Thread by @DataLover916, Okay, here goes. Racism in queer romance industry (see also #lesfic, wlw, [...]

Okay, here goes. Racism in queer romance industry (see also #lesfic, wlw, f/f romance) a thread by a white woman who CARES.

Look, this thread is not about whether the industry is or isn’t racist. IT IS. It’s about my observations over the last 36 months & some ideas for change.

Briefly: I’ve been in fanfic for decade(s), but only found queer romances after looking for queer comforts in early 2017.

This thread is not an indictment, it’s a call to action. It’s saying what I’ve been wanting to say for months—years. If it makes you feel bad, sit with it.

Great, so when I first found queer romance, some via @saclib & then an avalanche via @LesbianReviews FB group (which I quit in 2017/18 when I left that platform) I immediately noticed the protagonists were largely homogeneous versions of conventionally attractive white women.

I went looking for diversity, and it was hard to find. Coming from academia and steeped in the brilliance of queer WOC like Lorde and Anzaldua—I just thought, this can’t be it. And it wasn’t! But, you had to really seek out WOC voices, and so few people were reccing those books.

I got so frustrated I started a google sheet (a project I’ve neglected—and that’s on me) to track WOC romances, at that time (early 2018) the list was only 30 ish books, including multiple book authors like RJ Samuel, Fiona Zedde, KD Williamson, S. Renee Bess, Lea Santos.

It wasn’t until after I started reviewing for the @Lesbrary that I discovered @sots and a couple of other great resources for discovering the books I WANT TO READ.

But look, all that is on the audience side, so let’s shift to the publishing/industry side.

I attended my first ClexaCon in 2018 and it wasn’t until 2019 when a lot of the biggest queer romance publishers @boldstrokebooks @bellabooks @YlvaPublishing @DirtRoadBooks saw the opportunity and showed up and brought a bunch of authors with them.

In the main, white authors. And I haven’t dug out my receipts because it’s been a week over here y’all. But WOC stick out in a predominantly white space, and I their absence is noticeable and noted by myself and others.

Well guess what, ClexaCon has a racism problem too. Yet queer publishing was all geared up to show up and grab those white queer dollars without a second thought. My assumption is they didn’t ask WOC to attend because if they did they might have been told it’s not a safe space.

So either they didn’t include the FEW WOC in their cohort of authors (for an opportunity at big queer exposure) or they didn’t listen to them when they said it was a problematic event and both things are a symptom of systemic racism and capitalism over people.

Well, everyone knows there is a pandemic- ClexaCon was canceled and after they didn’t issue refunds to their attendees might be toast anyway.

So, what happens. BSB hosts an online event. Free! This was an amazing thing to do for the community, and also a missed opportunity.

I attended nearly every panel and there were only a couple of WOC panelists, one of whom was Anne Shade (go buy Femme Tales).

I messed up. I meant to sound this horn after this event was yet another exercise in romance industry so white. I didn’t.

Oh, and just to rewind like 6 months, RWA had a massive implosion around racism & the treatment of WOC authors in romance. So there is zero ability to say nobody knew. Furthermore, famous white queer authors centered their exclusion from RWA as queer women, distracting from WOC.

This is human nature, we see someone being harmed by X Person or Organization and want to say: me too, me too. But these conversations about race can’t be about that. We can’t center our white queer experience over the significant harm WOC have been and continue to experience.

So, here we are, #GCLS is having an online conference! Guess what? It’s Free! And guess what, it’s So. Damn. White.

I mean, I had hope because is not just one publisher, it’s an organization that’s supposed to represent all queer romance authors, even self published one!

So that racism thing. This is how it plays out. Queer WOC, some of the lowest earners in our society, often can’t afford to fly to the conference. They finally have a chance to do it from their home, to find community. They looked at the program & were once again dissapointed.

Hell, I WAS DISAPPOINTED.

Did you, #GCLS learn nothing from the last three weeks? You can’t just phone it in. We aren’t going to take it. As an org, you have to really do some soul searching.

I mean, that last tweet was generous—I attended the Goldies in 2018 to support a friend who was nominated. And that was the year RJ Samuel told GCLS to stick it. Like this isn’t new news! Racism has been a problem and nobody seems to want to change.

Damn y’all, sorry this is so long, but if you’re still with me I’m going to throw down some ideas of how to start this work. Both things #GCLS could do now, as well as things everyone in this industry (writers/readers/publishers) can do moving forward.

1st: Some ideas for THIS conference. Yup, in the middle of it. The beauty of the internet, change can happen!

-I’m not speaking for her but clearly @Rizzleslovr72 put her hand up. Invite her on a panel. You don’t have to kick anyone off to add new voice(s)-the pie can get bigger

-add another panel. Don’t ask a WOC to organize it. You go fucking grovel and tell the published WOC authors in your community you fucked up, and this is the FIRST OF MANY steps to fixing this industry, to upholding the values of the ENTIRE community.

-Promote WOC authors.

2nd: Some ideas moving forward.

White Authors:
This is an idea I stole from Jessica Chastain. If you are invited on any panel, ask who the panelists are. If they are all white, fix it! I know romancelandia is cliquish as hell but you can survive an hour without your best friend.

Still offering work that can be done.

White Authors:
Promote your WOC peers. Radclyffe doesn’t need help finding readers. If you’re interviewed and asked recent reads or favorite books, name drop some WOC. If you can’t name 5 off hand RIGHT NOW, get off Twitter and get to it.

White Readers:
Read queer romance written by and about WOC! I know y’all are not celebrity thin white supermodels. You have to be tired of those main characters. I am. Come for the goods. WOC know how to bring texture to stories because it’s the life they live, in the margins.

White Readers:
-Gift your friends Books by WOC (I’ll drop some recs at the end of this thread)
-Talk about books by WOC to your friends, start a book club, read only (queer) WOC for a year. You would be amazed and the joy you’ll find.

White Reviewers:
-AT MINIMUM 1/3 books you review should be a WOC
-Don’t stop at your review. Promote WOC authors, follow them on twitter, promote them up as often as you can
-Follow WOC reviewers like @sots

Industry:
-Promote the WOC you already publish. I shouldn’t have to work this hard to find them!
-While we’re at it, make sure you PAY them. Check your books, are advances flat across the board or are there some patterns you would be embarrassed by? Christmas is coming - fix it

#lesfic Industry:
-Don’t organize one more event where it’s painfully obvious you don’t care about WOC. Ask them if events are safe for them. If not, don’t support those.
-Invite them to the table, ask them to moderate/keynote/speak, let them promote the work they do (for you)

Seriously, just do the opposite of what you’ve been doing. Just take one step at a time to do bettter day by day instead of basking in the privilege of whiteness.

Please, just do something.

Finally, y’all know about #BlackoutBestsellerList right?

Recs!
Romance:
KD Williamson, Verde Arzu (Debut novella RAINBOW just dropped), Celeste Castro, Sheree Greer, Karma Kingsley

Classics: Anne Allen Shockley (LOVING HER is legendary!) Audrey Lorde (Read ZAMI), Gloria Anzaldua, Michelle Tea

I’ll add more recs tomorrow!

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