Woke Writing is a Good thing – Really! – by Ffion Mackenzie

Puccini’s Madame Butterfly

If you are self-publishing, this post might be of limited interest to you. Agents and publishers, though, are actively looking for inclusive writing.

The play and film, “Madame Butterfly” might be an example of how Asian women were often depicted. An American naval officer serving in Japan at the beginning of the 20th century, has a son with a 15 year old girl, Cio-Cio-San. The officer then leaves her, and goes back to America to marry someone else. Abandoned and shamed, Cio-Cio-San takes her own life. A tale of sexism, racism and stereotypes.

The stereotyping of peoples and cultures:

In the Lawrentian, Isabel Dorn writes;

The few Slavic men who don’t get cast as villains are usually based on humiliating stereotypes. They’re the eccentric sidekicks who chug vodka with every meal, play the accordion and keep bears as pets.’ and, ‘Western media discards the socioeconomic explanations and portrays most Slavic women as promiscuous gold-diggers, like Irina Korsakov from “Desperate Housewives” or Svetlana Yevgenivna from “Shameless.”

Wokeness isn’t a new phenomenon, writing with a social conscious has often brought about changes in the world.

These rough rules are continually changing, so the only sure help for the inclusive writer is to do plenty of research and keep up to date. The ongoing discourse about J K Rowling’s books is a good place to find a range of opinions.

Perhaps considering that a person can still be executed in eleven countries for their sexual orientation shows how much support and change is needed in this world, and good Woke writing can open our readers’ eyes to diversity. 

We are human, and we are going to have views and opinions that we might find problematic for publishers, so being aware of some of the things that agents and publishers usually won’t accept, can only help if we want to be traditionally published.

Rough dos and don’ts:

Ableism:

Using a disabled character who suddenly becomes able might well be rejected, especially in children’s books, because it can cause the child to feel less worthy. They want to relate to a character like themselves, who succeeds just as they are,.

Neurodiversity:

Is the same for Neurodiverse characters (the name, Neurodiverse, is my pet hate because all our brains are normal – they don’t have to function in one specific way).  We didn’t test for ADHD in boys until the 1950s. Girls weren’t tested until the early 90s.

The list is added to all the time as we discover new variants – new to us maybe, but they have always been there.

A list you might find useful:

HSP: Highly Sensitive Person (the only diversity that is, at the present time, known to be heretical). Often portrayed as being over emotional, dramatic, thin-skinned, over reactive. Often confused with ADHD which it can also co-present with.

Autism: Writing characters who we believe are stereotypical of Autistics – good with numbers, communitive, lacking in empathises is a narrow, old-fashioned view and often, incorrect.

ADHD: A stereotypical point of view might be a young boy causing mayhem in the class with his hyperactivity. For women it’s being forgetful and muddled.

Co-Presenting: People can present as have a wide range of neurodiversity. I am ADHD with Dyslexia. A very common one is ADHD/Autism known as AuDHD.

Dyslexia: The NHS describe dyslexia as, ‘a common learning difficulty that mainly causes problems with reading, writing and spelling. Unlike a learning disability, intelligence isn’t affected.’

Bipolar: It is not a neurodiversity but it can exist alongside one, as can anxiety and depression.

All the above conditions may be assumed but they can only be clinically diagnosed by a physiatrist.  You can’t be a bit ADHD. You may have traits with which one can seek a diagnosis, but the rigour testing is the only sure way to know. This is especially important because neurodiversity may mimic or be a cause or symptom of depression, anxiety, and trauma.

Beware of:

Sexism: It is still around, although thanks to the Me-Too movement, it is much more likely to be called out. The Peter and Jane books of my childhood seemed innocent, but would never get published now.

Consent: I got reprimanded by an agent because my protagonist made a pass at a guy and told him she wanted to sleep with him.  I’d also had her getting quite drunk first to give her courage. The problem, the agent said, was with ‘Consent.’

Being drunk, the girl wouldn’t have been able to make an informed decision and technically not consent to sex. Using assumed consent from an inebriated person wouldn’t stand up in court and could be considered, rape.  Remember the furore in Poldark when Ross Poldark seduced or forced himself (depending on your view) Elizabeth Chynoweth?

Sleeping Beauty, came under attack because she was asleep and so couldn’t give consent to being kissed.

A while ago now, a friend of mine said this was all ‘PC’ – ‘political correctness,’ a term that is rarely used now.

Transphobia: It is perhaps easer for some to write a transphobic character than it is to know and write about all the wonderful ways people identify with. This is a short list which will be quickly outdated, so keep your finger on the pulse:

• Agender: A person who does not identify with any particular gender
• Bigender: Someone who identifies genders
• Cisgender (Cis): One who identifies with the sex they were born with.
• Demigender: partly identifying with a gender, i.e. a demigirl.
• Genderfluid: A person who’s gender identity isn’t fixed
• Intersex: Having sex characteristics that cannot be defined as expected notions of female or male.

There are many more terms and ‘labels,’ for sexual identity. Many people these days feel that whatever you feel you are – you are, and should be treated and respected as such. And, of course, lots of people don’t share that view and are vocal about it. It is a free country but I believe it is unhelpful not to recognise anyone’s right to define themselves as they identify.

