August 21, 2017

Diverse Characters - P + Q + R



INTRODUCTION:

There’s been a lot of talk about adding diverse characters to fictional books. Most of the time, this is about including people of color if you’re a Caucasian writer, but all writers can add diverse characters to their books. And why stop at race? In this series, I’m going to list all sorts of diverse characters.

Note: I'm not knowledgeable about all types of people, so I'm skipping my usual tips in favor of letting others share their knowledge. See below 

**I won't be able to list them all, so here's a list of ethnic groups...with a list of even more lists at the bottom of the page. lol




Here are the diverse characters for P:



Pacific Islanders

Pagans

Palmists (palm readers)

Peruvian Individuals

Panamanians (Individuals from Panama)

Paraguayans (Individuals from Paraguay)

Pilgrims

Pioneers

Pirates

Polish Individuals

Portuguese individuals 

Pregnant Women

Priests

Priestesses 

Princes

Princesses

Polio Survivors

Poor Individuals

Prostitutes 

Psychics

Puerto Ricans 



Here are the diverse characters for Q:


Quadriplegics

Quadruplets

Quakers

Queens




Here are the diverse characters for R:


Ranchers

Rappers

Redheads

Rednecks

Republicans

Riders

Robots

Romans (Rome)

Romanians (Romania) 

Russians

Rwandan Individuals 




SHARE: If you can come up with more diverse characters that start with P, Q, or R, let me know and I will add them to my list.

QUESTION: Do you have tips or Do's/Dont's for one of the characters I mentioned above? Share your advice for writing about those characters in your comment.


Have you written about a character from my list?



47 comments:

  1. Hi Chrys - great selection ... I could add Portuguese peoples ... and Riders - that covers a variety of two wheels and four legged ones ... cheers Hilary

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  2. Excellent list. You could add Peruvian and Rwandan. And is it polite to say, queer?

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    1. Thanks, Bish! I added both. Well...I think some would take offense to "queer."

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  3. For P, I'd also add polio survivors. I think I have twelve polio survivor characters, four of whom had non-paralytic polio (in which the paralysis was either very temporary or never fully set in). Another R would be Roman Catholics.

    I've obviously got a huge amount of Russian characters! A really important distinction I honestly never realized until about age nineteen or twenty is that the experience, history, culture, etc., of the Russian Orthodox Christians I focus on is MUCH different than those of Russian Jews. For example, it would've been really hard to find anyone in the latter group with positive feelings towards the Tsar and Imperial Family. Many also wouldn't have had real Russian names, but instead Yiddish first names and traditional Ashkenazic surnames with Russified spellings (like Rozental or Kats).

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    1. I'll add polio survivors. :) I sure do know you have a big cast of Russian characters, which I think is neat. It's not often when you come across a book with a lot of Russian characters.

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  4. I've used a few this time indeed. After I saw the pic of the queen another popped in. Would Privileged count for P?

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    1. I could add "Rich" for R. I think that would qualify to also mean privileged.

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  5. Another great list, and many I never would have thought of. You really don't see a lot of pregnant characters, do you?

    Also, redneck is right next to Republican, and I have to admit that did make me chuckle a bit.

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    1. I did notice that rednecks and Republicans were close. Totally not planned. lol

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  6. Loved the ones of our much loved Queen and the Late Princess Diana....20 yrs this months she died.
    A wonderful post altogether.

    Yvonne.

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  7. Some more great ideas to spark my imagination. The ones that grabbed my attention were palmists, Quakers and robots. I wonder if I could manage to work a Quaker robot palm reader into a story :-)

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    1. I love to mix and match the character ideas here. These lists can certainly help to create unique characters.

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  8. How about quacks? You know, those charlatans who bilk people out of their money. You have quite a long list to consider.

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  9. Great list! One of the members of my local writing group is a Quaker with Pagan leanings. An odd mix!

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  10. I'd add professors to the list, but that's mainly because I work in academia. That's one reason I like Jhumpa Lahiri's work: there are professors and grad students everywhere in her stories.

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    1. I can put professors on the list. I had college students on it for C. :)

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  11. I don't work hard at putting "diverse" characters in my works. Though, just about all my stories have some "special" demographics in them. I find that real life is diverse, so these people just naturally show up.

    Sometimes I feel bullied by all the controversy. What if my gay guy doesn't meet stereotype? Suppose I have a one armed white guy who isn't a war veteran? Suppose my "African American" doesn't speak black English?

    I hate quota's.

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    1. Stereotypes don't always work or are appreciated. People are all different. Not all gay men talk or act the same. Not all amputees are vets. And not all black people speak or like the same things. Same goes for everyone else, in all diversities. Even Caucasians.

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  12. It's early and my brain hasn't kickstarted yet, but I think you have a great list going.
    sherry @ fundinmental

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    1. No worries. I hope you're feeling more awake now.

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  13. Quite a comprehensive list, Chrys. Do redheads really have a short temper or is that a stereotype? You're not really a red-head but more golden haired so you may not have the answer, LOL. For 'q' someone that is of Quaker religion might be interesting.

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    1. It's funny that you say that because I have been thinking of dying my hair red. :)

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  14. As someone from a family of redheads, I don't really consider them (us) diverse. But that's just me. Someone who doesn't have redheads everywhere might.

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    1. What I mean by diverse in these posts isn't just race but all the things that make us different, and red hair isn't too common.

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  15. Great list. And I liked everyone's suggestions too.

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  16. I wonder if anyone ever wrote from the viewpoint of a poltergeist? They must feel horrible a
    Ways throwing things across the room, dropping things when all they want is to be noticed. With Q, I think of 2 things...Queens but not the regal kind, the rainbow kind who really know how to strut their stuff. The other is my friend's pug named Quinn who is a real nut and loves the water! Last, R....for rebel. Some can be a rebel when they are young or maybe just for a year or 2 whole others try to make an art out of being one...Like my mom

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    1. I had gay individuals under G. Oh, rebels. I love that. I'll had it to the list. Thanks!

      And it would be interesting to write about a poltergeist. Far more so than writing about an ordinary ghost.

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  17. Redheads and psychics feature prominently in my GhostWriters series, so yes!

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  18. This is a great list for writers who are looking to add diversity in their characters! Thanks for sharing!

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  19. I used to write a lot of satire about Republicans but it became too depressing :)

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  20. Awesome list of characters! I come in the Pacific Islander list!

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  21. One that's missing from your R, the Roma, better known as gypsies, but the term gypsy is a racial slur. :-)

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    1. I have gypsies under G but had no idea it was a racial slur.

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  22. Great list. Loved seeing what people added in the comments too. :)
    ~Jess

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  23. I'd be interested in writers using the way a character handles a situation or their character traits rather than physical descriptors to explain what type of character they are (whether hispanic, a gypsy, gay, brown haired, black haired or what have you). I feel like readers and writers alike gain more when an author can describe the character through their actions rather than using a description. Just my humble opinion though… Great list! :)

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    1. I agree. How a character looks should never he a driving force in as story. What they do is far more important.

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