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Happy Monday, writers!

We might no longer be doing the Doing Diversity in Writing podcast, but that doesn’t make the episodes we produced any less relevant. If you haven’t listened to the three seasons we put out yet, here’s your chance.

The full show notes and list of resources mentioned in the episode I’m sharing today can be found below.

In this episode of Doing Diversity in Writing, we—Bethany and I—about how representation actually works.

More specifically, we talk about:

  • that representation is about who we make visible and who are rendered invisible because of those decisions
  • why minority voices are automatically amplified when they are represented
  • that representation is not just about who is present within works of fiction but also about HOW they are present
  • why shoehorning diverse characters into your work isn’t the answer
  • Netflix’s Bridgerton showing us how we can reinvent the world without erasing painful histories
  • why it’s so hard to go against existing stereotypes and tropes in our writing (which doesn’t mean we shouldn’t keep trying!)

Some quotes from this week’s episode:

“When there’s very little or no representation, or all the representations are the same, that one character, that one characterisation, can be all a reader knows for a long time.”

“It’s not just the case that certain groups of people are culturally absent or not as present, there’s also the fact that those few representations of them out there tend to be stereotypical and potentially harmful.”

“If we want to make a real effort, is it enough to sneak in a single homosexual character or someone belonging to an ethnic minority? Are we doing our bit to change the world by adding one black woman to our very white cast? Or one Muslim family to our otherwise Christian or secular world?”

“Inclusion matters, but representation just for the sake of inclusion isn’t really the answer.”

“There’s more to diversity than race and gender. Don’t think you can’t write diverse characters just because it doesn’t make sense to include a cast of black or Asian or Hispanic characters in your world.”

“Each society comes with its own set of stereotypes for those who are considered ‘other’, and it’s really difficult to counter or break down these different ‘types’ and provide better alternatives.”

“Representation is not only about who we make present, it’s also about how we make them present. Doing representation right means we should think through both steps.”

And here are the (re)sources we mentioned on the show:

You can find this week’s bonus material, The Two Steps of Representation Checklist, in our Diversity in Writing Toolkit, which you can download here.

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Happy Monday, writers!

We might no longer be doing the Doing Diversity in Writing podcast, but that doesn’t make the episodes we produced any less relevant. If you haven’t listened to the three seasons we put out yet, here’s your chance.

The full show notes and list of resources mentioned in the episode I’m sharing today can be found below.

In this episode of Doing Diversity in Writing, we—Bethany and Mariëlle—talk about the fear of cultural appropriation.

More specifically, we talk about:

  • How we define cultural appropriation
  • The difference between cultural appropriation and cultural exchange
  • Assassin’s Creed III vs. Disney’s Pocahontas, and why Assassin’s Creed III does it better than Pocahontas did
  • The “So sorry about colonialism” narrative
  • Marvel’s Black Panther, and why the museum scene made Mariëlle say “Fuck yes!” aloud in the theater

Some quotes from this week’s episode:

“These days, cultural appropriation is understood to focus on those moments, those points of interaction and usage, where certain customs, practices, ideas, and so on, are being employed by usually a more dominant culture without any of the positives. There is no positive exchange going on that somehow benefits those whose culture is being used by that other, often more dominant, culture.”

“I can understand why some acknowledgement might feel like worth having, especially when there’s been almost none, but that doesn’t take away the fact that the bigger, disturbing picture remains solidly rooted within our dominant culture and history. And Pocahontas the Disney film did only acknowledge a fraction of it, while erasing the absolute tragedy and evil enacted on Pocahontas herself in real history.”

And here are the (re)sources we mentioned on the show:

You can find this week’s bonus material, our Cultural Appropriation Checklist, in our Diversity in Writing Toolkit, which you can download here.

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Happy Monday, writers!

We might no longer be doing the Doing Diversity in Writing podcast, but that doesn’t make the episodes we produced any less relevant. If you haven’t listened to the three seasons we put out yet, here’s your chance.

The full show notes and list of resources mentioned in the episode I’m sharing today can be found below.


In this episode of Doing Diversity in Writing, we discuss some of the fears and frustrations that might come up when writing diverse characters.

Here are some of the common fears and frustrations that came up:

Read More →

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Happy Monday!

We might no longer be doing the Doing Diversity in Writing podcast, but that doesn’t make the episodes we produced any less relevant. If you haven’t listened to the three seasons we put out yet, here’s your chance.

You can find the Doing Diversity in Writing podcast here or wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts. The full show notes and list of resources mentioned in this episode can be found here.


In this episode of Doing Diversity in Writing, we explained why it is so important to have a conversation about diversity and representation in fiction.

Here are some of the topics that came up:

  • the fact some characters are overrepresented while others are severely underrepresented in fiction
  • positive, and less positive, examples from our childhood and adult reading
  • Mariëlle’s #ownvoices project My Voice, My Story
  • some of the reasons our literary canon is the way it is, even though things are slowly changing
  • how representing diverse characters is not just about quantity, it’s also about the quality of those representations

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In Podcast episodes, Writing Diversity
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Happy Monday!

We might no longer be doing the Doing Diversity in Writing podcast, but that doesn’t make the episodes we produced any less relevant. If you haven’t listened to the three seasons we put out yet, here’s your chance.

You can find the Doing Diversity in Writing podcast here or wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts. The full show notes and list of resources mentioned in this episode can be found here.


In this first episode of Doing Diversity in Writing, we talked about why we started this podcast, what our goals are for the show, and what topics we will be discussing in our first season and beyond.
Here are some of the topics that came up:

  • who this podcast is for—fiction writers wanting to write characters who aren’t like them in one or multiple ways
  • our personal experiences with diversity and how these influenced both our writing and editing
  • why we need to have a conversation about writing diversity in fiction
  • why we believe anyone can write about diverse characters
  • the privilege of not having to care about diversity and why this is exactly why you should take up your pen and join the cause
  • how our podcast will help you work through any fears around writing diverse characters you may have