Have a big TBR pile? Here’s a fun way to whittle it down

1.  Get hold of a six-sided die.
2. Write a list of six books that are in your TBR pile, numbering them 1 through 6. If you have a short series to read (duology or trilogy), list it as one item.
3.  Toss the die. The number that faces up when it lands is the number of the book that you’ll read first.
4. After you finish that book, toss the die again. If the same number as last time comes up, toss again until a different number comes up.
5. When you just have two books left, toss the die. The book number which is closest to the number that comes up is your next read. For example, if books 1 and 6 are unread, and your die reads 4, read book 6 next.
6. The last book left is the last book to read.
7. After you’ve read all six books, repeat the process.

Is "The Black Witch" racist?

Every now and then, Book Twitter – the informal community of authors, editors, and librarians, mostly in the young adult genre, who communicate with each other on the social media platform with the bird – goes into red alert when they discover an upcoming release that they think is offensive.

Hold that.

That they think is harmful to marginalized* people (i.e., women, blacks, Latinos, indigenous people, LGBTQ+, the disabled, and Muslims. Not often Jews, though).

Hold that again.

That they think will literally lead to the deaths of marginalized people.

One of Book Twitter’s most recent targets is The Black Witch, an upcoming young adult fantasy by author Laurie Forest. It is scheduled to be released on May 2, 2017. Shauna, a popular book blogger, read an ARC (Advanced Reading Copy), and wrote a long review. A review of about 8700 words, long enough to be a novelette.

What is her conclusion? “The Black Witch is the most dangerous, offensive, [sic] book I've ever read. It's racist, ableist, homophobic, and is written with no marginalized people in mind.”

I will not do a deep dive into the plot of The Black Witch because Shauna has already done so. Go and read her review. I think it is very well done. Having read the whole book, she has earned her right to an informed opinion. It is an opinion I disagree with.

Is the world where the protagonist comes from problematic (i.e., racist, sexist, and homophobic)? Objectively, yes. 

Does that make the book itself problematic? Not necessarily.

The protagonist of The Black Witch grows up in a culture where racism, sexism, and homophobia has been baked in. Where atrocities, up to and including genocide, are a part of the history. When you grow up in that kind of culture, you will probably not question it because you have not been taught to question it. It takes exposure to other ideas – over time – and some sitting in thought (which some people never get around to) before you even start the process of unlearning. The Black Witch is just the first book of a series; there is plenty of book-time for the protagonist to see what is wrong with her world. 

There is a truth, a Reading 101-level truth, that Book Twitter seems to have forgotten altogether: Depiction is not endorsement. Writers can describe worlds and characters with problematic mindsets. That does not mean that the writer agrees with that mindset, nor that the writer intends that readers should agree with the mindset. The culture of The Black Witch – at least, in this first book – is clearly dystopic and not a place I want to live in. (I am personally not fond of dystopias, YA fantasy, and books that combine the two. So I will not be reading the book myself.)

These days, the “woke” crowd wants all problematic talk and beliefs to be challenged right away, in the story, and with full force. That is Very Special Episode-level moralizing, and it is neither realistic nor is it good storytelling. 

I am in the process of writing a stage play. In the opening scene, two of the minor characters use the word “retard” in a casual way. I don’t approve of the word “retard,” but in the scene no one else rebukes them or even makes a comment. It is up to the audience to decide how to feel about what they say. That is part of my storytelling policy.

Book Twitter did its part for social justice by leaving 1-star reviews for The Black Witch on Goodreads (without reading the whole book themselves, which is a reviewing faux pas). Here were the instructions:

Now, do I believe that it’s possible that a book can be traumatizing for a reader? Yes. Do I believe that authors therefore have a responsibility to minimize or even eliminate such trauma? No.

I believe it’s just like having a food allergy. Labels are of course helpful, but in the absence of labels it is your responsibility to ask questions and do your research before consuming.

What of the argument that problematic books can cause people’s deaths, whether through suicide or murder? Well, in the bad old days, media representation of marginalized groups was either nonexistent or offensive to the nth power. (If you don’t believe me, look up a cartoon from 1941 called “Scrub Me Mama with a Boogie Beat.” Among many, many other things. If you dare.) And yet, the majority of marginalized people survived. 

Also look at this Venn diagram:

When the rhetoric turns from “This offends us” to “This harms us” to “This is literally killing us” – with no change to the content of “this” – how much further can Book Twitter possibly go to get their message across? And will most people even care anymore at that point?

