Okay, I'm going to make a calm and collected thread about the Leigh Bardugo thing because I always just emotionally subtweet but I actually do want to explain to everyone why I care.
Leigh Bardugo is an ownvoices disabled author who gets labelled as non-marinalized a lot. (1)
I get upset about this a lot as a disabled person.
Now, I know she doesn't need to be defended. She is doing just fine without people picking up her book for the diversity. I'm not really trying to defend her. I'm trying to defend myself and my right to representation. (2)
Six of Crows got really popular, really fast and people talked about everyone they loved about it. Except... the disability representation didn't get talked about as much. So when the publisher looks at Six of Crows and wants to publish more books like that... (3)
They are going to buy found family stories, heist stories, dark upper YA stories... but they are not going to buy disabled stories. Publishing will do everything it can to avoid publishing disabled stories, just like it has with stories of many other identities. (4)
But a lot of identities have now gotten a lot of readers going "hey, we actually REALLY want to see those stories and will support them a lot" so publishing has started to listen. But no one is saying that about disabled stories beyond certain mental health topics. (5)
(Which are awesome! But they are not enough.)
I need people to start NOTICING disabled rep and start PROMOTING about disabled rep because otherwise, I am never going to get my story told. And you have to say you love it BECAUSE it is disabled rep so the publishers know. (6)
Obviously, publishers should be publishing these stories anyway, but we all know that is not what publishing is going to do. Championing books WORKS and we know that. Otherwise, most of us wouldn't be promoting them. I just want you all to do it for disabled books too. (7)
In conclusion: Leigh Bardugo is a marginalized ownvoices author and everyone should go promote a book with disability rep today. (8)

THE END
(I'm sorry for all the typos I am a mess)
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