I was wondering what kind of female black characters do people want to see more of? Like, them being soft or selfish?
Black Girls & Women: Representation We Want
As a Black woman reader, I definitely want to see more soft Black girls and women in literature. Girls with their own self-interests (caring about oneself isn’t necessarily selfish) and not always someone else’s caregiver is great too.
Note to writers of all races: By all means use this list as inspiration for your stories!
More Black girls...
- In love.
- Interracial relationships (Black X White, Black X BIPOC)
- Black love. Healthy parental bonds (Bonus: dark skin Black mothers!)
- With close family bonds and healthy relationships and support systems (that don’t require enduring abuse, fixing their partner, or overall emotional labor to earn domestic happiness)
- Being protected
- As main characters, heroines and anti-heroes
- On adventures
- In fantasy and magical settings
- In historical settings as peasants, upper-class society, and royalty. NOT always slaves.
- Descriptions of Black Afro hair, skin, features as a normal thing in books (see this compilation) and not in an Othering way
- On the other hand, vibrant, sometimes hyped up descriptions that allude to their beauty (see this ask. Or this one). Not Othering, just appreciating!
- Put us in fancy dresses and give us a sword and let us dance at the balls and have admirers!
- Experiencing complex emotions not necessarily in reaction to racism or racist violence
- On the book cover! And with an accurate, not light or white-washed model
~Mod Colette
Responses:
@madamef-er
- Soft Black girls and nerd girls who like cute things.
- Shy Black girls not just in situations with boys.
- More lgbtqia+ Black girls. Studs! Femmes!
- Gender fluid and non conforming constantly changing their style because they like it!
- Spies and not just as the 'sexy bait' or 'weapons master' let us sit behind the computer for once and be hackers and stuff
@tanlefan
- Black girls who are just...people.
- I want a fantasy escapism adventure that isn't a thinly veiled discussion on slavery or racism or any other aspect of The Struggle. I am tired.
- Can I just have a happy Black girl who believes in fairies or something?
@esmeraldanacho-1776 More autistic Black women/girls! I don't care what genre really; just have them in there!
@briarsthicket And enby black people!
- Def soft Black girls.
- Energetic and playful.
- Or shy and quiet.
- I want to see more Black girls who are nerds and not just mommy mommying or nanny nannying everyone.
- I want Black girls who want to be a ballerina, or a talk show host, or a game designer etc.
- I want a Black girl who gets to be happy.
- Who doesn't have to act older than she is and be the shoulder for everyone, always.
@xiiishadesofgrey
- I want more Black lady nerds, if we’re talking modern settings!
- More Black ladies who have a sporty/playful nature!
- Who aren’t afraid to get dirty and make chaos, without being dirty or frowned upon!
- Strange as it sounds coming from me, more Black princesses! Brandy as Cinderella in the 90s was my first Cinderella, and I LOVE that.
- Please, god, more Black wlws.
@daintythoughtswritersblock
- I want to see tropes exercised
- Black women of all shades and tones
@hazelnut4370
- Tbh just fellow Black people being happy, like I rarely see that,
- Or enjoying hobbies
@rivergoddessdream
- Happily childless Black women
- Black women traveling the world
- Fat Black women in happy, healthy, poly relationships
- Black cis and trans women having a true sisterhood
- Autistic black women
- Black women in period pieces that aren't about slavery and don't take place in the US
- Black women thespians
- Black women painters
- Black women revolutionaries
- Black women front and center in the narrative
- Black women healers and storytellers
- Non christian Black women stories
- Black women rockers
#complicated black women characters #tell those stories
More Black Girls...
- With diverse cultural and social backgrounds!
- That are nerdy, girly, intelligent, ditzy, all the personality types that white girls in literature get!
- That are fragile, shy or anxious. Almost every single Black woman I’ve seen in media or otherwise are wise and adult. Let us be an absolute wreck, or an anxious mess!
- In science! Characters like Shuri, Moon Girl and Iron Heart in Marvel revitalized me, cuz young Black girls only get two types. Both these girls are in intellectual and in science, but have bery different personalities.
- In interracial relationships, and not because they hate Black men or something along those lines. They just happen to be dating outside their race, black women get hate for that in real life and it’s unfair. Let us have relationships outside our race! That said...
- In platonic relationships with Black men! I think that’s important, cuz I don’t often seen Black solidarity unless it’s for the purpose of showing how diverse the writing is. Let them share interests, daily frustrations that they would only understand, but don’t force a romance.
- In solid friendships with other Black girls! For some reason, we’re pitted against in each other inside and outside of writing! Write some sweet wholesome friendship!
- With different sexualities! Let there be some that are ace, others are gay, bi or pan! Just be sure you don’t sexualize them, or turn em into a robot.
- Who are dark-skinned! This can be seen a lot in tv or movies, but when you want a black girl in your stuff don’t just hire a light-skinned Black girl or a biracial black girl. It’s not the same.
- Who get to act their age! Black women have a long standing history of being adultified, starting from a very young age, and it’s extremely harmful. Little Black girls can wear what they please, the problem is people sexualizing them. Let the teen black girl be a teenager, she can look out for her siblings but she isn’t the keepern the house or their lives. Young adult Black girls are not ideal housewives or capable working machines, they mess up and mess around just as much as any young adult.
- With mental/physical disabilities or illnesses. Alongside with being forced to be more mature than they are, disabilities/illnesses are never taken seriously and we’re forced to just deal with it. Having Black girls who happen to have these issues, but also have a healthy support group is always good!
- Seen as beautiful and desirable and NOT in a hypersexualized way
- Interracial relationships are wonderful because Black girls are beautiful and lbr everybody sees it
- Sensitive and allowed to feel something other than righteous anger
- Some Black girls are skinny! Some are big! Some are slim and some are curvy! There’s no mold!