J.K. Rowling is so successful that she holds a powerful position of authority in speaking for those who take issue with diversity and has been accused of promoting stereotypes and transphobia.  Of course, she is not alone but she is still actively promoting her views which who read her books in childhood now feel upset by.

As an aside, the Bechdel test, started as a joke is an interesting way to see how much agency female characters have in films. In short, to pass the test a movie must have at least two named characters having a conversation together where a man doesn’t feature.

Ways that help an agent/publisher Reject your M/S:

Having a gay, black, or disabled character as your villain. I know in real life they could easily be, but ethnic minorities have suffered for centuries and writers can encourage inclusivity by their actions.

It is notably that in the past, white Americans, black Americans, Chinese Americans, Latino Americans etc. all had boxes to tick on forms to show their nationality. Even a few years ago this was not the case for Native Americans.

If you do have a racist or otherwise prejudiced character, they shouldn’t win the day. They can change their views, but a prejudiced person whose views in dialogue, action, etc. cause pain and distress to others doesn’t make a character most readers would root for, or want to go unpunished.

Appropriation of other cultures/races:

The book, The Help, by Kathryn Stockett, drew negative criticism for depicting a white woman telling the story of a generation of black maids in the 1960s southern states of America, especially the character, Aibileen.

Some viewers of the film described the protagonist as a white saviour. Sooner or later, someone of colour would have written the story of the black maids. So, the consensus seems to be that it wasn’t Stockett’s story to tell.

Ageism (The last, seemingly acceptable, prejudice?)

In novel writing, Ageism can manifest as stereotypical and negative portrayals of older characters, reflecting broader societal biases about ageing. This can range from physical descriptions emphasising decline and frailty to characterisations that reduce older individuals to eccentricities or comedic figures. Furthermore, ageism can affect publishing decisions, with some agents and editors potentially exhibiting bias against older writers, though this is not universally accepted. 

Here’s a more detailed look at the issues of

Stereotypical Representations:

• Physical Decline: Older characters are often depicted with physical limitations like poor hearing, failing health, or frailty, reinforcing negative stereotypes about ageing.
• Cognitive Decline: Ageism can lead to portrayals of older characters as forgetful, confused, or lacking in mental acuity, which is not always accurate.
• Emotional States: Older characters are sometimes portrayed as lonely, bitter, or reliant on younger characters, perpetuating harmful stereotypes about emotional well-being in later life.
• Humorous Reduction: While some positive portrayals exist, they can still fall into the trap of reducing older characters to humorous stereotypes or eccentric figures, rather than complex individuals.

Impact of Ageist Depictions:

• Reinforcing Negative Stereotypes: Stereotypical portrayals in literature can reinforce negative perceptions of ageing in society, leading individuals to internalise these biases. 
• Self-Perception: Ageism can affect older individuals’ self-esteem and self-perception, making them more likely to believe the negative stereotypes they encounter. 
• Loss of Autonomy: Ageist narratives can contribute to a sense that older people are less capable and less independent, impacting their agency and social participation. 
• Challenging Assumptions: Writers can actively challenge ageist assumptions by creating complex and nuanced portrayals of older characters, highlighting their strengths and contributions. 
• Focus on Character, Not Age. Ultimately, the focus should be on creating compelling characters, regardless of their age, rather than reducing them to age-related stereotypes. 

Stereotyping by Appearance

Having larger people classified as greedy, lazy or lacking willpower  or the generalisations of smaller people or those with disfigurements.

Personally I like novels where a person’s appearance isn’t described apart perhaps, in the internal dialogue of a character. Shows such as Bridgeton gained huge audiences.

Try to Avoid Stereotypes such as These:

1. Barely verbal autistic man (i.e. Hoffman’s character in Rain Man).
2. Tiny, submissive Asian women (Harry Potter and Madame Butterfly) sexist, racist and classist, in many peoples’ opinion.
3. Using worn-out and hurtful physical descriptions to trigger antisemitism, as in Jews having large noses and being mean (from Shakespeare’s Shylock to the Goblins running the banks in the Harry Potter series).
4. Irish people experimenting with explosions (terrorists) – such as the Irish kidnapper and former British soldier in Netflix’s The Hostage.
5. Tall, gentle, magical black guy whose father left the family (often the token)

I hope some of the above is of use. It has taken me longer than expected (ADHD brain fog) to write this little blog post. Except one section where I used A.I., that particular part took me 5 minutes to copy and paste. But is it art?! 

I recommend Lucy V. Hay’s book, Writing Diverse Characters for Fiction, TV or Film as it digs down in detail her views and advice about diversity in writing. I find it really helpful although I disagree with some points here and there.

While writing this post, I wanted to research what is probably the most appropriated people ever – the Native Americans. I wanted to find books written by them and typed in Google, ‘pure native American authors.’ Google immediately told me that my use of, ‘pure’ was problematic. I’m still learning…

And in case I haven’t been mean enough about J.K. Rowling, here’s another article: JK Rowling under fire for writing about ‘Native American wizards

Resources and some References:

Madame Butterfly stereotypes

UK Publishing Workforce Diversity Inclusion and Belonging

Guardian – Annika Review

In the Heat of the Night

Lawrentian

Bechdel Test

The Guardian – JK Rowling appropriating Navajo Tradition

And lastly, this is not comprehensive list. Please correct me, or add to it.