MORE 'REPRESENTATION' POSTS
Dear reader, let my life be a lesson: Let not the pains of rejection keep you silent. Instead, let them be the contrary wind that pushes your sails onward listen to the wants permeating within your heart and quiet your every wondering brain.
I wanted to write a party mix of all of it, those things that I love, in a story world where I and everyone else exists, because that’s the book I wanted to read as a teen but couldn’t find.
Author Maya Prasad joins TLT to discuss joyful representation in the era of book bans
As writers, and readers, we connect with so many characters that are so different from us – that’s the beauty of the books. I hope that by having more biracial characters in books we can make those connections deeper.
Much like how my main character, Harris, doesn’t want his wheelchair to be the first thing people notice about him, as the author, I don’t want disability to be the only takeaway from my book.
I’m more determined than ever to create characters and stories that represent the identities and lives of people who have always been and continue to be marginalized. We deserve better.
It's my hope that Repairing the World, a book ostensibly about grief and healing, will also be a place for Jewish kids (Reconstructionist or not) to see themselves in a story. I want to illustrate how normal it is for kids to have help managing their mental health. And, that grownups and kids can be queer or questioning and it’s just part of life. It doesn’t have to be a big deal.
When I was growing up, if I had a big feeling about something, books were the first place I turned…but there was nothing on the shelves that could have helped me learn about being queer, or trans, or autistic.
Creators of the graphic novel SQUIRE talk process, inspiration, and being left out of fantasy stories.
Between Safe and Real wasn’t fun to write and it’s unlikely readers will think it’s fun to read, but I’m okay with that because I truly believe representation matters, even when it’s not fun.
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