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Nov. 14th, 2007 02:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vr_trakowskiLet me preface this by saying--I'm white. My father claims that there are Mongols in our ancestry somewhere, back when his side of the family was dallying in Russia, but we have no proof of this. We're nearly as ethically dull as it's possible to get and very Caucasian.*
That said--how do you describe race/ethnicity when you're writing?
It's a question I've been pondering for some time. I actively don't wish to give offense when I write (except possibly to people who are already offensive). And it seems silly to me to out-and-out mention a character's ethnicity/skin color when I'm introducing them in a story, unless it's immediately important to the plot.
But it seems to me, and I'm NOT pointing any fingers here, that so often fictional characters are assumed to be white unless some mention is made otherwise. Mind you, we don't have to introduce and describe so many people in fanfic, because after all we know most of them already. But most stories, at least longer ones, do bring in original characters that need to be pictured and fleshed out. One may, of course, use ethnic names and/or accents to illustrate a given character as they are introduced, but (at least for me) it's not something one can do every time. When it comes to CSI fic, there's going to be plenty of folks of all varieties to choose from.
So--what do you do as a writer?
*Though, come to think of it, I doubt the Russian part of the family tree had anything to do with the Caucasus. *grin*
That said--how do you describe race/ethnicity when you're writing?
It's a question I've been pondering for some time. I actively don't wish to give offense when I write (except possibly to people who are already offensive). And it seems silly to me to out-and-out mention a character's ethnicity/skin color when I'm introducing them in a story, unless it's immediately important to the plot.
But it seems to me, and I'm NOT pointing any fingers here, that so often fictional characters are assumed to be white unless some mention is made otherwise. Mind you, we don't have to introduce and describe so many people in fanfic, because after all we know most of them already. But most stories, at least longer ones, do bring in original characters that need to be pictured and fleshed out. One may, of course, use ethnic names and/or accents to illustrate a given character as they are introduced, but (at least for me) it's not something one can do every time. When it comes to CSI fic, there's going to be plenty of folks of all varieties to choose from.
So--what do you do as a writer?
*Though, come to think of it, I doubt the Russian part of the family tree had anything to do with the Caucasus. *grin*
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no subject
Date: 2007-11-14 09:41 pm (UTC)It's difficult to know which way to go. I don't have just randomly ethnic characters in my stories. There's a plot reason for it (For example, in DR, the DC area is very diverse. I would be remiss if I had an all white cast...if you look around here at all, you will see people of wildly different backgrounds). Also, I enjoy having diverse characters...but it's hard to get that in without being ham handed and sounding contrived.
BTW, I'm about as white as white can be (my Polish relatives may have been cavorting with yours at some point).
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Date: 2007-11-15 03:45 am (UTC)Yeah, it does depend on the setting. My OCs usually just show up ready-made as far as appearance, though sometimes I can change them. DC has one of everybody and three of most!
It's a puzzle.