ello lovelies, idk where i'm going with this post but I just wanted to talk about the importance of using POC characters, some tips on how to use them (which idk are correct or not but you'll be the judge of that), and also my experience using them in my stories.

It seems like I'm shading, I'm not lmAo. I'm also gonna use my books as examples. Also, if I'm being insensitive I'm talking about ethnicity/nationality/race and etc, please let me know NICELY in the comments.

For those who don't know (because there are people who don't know:

POC: people of colour
WOC: women/woman of colour

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Okay I didn't know whether or not to add this to my "how to be successful on Wattpad" series, me talking about adding POC characters but I decided against it because it ain't a technique to get popular and trendy. I believe it's important to do this regardless of how popular it'd make your book. It's not mandatory, but if you do it, don't do it just because you want more views. That ain't cool bro.

So first off, I'd just like to stress on the importance of using people of color when it comes to casting for characters in fanfics. I believe that it is important to have diversity in literature because it promotes acceptance and celebrates different cultures and etc. It's nice for the readers especially to see characters that are from the countries or places they're from, it helps them relate more to the story.

FINDING FACE CLAIMS

↦ Sometimes hard to find face claims. So for that here's some help:

∙ there's a few POC face claims books I've seen around on Wattpad. My friend pradadevil does one so check that out.

∙ there's an account in Instagram called ifoundbae where they have WOC and ifoundbeau is the male version but it's a pretty new account and doesn't have that many dudes.

∙ I think Pinterest is also a good place to look! But I mainly use the second option (:

FANFICTIONS ON WATTPAD

↦ I think I'm starting to see people use a lot more POC characters and main female leads who are WOCS which is amazing. But from what I've seen, there hasn't been enough representation of Asians and Arabs (maybe even more than that). Like maybe there's side characters, but not enough female leads. This is purely from what I've noticed, and I might be a little hypocritical because I haven't had any Asian characters but I've already included some in my future works for both main and side characters.

Comment if you've noticed this too!!

↦ One thing that kinda annoys me with some of the stories I've read with POC characters and a WOC lead, is the lack of CULTURE! I just feel like, what's the point of using POC if you're not gonna showcase their culture in your story. Like just adding to the cast an Arab but not mentioning their cultural background anywhere in the story is a nO. Sure they could be Arab but raised in the U.S. or something, but maybe explain that? Because if you don't, then it just seems like you're adding an Arab just to show "diversity". Ya feel?

(Let me also add that I might AGAIN be a hypocrite because I didn't do this AS much with Sage, and maybe even other characters not sure. But I'm learning and I'm improving with my future works)

∙ Ways to make it realistic can be as simple as
giving the characters names that are actually like where they're from, like an Arabic/Mexican/German etc name and surname. You have to do your research with good intentions, specifically if your main character and you aren't the same ethnicity/nationality etc, you know what I mean.

∙ You can also have the character speaking the language of their country, kinda hard if you don't actually know the language. In True Colors, I've gotten SO MUCH shit for spelling words wrong when I make Adriana speak Spanish, even though I have a person who translates. Apparently I use Colombian Spanish and not Mexican Spanish and all that, so it's difficult sometimes and you need to be careful with it.

∙ You can show culture by adding in phrases or slang that's a part of the character's culture. Again, I'd suggest talking to people from that country and asking what sort of slang they use. I live in Dubai so I'm constantly surrounded by Arabs and my mom's a Muslim so I when I wrote Stargirl with Chingyonce and also introduced the character Sami (who's an Egyptian) in Run & Hide: I knew exactly what to say.

∙ It was really heartwarming to see the flood of comments coming in from Arab readers saying how much they appreciate the representation and all that. The only problem with this is that other readers may not understand what the character is saying or like won't get the slang or the joke, so like don't use slang THAT much because then it'll get annoying and frustrating for the readers who can't relate.

∙ Try to include small things like the type of food or music they listen to, however it all depends on the character's background and upbringing. Some of this might not be THAT necessary if the character was brought up in a different country like the U.S. when they're Indian or something. I was born and brought up in Dubai, yet my parents make it MANDATORY that I follow Sri Lankan culture and not forget my roots lmao. But then there's other people who're like whitewashed who live in America and shiz. So yeah, depends on your character's background and how in touch with their culture they really are.

↦ Moving on: POC in period or historical novels/fanfiction. This is by the way for historical fanfcition that's following historical events, not fictional historical fan fiction.

When a novel is set in a certain time period, I believe it's important to take into consideration what's happening with minorities during that time period. Like it would annoy me if I see the main character in a 1500s fanfiction is Indian, because like how would you explain how this character from India ended up in idk France in the 1500s. Unless you have a really smart way of explaining that, it'd just make no sense. So like in historical fanfics, I believe it's fine if the main isn't a WOC or if there's too little POC.

∙ You can still use one but only if you figure out a way to explain her background. For example, in Heavy Crown, the girl playing Reina is a Moroccan and I really wanted to show that she's a WOC in the Fanfiction itself. But obviously it's fictional medieval times and Morocco didn't exist also she's a princess and people of color weren't really royals at the time. So I figured out a way by saying that her mother was a foreigner from foreign lands beyond the realm, who married her father and became a Lady, thus explaining how she's a woman of color. I used Morocco and the religion of Islam to portray the whole foreigners thing.

∙ So yeah, when it comes to historical fanfictions my advice is to be mindful and do TONS of research if you want to add POC characters. It'll only help make your story more realistic since it's historical (unless it's fictional historical).

Alright I think that's about it, please let me know if I missed anything. Please remember that not to feel guilty if you haven't added in POC characters. It's not a mandatory thing like I said before. Just remember if you do decide to do it, don't do it because everyone else is doing it and all that, do it with good intentions and a lot of research (:

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I hope this was somewhat helpful? Once again it was all my personal opinions and things I've noticed and shiz. If you disagree well I can't do anything about that. Sorry it was sorta a rant as well lmao but please comment your thoughts, tell me if I've missed anything as well!

Also update on my books: I'm close to finishing a Heavy Crown chapter, that'll hopefully go up today or tomorrow. I will be taking True Colors off hold but I won't be able to update it until maybe after my exams. It's a long wait and I hope you guys respect that, let me know what you think. I'll put up an A/N anyways.

THAT'S ALL FOLKS