- Spears, Sorcery, and Double Consciousness (Part 2) (Part 3) – a series about African-inspired fantasy and the Western vs Non-Western writer.
- Sexy Loki, Queer Tricksters, and the Problem with LGBT Villains – an opinion piece on how lgbt+ villains are written and used in fiction.
- Postcolonial Fantasy and African Against the Word “Tribe” – a discussion on the use of the word “tribe” in fiction, especially fantasy.
- The “Other” Histories of Fantasy – about (the lack of) non-European settings in fantasy and drawing from history.
- Fantasy’s “Othering” Fetish – about the portrayal of POC in fantasy, particularly how they are “othered”.
- Green-Eyed Asian – about giving POC traits that are more common in white people in an attempt to “beatify” or “exotify” them.
- Respective Portrayals of Asians in the Media and How to Balance Them – a primer on stereotypes and portrayals of Asians and Asian-Americans in American media.
- No Queens in Afrika: Women Rulers in Sword & Soul and Other African-Inspired Fantasy – about the use of the word “queen” in relation to non Western European (mostly African) female rulers.
- Tropes of Women of Color in Sci-FI – an eight-part series looking at five tropes that surround women of color in sci-fi.
- Why Sci-Fi Keeps Imagining the Subjugation of White People – an article about the popular topic of colonialism and anti-colonialism in sci-fi.
- On Black Women, Teen TV, and Fantasy Space – a short article about the desirability of black women in fiction and its relationship with women being validated “through heteronormative romantic success”.
- On the Erasure of People of Color from Dystopian Fiction – about the absence of POC in speculative fiction, particularly futuristic settings.
- Mary Anne Mohanraj Gets You Up to Speed Part I (Part II) – a two-part essay about race and racism in fiction and about writing a race other than your own.
- You’re Hurting My Head Again SF/F – a rant on erasing an entire race for the sake of an alternate history.
- Diversity and Disability – about the lack of representation for disabled people in YA fiction and the two tropes that often surround disability in fiction.
- No, Really, Stop Raping Your Women! – disputing arguments that favor rape and sexual assault against women in fantasy.
- Monstrous Females and Female Monsters – on the difference between the portrayal of male monsters and female monsters, and on what makes a female character a monster.
- How White Writers Should Address Racism – a short post on how characters address racial and ethnic prejudice in fiction.
- Dystropia: Why the Sassy Gay Friend Isn’t Progressive – an article on writing “sassy gay friends” and how it can turn bad quickly.
Tag: representation matters
Protesters upset about the smearing of Mike Brown converged at CNN headquarters.
From preboot to reboot:
Etta Candy
Kendra Saunders
Alanna Strange
Helena Bertinelli
((Also characters with intersectional identities as well))
Disclaimer: This is not an exhaustive list of all the types of representation in comics.
(**Wanda & Pietro Maximoff are also ethnically Jewish.)
I realized I never really got in depth with my character designs and that left some people feeling a bit confused. This was a really fun project though, and I’m overwhelmed at the amount of positive feedback I got from it. Thank you! I hope this little explanation helps.
This is set in the Philippines during the Spanish Colonization era. I have no specific date, but it’d probably fall in the 1800s. I wanted to make it a point that they were all Christian so I made them wear scapulars. (despite how unchristian the step mother and step sisters act haha)
The style of clothing is Maria Clara.The dress takes its name from one of the protagonists in Noli Me Tangere, one of the most important pieces of literature in Filipino History. Although not shown here, I drew Cinderella with glass bakya ( wooden slippers) To push the design more.
The step-mother and sisters were based on Doña Victorina, also from Noli Me Tangere, who was described as a social climber who would powder her face extremely white to make her look ‘mestiza’ or western. There was already that belief that being of Spanish or descent means you are wealthy.
For the fairy godmother, I based her clothes on traditional Maguindanao clothing, although I did take a lot of liberties with it. Instead of a fairy, I turned her in to a diwata which is the closet I could think of to a Filipino version of a fairy.
Lastly, the Prince, I envisioned as someone who came from a sultanate, hence his middle eastern inspired clothing. Honestly, I just didn’t want her to end up with a Spanish prince. ( happy endings with your colonizer felt odd to me)
It’s been an incredibly difficult five days with what’s happened in what I look at as my back yard. Last night watching the live feeds of what was happening in Ferguson, MO was absolutely unbelievable and I spent the entire night refreshing twitter feeling total shame and despair.
Today though, across the country there were little glimpses of light at this very dark tunnel. Being consumed by this level of anger feels exhausting, and take that with an incredibly huge grain of salt because that’s just what I with the privilege of being a white male am capable of feeling. I’m not capable of comprehending the real pain. At today’s NMOS14 demonstration in Chicago, an incredible number of people gathered on short notice. The assembly was peaceful. We listened to people express their hurt, their hope, their anger, and their drive to change things. Once my camera died (again, short notice on this rally), I biked straight to my computer to share the solidarity- if only here in Chicago.
I know this isn’t really the stuff I normally post on here, but I figure the one time I’m literally crying while taking pictures is probably a good time to post stuff. My gratitude goes to everyone organizing today, and not just here but everywhere.
Zelda Wynn Valdes was the first black female fashion designer to own her own boutique. Her famous, figure hugging silhouette was worn by stars such as Dorothy Dandridge, Josephine Baker, Ella Fitzgerald, Joyce Bryant, Maria Cole, Edna Robinson and later superstars like Gladys Knight and opera diva Jessye Norman. She also designed dresses for legendary figures like Marlene Dietrich and Mae West.
Valdes came up with the costume for the Playboy Bunny which remains the same to this day.
Practice with Pronouns is a site that lets you practise subject, object, possessive, and reflexive forms of English third person pronouns. It comes with a few of the most common options, but you can also fill in whatever pronouns you like. Useful for both English learners and people wanting to practise using nonbinary pronouns.
As if it couldn’t get any more delightful, it often uses quotes from Welcome to Night Vale in the practice sentences, which is definitely far more entertaining than See Spot Run. The feedback sentences are also very cute.
(Hm, I’m pretty sure the second blank in that screenshot should have said “xyr”, in retrospect.)
LemonGrenade 