- Dark skinned!
- A YA protagonist out to save the world from something other than racism
- Superpowers or magic that doesn’t come from generational trauma or slavery
- Black characters who support other Black characters. None of this token crabs in a barrel business.
- Black girl nerds and punks and goths exist. I promise.
- And this may be a personal preference but I’m not against the idea of a damsel in distress. We are always being strong. Let her be soft and delicate and cared for. Let her be princess carried and rescued from the tower and the dragon.
[Note from Mod: It’s not just you! I love a Black damsel being saved and protected. What is progressive for one woman varies due to historical and present depictions and is why intersectionality in feminism is so important! -Colette]
As a writer, I write a lot of my Black female characters like this because I rarely ever see Black women being represented in these ways! ESPECIALLY on the covers of books, unless the author themselves is a Black woman and even then its rare.
Too often Black women are stereotyped as strong protector types that are always rough, tough, and don’t need anybody in books (and real life), when that’s honestly just dumb and inaccurate--Black women are as vulnerable as anyone else (in some cases, even more vulnerable, but that’s another topic).
So yeah, this list is 100% accurate and I encourage those who are interested in writing Black female characters (whether you’re a Black woman or not) to consider writing them like this, because the stereotype needs to die lol.
But wait, there’s more!
@just-a-swsh-fangirl As an anime fan I kinda want to see a white male protagonist be paired up (romantically) with a Black female at the end of the series. It would make my Black self happy to see a girl like me in an important role like that.
@tgingwe
- Black girls in STEM, pleaaase
- Black girls with ADHD, depression, and other mental health conditions!
- Black girls with supportive families!
- Pan Black girls!
- African Black girls, with cultures that impact their lives and with complex relationships between their specific identities/cultures and the idea of being perceived as just Black outside of Africa!
- Happy Trans Black girls!
- Love triangles where a Black character gets to be with the guy or girl in the end.
- Love triangles revolving around a Black character.
- Black retellings of fairy tales
- Black characters in royal positions (King, Queen, Princes, Princesses, etc.)
- Soft, reserved, emotional, shy, spirited, spunky, bubbly, corny, weird Black women
- a Black woman in a healthy relationship with a Black man who has a healthy obsession with her
- little Black girls
- modest black women
- Black women without a criminal to success backstory
- Black women they were raised in a healthy family with both Black parents who are still living
- Black women in interracial relationships that aren’t necessarily white
- No tokens; Several Black women together with no beef
- Black women in fantasy
- Black women in friendship with ppl of other races and ethnicities
- Black women who get to feel and express emotion with it being a threat
- Black girls who don't live in the US
- Black girls who are daughters of immigrants and have complex relationships with both their homeland and the land their family is from
- Black girls with healthy relationships with their parents
- Black girls who are indecisive about their lives and struggling to find their place in the world and the reason not being racism
- LGBTQ+ Black girls with families that accept them and celebrate them
- More Black witches/magic users who don't fall in the magical negro type.
- Quirky Black girls who have endearing and unusual interests
- Black girls who both love sterotypical and non-stereotypical Black things
- Black girls having supportive friendship groups and not being the one who constantly needs to support the others
- Black girls saving the world
- Black girls having a love interest who loves them and cherishes them not because they think they are weak but because they want them to be safe and happy
- Black girls being the cherished love interest
- Black girls being thought of the most gorgeous girl and not being overly sexualized
- Black girls and their siblings/friends going to another world a la Chronicles of Narnia
- Black girls being the chosen ones and saving the world
- Black girls in medieval fantasy stories and not just being a slave or the handmaiden of the white princess
- Black girs with different and complex relationships with their womanhood and how they express it
- Black girls with different hair textures
- But above all else I just want Black girls to be able to have the same range in character as their white counterparts. I am tired of never being able to relate to characters that look like me
Black girl rep wishlist continued
@just-an-anime-fangirl I kinda want to see a white male protagonist be paired up ( romantically) with a Black female at the end of the series. It would make my Black self happy to see a girl like me in an important role like that.
- Don't pull a Henry Danger.
- I want Black girls to be loved and fall in love.
- Not just be perpetual straightlaced, sassy side characters who's only there to be straightlace support.
@igotloki
- Yes! All of this!
- I’m so tired of seeing people who look like me only playing the side kick or supportive friend at best.
- There is no reason we can’t be the main character in every genre.
@mutantgurls
- Dark skin Black girl as main characters in romance, Rom-com, fantasy, science fiction
- Black girls starring in romance, fantasy, or syfy. (Not just drama)
- Black girls following other religion such as Judaism or Islam or they’re atheists
- Black girl getting to be soft, goofy, silly
- Magical Black girls who get to transform into their superpower alter ego
- Magical beings Black girls (Black fairies, mermaids, aliens)
- Black girl being in relationships with non-humans ( I’m a teratophilia fans) like werewolves or aliens and being protected by them.
I love this. Even more motivation to be more diverse.
ALL. OF. THIS.
One of the reasons I began to write fanfiction (and also why I have now expanded into original fiction) is because of the lack of diverse representation of Black women and/or non-Black women writing Black women characters but missing the cultural characterizations that come from the lens of Black culture because these women don't have this experience.
For reference, I am a dark skinned, Master's educated, plus size Black woman. The women characters that I have created are all offshoots of my personality: unapologetically Black, typically plus size (at this time, Simone Beaumont is the only one who is not), typically natural haired, strong willed with LOADS of ambition, and most importantly, I write them with partners who love each and every part of them and who love these women without putting them through struggle love.
Black women are fucking magical, dynamic and worthy of being depicted with all of our layers. I will always fight for and represent Black women in our most authentic forms. 🖤🖤