I have no plans to find out. I have torn out the last damn** from my book of damn coupons to give to Book Twitter drama, and now it is twirling far, far away from me. It’s a wonderful sight.

* I personally don’t like the term “marginalized” because I feel it is disempowering and a bit condescending, but I use it here so you will know who I am talking about (especially if you follow Book Twitter).

** I wanted to use another four-letter word here, but I’m not quite ready to yet on this blog.

Resolutions for 2017

1.   Keep an eye on Trump and Co.

2.  If they do something particularly shitty, push back with all your might.

3.  Support politicians on the right side of history.

4. When it comes to social justice, pick your battles carefully. Remember the “life, liberty, pursuit of happiness” rule.

5. Don’t fake hate crimes.

6. Read good books, watch good movies and television, listen to good music – regardless of the melanin, genitalia, and sexual desires of the creators and the characters.

7.  Say “no” to things that suck (your definition of this may vary) – unless they help take you to someplace good.

8. Look upon beautiful people, places, and things as often as possible.

9. Create something that has never appeared on this earth before.

10.  [Free space for your own resolution]

Happy New Year!

The hope at the bottom of the box

I came this close to telling you how much I sucked.

How much ennui, melancholy, and despair turned me into an unproductive shell of the person I used to be.

How the belief that I’d always had that tomorrow would be a better day turned into just hoping that I would not lose what little I have.

But a blog post about how much I sucked would only add girders to a belief that I actually do suck.

And saying that I sucked would invite others to do the same. (The Internet is not always a kind place, my friends.) When a person says she sucks, it is often interpreted as jovial self-depreciation. When other people say it – those are fighting words. And you know what fighting on the Internet leads to:

Now, I have to say that the results of the 2016 presidential election did not help my inner suckiness. At all. It only moved it to an existential position, like the circles of a Venn diagram coming together and merging into a giant ball of suck:

But all of this is neither here nor there as of now. As the Mr. says in this year’s holiday card, “Yesterday is behind us, and tomorrow is on its way.”

As it has always been.

So where do I go from here?

Well, I could start by asking myself exactly what in my life is making it suck, and what I can do right now to start to change them.

Two of those stressors pop up with sirens flashing:

1.       Where I live.

2.       My income.

The place where I live is in a good neighborhood – which is essential, because I have lived in bad ones – but it is too small. I don’t have access to all of the books I own. I have to sit on the bed to use my desktop. I don’t have a real quiet space to work and write and read and think. I could walk to the public library, but it’s not always open. Moving to a home with more space would significantly improve my quality of life.

So would earning more money. Together, my husband and I bring in enough money to survive. But not enough to thrive. I enjoy freelance writing, editing, and graphic design, but I don’t earn enough money from those. If I had a few more good clients, that would help. If I had more income, I would regain some autonomy to save money and make donations and buy the little things that bring joy to life. (But I need to work from home for the time being because I have a driving phobia.) 

Those are the main problems. 

The hope at the bottom of the box is that these problems don’t have to be forever.

If I remember that they don’t.

I can help myself and help the world at the same time. I have no choice. When I help myself, I help the world, and when I help the world, I help myself.

The world needs me in a good place.

It’s time to start now.

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

Those words in the Declaration of Independence are a simple, yet universal reminder of what is necessary for the good human life.

Life to be. Liberty to be who you are. The pursuit of happiness to be not only happy, but to just enjoy what life is in the first place.

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is also where my definition of social justice begins – and ends. Whatever threatens life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (and opportunity) is a threat to social justice and must be opposed with full force. Whatever is merely offensive – well, that goes on the back burner, at most.

On November 8, 2016, the electorate of the United States (actually, 25.5% of it; 46.9% didn’t even vote, which is a whole other problem) picked a President who is a genuine threat to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This man is a threat to reproductive rights. To marriage equality. To people wanting to walk down the street without police harassment. To affordable health insurance. To our climate and environment, without which we could not live at all. Period.

As long as this man and his fellow travelers control Washington, I do not want to hear complaints about:

·         Halloween costumes

·         How people sit on public transportation

·         Sexy video games

·         Sexy comic book art

·         Who gets to wear what hairstyle

·         Who gets to use what slang

·         Who gets to use what emoji

·         Fans not shipping what you like

·         Fans shipping what you don’t like

·         Authors saying things you don’t like

·         Creators not apologizing for creations you don’t like

·         Legitimate criticism of Islam and all other religions

In the last few years, the definition of social justice has been stretched and distorted so much that it is has become illiberal. I’m sorry that a dangerous President may be what it takes for Americans to understand what real injustice is. I just hope we survive long enough to never forget.