Thank you for sharing!

An excellent way to connect! And, thank you!

Thanks Amy, for those articles!

I like to think I'm over the tokenism and appropriation hurdles, and relish a deep dive into other (than WASP) cultures and human diversity.

But... I like to do some of the bad things, on purpose - for the sake of the fictional narrative. One of my worst is, having an anglo-white character wear Hindu clothing, plus an Islamic headscarf. They appropriate, and wrongly, too. I don't go in and 'fix' this, because the story needs the misdemeanour, and the reactions to it.

Same with some Trans people and persons of colour being 'part of the landscape'. No deep dive.

Same with exploiting a character's severe disability for the sake of the plot line. It's strong meat.

While I try to do them all justice, I figure I am exploiting (which topic also comes up in the work). Maybe I need a third guidance, 'Being Good at Being Bad'?

Minority/underrepresented minority: This word is sometimes used as a blanket term for people from underrepresented groups. People of color (POC) will comprise a majority of the nation’s population by 2040. In fact, children from Black, Latine, Asian and bi-racial births now account for more than half the births in the US. Update your vocabulary by saying “students from underrepresented backgrounds,” “systemically minoritized groups,” “marginalized groups,” “POC,” “HUG,” “BIPOC,” or specify a specific group.
BIPOC is an acronym that stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities, and POC is an acronym standing for “Person of Color.” HUG stands for “historically underrepresented group.” These terms are more inclusive alternatives to dated language like “minority”.
https://joinhandshake.com/blog/employers/70-inclusive-language-principles-that-will-make-you-a-more-successful-recruiter/#:~:text=Minority%2Funderrepresented%20minority%3A%20This%20word,for%20people%20from%20underrepresented%20groups.

and Harvard Business Law:

https://hbr.org/2023/04/why-we-should-stop-saying-underrepresented

And - Amy - Congratulations on the book launch!

Thank you! And thanks for sharing the great tips!

My go-to for learning about a culture or people is to visit the area I am writing about, and I tend to feature places and cultures that I've lived in. The next best thing is to find a native speaker of the language or culture and offer them coffee. Spending time and getting to know them is one way to get insight on what is norm, and what is the perception portrayed in popular media and such.

Authenticity is important in what we write. Thanks for these tips that can keep us credible as writers. Hopefully, I can keep my faux pas to a higher standard as I write. Thanks for the insightful post!
Kris

It really can be a fine line! Kudos to you!

So true! Views do change over time! Thanks for sharing!