December 24, 2020

042 - Fiction Writing and Diversity with Bethany Tucker

1 hour 3 minutes

What's this episode about:

Diversity is a hot and scary topic for many people.

Diversity it not just about race, it's about gender, sexuality, disability, neuro-divergence and all the other ways human beings differ from one another. It's acknowledging others come from a different background and life experience to yours.

Bethany Tucker talks about her own experiences meeting a diverse mix of people at college and gives us a framework for what 'diverse' is.

Bethany brings the conversation back to literature, highlighting that you write what the 'norm' is within your culture.

We then dive into personal bias and how, as writers, you can increase awareness of your own bias, in both your fiction and your real life. Bethany suggests you start with two questions:

Who do you trust?
who do you not trust?

Bethany Tucker explains that ingroup/outgroup behaviour is when you change your behaviour to fit in with a group, so you're not seen as 'other'.

To break down your biases, Bethany encourages you to get to know those who are 'other' to you. Read about them or watch movies with those people in them, so in time they stop being 'other' and become human. Find the commonalities.

Should majority writers write about others? Yes, says Bethany Tucker, because literature is one of the ways we create community and who we align with in society.

You have, as writers, the power to change the way society perceives itself. Britain, for example, is no longer a purely English speaking, Caucasian society, and that needs to be reflected in story.

The topic of gender/sexuality is another hot potato, and we discuss how language changes over time and how one term may be right for one person, yet trigger another.

We delve into the world of sensitivity readers and where you can find one. Start with your real-life and virtual community, says Bethany, and work out from there.

Bethany Tucker talks, too, about her upcoming podcast with Mariëlle Smith, which will focus on the many aspects of writing diversity, and how to do it right!

You can find out more by contacting Bethany HERE.

A book will follow later next year.

If you have questions around diversity you'd like to see discussed, let Bethany know HERE.

You can find out about Bethany's own fiction HERE.

You can learn more about Bethany Tucker's editing service here on her website, The Art and Science of Words – Editing; Education; Author Support