trip them up (like somebody autistic not wanting to go where it's crowded, a wheelchair user avoiding curbs, a deaf person making sure there's a sign language interpreter at a concert, somebody with celiac avoiding gluten like the plague)

 - Plan cancelling because it's a bad day, or having to leave early because the environment is bad

 - Medications, doctors etc. if applicable

 - Self care rituals for after a long day or during a flare up

 -Their opinion of abled people/things outside their experience

This character is mentally/chronically ill

Describe:

 - Their symptoms from good to messy, consistently

 - Their energy levels, as many use the spoon theory

 - Self care rituals they practice during flare ups or after hard days

 - Medication, doctors, therapies etc.

 - Cancelling plans because a bad day came up, or having to leave early because the environment is bad

 - Triggers and their individual reaction to their triggers

 - Their opinion of well people/things outside their experience

And so on. these lists are not meant to be exhaustive at all, but they are meant to get you thinking about how you need to go about describing representation. 

One thing to note: you can go about establishing representation in one of two ways. Either have the characters noting their differences, or them noting others' differences. Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys describes white skin when it appears, because within the narrators world, black skin is the norm. But note their own differences. It's all about their character.

Either one requires a to of careful thought and sensitivity to readers, but both are valid* options for owning representation. 

* Do be aware that some groups are chronically underrepresented when it comes to the actual word of their identity. Bisexual people  hardly have characters say the word as their identity. Autistic people also hardly have characters say he word as their identity. Be careful of not having characters talk about themselves if the group is prone to being coded but not explicitly represented. 

** You actually have to own it and say they're that when people put all the clues you left together.