How to Write a Diverse Character in the Midst of a Cancel Culture

It can be tough in today’s culture to know when and if to write any character given that just about any one of the 7 billion people on the planet could accuse you of being racist, homophobic, genophobic, or any other number of titles that suddenly make you a bad person for trying to be creative and trying to write something you were hoping the world would enjoy and love.

Most writers that I can think of don’t spend their days thinking, “how can I create a character that is so offensive that mass amounts of people will trash me and my writing on social media?”

I can’t think of any, (except maybe Ben Settle, but his marketing is edgy. It’s his thing) But seriously most writers are trying to create entertaining and interesting reads for their audience.

And just so you know, I’m not saying this because it recently happened to me, I just see it happening in general. It even happened to J.K. Rowling recently of all people.

I’m sure she was sitting in her hidden cavern by candle light, plucking away at a typewriter laughing maniacally as she wrote the character she knew would really make people mad.

So in the midst of a culture where any number of 7 billion people can get access to your work, and any amount of them can find reason to be offended about it, how do we write characters AT ALL?

Let’s figure it out together!

You don’t have to be everything in order to write anything.

Some of cancel culture mentality is that you have to be the type of character you are writing about. If you want to write about a white person you have to be a white person. If you want to write about an American Indian, you have to be AMerican Indian. If you want to write about another being from planet mars you have to be from mars…oh wait…no they haven’t said that one yet…hmmmmm…well I’m sure it’s coming soon.

I think you can see my point. If we think like this, we’re saying you can’t write about a spy unless you are or have been a spy. Did you spend 10 years in the military? Did you dodge death at least 20 times? Have you grabbed a grenade out of the air while jumping from a helicopter into a pond teeming with man eating crocodiles and throw the grenade through a fiery hoop and blow up the bad guy?

No? Well sorry then you can’t write about it. Save it for us that have the experience okay buddy?

Of course, I’m being a BIT ridiculous here, but hopefully we can see the point. If we keep saying you can’t write about it unless you are it or have experienced it that really limits the amount of anything any one writer can write about without being attacked.

The character’s color/type/gender/culture doesn’t have to be the focal point of their existence.

Did you go to the store today?

Yes.

Oh my goodness! I didn’t know your type of people do that! That’s fascinating! Why did you go?

Uh…to get food?

Food! Oh my! What kind of food do your kind of people like?

I mean, I like cereal…

OH my! Cereal! This is gold! I’m writing this down! Hang on! I’ll be right back!

For some reason it seems like when we jump on the cnacel culture bandwagon there is this weird need to say that based on a character’s preferences it means they won’t act a certain way or do certain things because of those preferences. And of course this is true, but it’s also not true.

We have to stay away from thinking about people in a herd mentality and think of characters on more of an individual basis.

Let’s talk me for example. All of my family plays tennis. I was expected to also play tennis. It’s in my culture, but when I was little I wanted nothing to do with tennis, because in my little circle, EVERYONE played tennis and I for some reason always wanted to be “different” so I didn’t want to play.

Now if that were some random character a person although meaning well, might say, “that character definitely wouldn’t have chosen not to play tennis. It’s their culture, their heritage. They would have played and been very good, not the other way around.”

Who are we to say what a character that another person is writing would or wouldn’t do?
Real people make INDIVIDUAL decisions all the time. There is literally no limit to the possibilities of a brand new character being added to the universe.

Personally, to put SO many labels on people is a bit counterproductive in my mind. I mean why can’t people just be people that make choices everyday?

Why do they have to be a straight, white, American Indian, that likes to play soccer?

Why can’t they be steve? Why can’t Steve like to play soccer and drink tea with his grandma on saturday mornings? Why can’t Steve like to help his neighbor with their groceries when he sees them pulling into their driveway? Why can’t Steve secretly long to be an alien?

The point is, unless it completely is the focal point of your character on purpose or it is the main points of your plot you don’t have to be as dramatically focused on their gender, color, sexual identity stuff as much as the cancel culture is.

Just write the character you want to and have them make choices about their life based on their specific circumstances, just like a normal person would.

Don’t bother trying to please the “woke police;” try to not write poorly.

I love this advice. No matter what you set out to do, someone will come along and try to put the “hate” on you. These days, you could call these people the “woke police.” Maybe they are a “troll.”

Whoever they are they have too much free time and not enough of it are they using to try to help those nearest to them. They seem angry and like they score the interchannels of social media looking for the next fight to pick. Don’t be these people.

