New Year’s countdown of 2018 reader favs: day 4

In selecting highlights of 2018 from this blog, I’ve chosen posts resonate as well in these last days of the year as they did when first written. This one about writing diverse characters in our fiction first appeared March 27, 2018.

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When submitting stories, I often come across pleas from editors for diverse characters. But can authors write about people who are different from themselves? Will diversity simply lead to cringe-worthy narratives that typecast members of minority groups – not to mention women -- as surely as putting a red shirt does to a Star Trek extra? So, I circled the panel at the weekend’s WORDfest whose title was “Writing Outside Your Identity – tips for responsibly and realistically portraying other races, genders, abilities & beliefs” as a must-see. 

Thanks to moderator Ann Fields and panelists Rebecca Balcarcel, David Douglas, Kathryn McClatchy and Bill Ledbetter, I now have some tools to keep my diverse characters from being doomed to anonymous death. Tools to rip those red shirts off their backs and replace them with a rainbow of roles.

“What’s your most effective tip for inhabiting the skin of a character different from you?” moderator Fields asked her panelists, who included a Hispanic woman (Balcarcel), two differently-abled writers (Douglas and McClatchy, who is also a Native American), and yes, Ledbetter, an actual self-identified white guy without any special qualifications in sight. Except of course, that he’s a writer. And one eager to avoid emulating a nameless and clueless colleague who attempted to write a humorous take on sexual harassment. (Ouch!)

The key, often repeated by panelists, was to remember our common humanity – and that of our characters and readers.

l-r, Douglas & McClatchy

“We all have the same likes and desires,” Ledbetter said, “but everyone has their own backstory. I try to focus on ways I might be like the person (in the story) and steer away from the way I’m different. . . but I do think you should be brave and not shy away from writing a variety of characters. Don’t block people out.”

Balcarcel agreed – to some extent but cautioned writers to know their limits. Just as Ledbetter admitted he hasn’t (yet) tried to write a sex scene from a woman’s point of view, Balcarcel noted that although she’s the mother of autistic children, “I don’t know that I would write an autistic kid (character) in first person.”

What happens when the character’s difference lies not in ethnicity or ability but in sexual orientation? Can a straight writer do justice to a gay character? (I’d love to have heard from a gay author about writing straight characters!)

Falling back on the bedrock of common humanity with different backstories, Balcarcel noted, sexual orientation “is not all there is to say about that character. Write against type if there are types.” 

And as Douglas noted, “I so have a perspective about being disabled, being in a wheelchair. The inner part is the same, but you can add outer layers.”

And of course, no “red shirts.” Characters of color should earn their spot, panelists said. Don't write a diverse character just to be diverse.

What if the “different” character is the story?

Balcarcel admitted having qualms as she undertook a story about Sally Hemings, the mixed-race slave woman with whom Thomas Jefferson had a long-term relationship (and who DNA evidence now proves fathered Hemings’ children). 

“I didn’t think I had the right to that story,” Balcarcel said. But after doing extensive research, Balcarcel found herself at a conference sitting next to one of Hemings’ descendants.

“He said, ‘Write that story. You’re a human being, plus you have done the research – so write that story!”

Ledbetter noted the benefit of having a diverse group of writing friends to give him feedback. McClatchy agreed there. “This is one of the most important reasons to be in a writers’ group. . .  (Also) we should be reading the works of people different from us. Part of writing outside our identities is dropping the assumptions we have about people. If we don’t have characters outside our comfort zone, our characters fall flat.”

And don’t be afraid to ask for help. “I would so much rather you ask me what it’s like living with a service dog,” McClatchy said. “When you mention you’re a writer, it opens doors. People want their stories to be told.”

Writing characters for all the differences in our world

When submitting stories, I often come across pleas from editors for diverse characters. But can authors write about people who are different from themselves. Will diversity simply lead to cringe-worthy narratives that typecast members of minority groups – not to mention women -- as surely as putting a red shirt on a Star Trek extra? So, I circled the panel at the weekend’s WORDfest whose title was “Writing Outside Your Identity – tips for responsibly and realistically portraying other races, genders, abilities & beliefs” as a must-see. 

With moderator Ann Fields and panelists Rebecca Balcarcel, David Douglas, Kathryn McClatchy and Bill Ledbetter, I now have some tools to keep my diverse characters from being doomed to anonymous death. Tools to rip those red shirts off their backs and replace them with a rainbow of roles.

L-r, Douglas & McClatchy

“What’s your most effective tip for inhabiting the skin of a character different from you?” moderator Fields asked her panelists, who included a Hispanic woman (Balcarcel), two differently-abled writers (Douglas and McClatchy, who is also a Native American), and yes, Ledbetter, an actual self-identified white guy without any special qualifications in sight. Except of course, that he’s a writer. And one eager to avoid emulating a nameless and clueless colleague who attempted to write a humorous take on sexual harassment. (Ouch!)

The key, often repeated by panelists, was to remember our common humanity – and that of our characters and readers.

“We all have the same likes and desires,” Ledbetter said, “but everyone has their own backstory. I try to focus on ways I might be like the person (in the story) and steer away from the way I’m different. . . but I do think you should be brave and not shy away from writing a variety of characters. Don’t block people out.”

