Multicultural Writers Perceptions of People
By LMReviews on Nov 28, 2008 in Multicultural Writing
Photo Credit: Amsterdamed
Like I mentioned earlier, I did my first book signing at a local RWA chapter meeting. I sold seven books, which was a good night for an audience that generally shows little interest in multicultural romance. There are two other authors that have written multicultural, one writes Hawaiian romance and the other author wrote a Sci-Fi with some multicultural themes. However, I don’t think either writer incorporates interracial romance in their works.
One customer came up and she was really attracted to my book cover. She asked more about Amira Press, my publisher and I mentioned that they are a multicultural publisher. She mentioned thinking that was the case but she had to tell me that my heroine on the cover didn’t really look black. I’ve heard that a lot. My heroine has a caramel complexion—very similar to my own. It’s interesting that we hold on to certain narrow perceptions of ethnic color. I love my dark sisters and brothers, but I tend to envision my characters look like me so my heroines tend to me lighter—for now. It’s that kind of thinking I am trying to broaden. People come in all shades, not just blacks, but all people.
I went to elementary school with a girl that identified herself as Caucasian. She was so dark, that people made fun of her and called her ‘golden girl’. She was beautiful with hazel eyes and golden head of loose curls like a lion’s mane. Her skin was so dark, but you knew the minute you looked at her that she wasn’t black. Her brother on the other hand was a pretty average looking brown haired Caucasian boy. Being friends with her at such a young age altered my perception of what color is and how it’s reflected in any ethnicity.