Be someone that creates, not destroys. If we don’t like something, that’s fine, we don’t have to like it. We don’t even have to read it or watch it. It’s okay to be reading something, not like something in it and put it down and go do something else.

We don’t have to be someone that is constantly out for blood.

We don’t have to be afraid of these people that are offended by almost anything and everything. We have to continue to write and think and create. It’s in our DNA.

So don’t set out to please the haters. Set out to write something really entertaining or inspirational. Something you enjoy writing. Do good research and make sure to study your character well and write them in a way that makes others interested in them and the way they make decisions in their specific life and world.

Make sure your characters are convincing. Interact with people from the backgrounds you want to write about. Don’t just google stuff, talk to people too. You never know where your own journey in writing a story about a beloved character might take you.

Write whatever you want and treat people with respect.

When you are writing a character treat them with the honest respect you would anyone. Just because they make morally bad decisions in their journey doesn’t mean you disrespected them. It just means they made some bad choices along the way.

What consequences do they discover? Do they decide to change? Do they continue down a road of continual self-destruction?

These are all interesting questions and if we were constantly worried about what other people think we might never even try to find the answers for these characters. Don’t let the “woke police” stifle your creativity.

People are always going to have opinions and that is NEVER going to change, but here is the funny thing. THEIR OPINIONS CAN AND DO CHANGE.

100 years ago what is offensive now isn’t offensive then. What isn’t offensive now was offensive then. 100 years from now these people will be offended by other things.

We just can’t please everyone’s opinion. It’s ACTUALLY LITERALLY impossible.

So instead of trying to please people, focus on writing amazing characters in amazing stories, with amazing writing.

Final Thoughts

Writing characters is less about specific “groups” of people and more about individuals making their own individual choices for their specific circumstance.

For example, just because someone comes from the south doesn’t mean they’ll always love sweet tea and country music. They also might love those things. That’s okay. They’re an individual that makes individual choices just like everyone else.

That’s the fun of creating a character. You get to decide what they like and what they don’t like. You get to create where they’re from and how they think and why.

In real life, granny may be an assassin. The pastor may be a hypocrite. Junior might be a serial killing machine.

In real life, people of all colors, all types, all preferences, all backgrounds make individual choices.

Do I follow the mob? Do I stay home? Do I watch tv? Do I go out with my friends? Do I date this person or this person?

If our characters were REAL people, the “woke cancel culture” that keeps attacking the next target they find that offends THEM wouldn’t go after them saying, “You can’t make these decisions because you’re defined by your sexuality/color/culture Or whatever.” Now, might they disagree with their personal preferences and choices? Yes. But we should be entitled to our personal opinions and freedoms. (That’s just my opinion.)

Stereotypes in writing aren’t inherently bad. They are real. If you do your research well, YOU WILL FIND STEREOTYPES. That’s why they exist in the first place.

For instance, my family is a stereotypical family. We watch movies WE LIKE. We don’t watch movies and tv we don’t like. My father in law loves bluegrass. That’s stereotypical where he’s from, but THAT’S OKAY. He’s allowed to like bluegrass and if someone got inspiration to write a character after him, if they wrote about his love for bluegrass is that wrong?

The problem is people are constantly searching for ways to be offended. The problem is NOT creative writers that want to write diverse characters. The problem is not writers that are curious about lifestyles and cultures they weren’t raised in.

Characters used to be fun and a blank slate and you could study anyone and find really amazing stuff to write about.

Now writers feel trepid and avoid writing certain things because they don’t want to be attacked by the mob that “who knows what they’ll be offended by next week?”

In a truly free creative space, NOTHING is off limits.

One of the key things is, don’t become one of these “cancel everything that offends you” people.

And if someone writes something you don’t like or agree with, YOU DON’T HAVE TO LIKE IT OR AGREE WITH IT. IT’S OKAY. 🤣

But we can agree to disagree and still get along peacefully without trying to attack people for trying to be creative and write.

Instead work on honing your skill as a writer. Be so good that people can’t ignore you.

But that’s just my opinion and you’re welcome to disagree with it if you like 🤙

Please feel free to leave a comment on what you agree and disagree with in this post.

How are you going to write your next interesting character in the midst of a cancel culture?

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Hope that helps!

Happy writing!

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How to Write a Diverse Character in the Midst of a Cancel Culture

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How to Write a Diverse Character in the Midst of a Cancel Culture