Balcarcel agreed – to some extent but cautioned writers to know their limits. Just as Ledbetter admitted he hasn’t (yet) tried to write a sex scene from a woman’s point of view, Balcarcel noted that although she’s the mother of autistic children, “I don’t know that I would write an autistic kid (character) in first person.”

What happens when the character’s difference lies not in ethnicity or ability but in sexual orientation? Can a straight writer do justice to a gay character? (I’d love to have heard from a gay author about writing straight characters!)

Falling back on the bedrock of common humanity with different backstories, Balcarcel noted, sexual orientation “is not all there is to say about that character. Write against type if there are types.” 

And as Douglas noted, “I so have a perspective about being disabled, being in a wheelchair. The inner part is the same, but you can add outer layers.”

And of course, no “red shirts.” Characters of color should earn their spot, panelists said. Don't write a diverse character just to be diverse.

What if the “different” character is the story?

Balcarcel admitted having qualms as she undertook a story about Sally Hemings, the mixed-race slave woman with whom Thomas Jefferson had a long-term relationship (and who DNA evidence now proves fathered Hemings’ children). 

“I didn’t think I had the right to that story,” Balcarcel said. But after doing extensive research, Balcarcel found herself at a conference sitting next to one of Hemings’ descendants.

“He said, ‘Write that story. You’re a human being, plus you have done the research – so write that story!”

Ledbetter noted the benefit of having a diverse group of writing friends to give him feedback. McClatchy agreed there. “This is one of the most important reasons to be in a writers’ group. . .  (Also) we should be reading the works of people different from us. Part of writing outside our identities is dropping the assumptions we have about people. If we don’t have characters outside our comfort zone, our characters fall flat.”

And don’t be afraid to ask for help. “I would so much rather you ask me what it’s like living with a service dog,” McClatchy said. “When you mention you’re a writer, it opens doors. People want their stories to be told.”

Tall tales told briefly: a short story writer’s guide

I confess: after publishing nearly two dozen short stories, I’d given up. Writing workshops were starting to tell me my tales didn’t fit into the few-thousand-word format of a short story. Flash fiction, micro fiction? Forget about it!

Ann Fields

Then at a recent meeting of the Dallas Mystery Writers, I heard short story writer Ann Fields speak on the few (but basic) principles, and thought, maybe I’ll find the courage to try the short form again. I’ll think of it as a summer wardrobe for my writing. Fewer pieces, no layering, just the basics.

Not that Fields saw the light immediately in her own writing career. She started by writing long – four romance novels and one novella published under the pen name Anna Larence. Her short fiction has been published in the anthologies Lyrical Darkness, Voices from the Block (volumes I and II): A Legacy of African-American Literature.

“I loved the long form, but I had a day job and found it hard to keep my focus. So, I took a detour through short form and fell in love with that form of writing,” she told her mystery-writing audience.

Writers often ask how many words it takes to make a novel. How few does it take to make a short story? Like your summer wardrobe, there’s brief, briefer and briefest. Remember, like the length of your skirt hem, the following word counts are suggestions. When writing for publication, check your publisher’s website for specific guidelines.

That said, Fields’ definitions for short fiction categories range from micro fiction (up to 100 words, or less than a page), flash fiction (up to 300 words, or up to a single page), short stories (up to 10,000 words, or 35 pages or less), and novellas (up to 30,000 words, or 130 pages or less).

(I’ll add a note: in my experience, many ezines and anthologies prefer “short stories” on the shorter side, often in the 3,000 to 5,000-word range.)

That said, short form fiction still needs to be fiction. It must be a complete story with a definable beginning, middle and end. It needs well-developed characters, strong story conflict, internal (character) conflict, a provocative setting and an intriguing story question. It will also contain such basic elements as dialogue, action, description, narration (exposition) and internal monologue (introspection).

Fields notes that, because of their brief length, not all short stories will contain all of the basic elements. Still, it seems like a lot to cover while still staying under 10,000 words, maybe under 100.

Her suggestion is, rather than fixating on word-counts, simply to write the story in your heart in the way that seems natural to you – and it. “How did the story come to you?” The most important factors in determining the form (and length) of any story, she said, are the author’s intent, intuition, and writing sense.

“I credit (my intuition) to reading a lot of short stories and getting familiar with the feel and the rhythm of them.” For those not sure where to start reading short stories, she suggests the annual Best American Short Stories anthologies. “I spend way too much money at Lucky Dog Books and Half Price Books for those story anthologies.”

Other resources for finding short stories include Hemingway/PEN Award winners, New American Fiction, and  Flannery O’Connor Award winners. Favorite writers include those as diverse as J. California Cooper, O. Henry, Eudora Welty, Edgar Allan Poe, Stephen Crane and Joan Silber. (However, she urges caution when using older writers as guides. Poe’s classic, The Fall of the House of Usher, spends its first page and a half on a description of setting, something “he would not be able to get away with in modern times!”)

That said, short stories focus more strongly on a single character than do longer forms of fiction. More than a single character is acceptable, but the viewpoint of one individual must be paramount. They also have a single theme, a unified feel, and are tightly written. And only one plot. No subplots allowed! Think about whether your story can be read in a single sitting. And have fun. There’s room for experimentation and atypical styles in the short fiction format.

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Need more motivation to write short? Consider this short story writing contest that offers cash and publication credits. The Dallas Area Writers Group’s 2017 Short Story Contest (closes August 15). See the site for details.