It isn’t much of a place, but what I choose to afford, and the landlords keeps it in good repair. It’s the entire third floor of a three story home, and Luke and Joe have the bottom two floors. They are getting older so I help them out with basic maintenance and they keep the rent low. (from The Marquesa’s Necklace)
Were they a couple? At that point, I wasn’t sure. But some gay men of their generation weren’t open about their relationship status. The neighbors could pretend they were “just” housemates, and ignore the implications. Sure, society has become more accepting, but if that’s the way Joe and Luke wanted it, I was glad to oblige. Their love of old houses is what defines them in the series, anyway.
In contrast, I wanted there to be no question about Detective Horace from The Ranger’s Dog Tags being a black American, because it would play into the story. (and he insisted on it.) I modeled him as a combination of several men I’ve worked with. Here’s his intro:
I didn’t anticipate being greeted by a brick wall of a man with deep brown skin when I opened the door. If I wasn’t mistaken, that was a gun in a holster under his left arm. And a police badge attached to his belt. (from The Ranger’s Dog Tags)
Again, I didn’t want Detective Horace to be defined solely by his skin color, and it never gets mentioned again. His position as a detective for the Orlando Police Department was the more important characteristic. That, and his size. His size gets mentioned throughout the story, almost as a running joke. For example, “I was afraid that Horace would break any of the furniture, all of which had seen better days.” That, plus Harmony’s nickname for him, ‘The Mountain.’
The second part of the question is easy and tough. How do I avoid cultural insensitivity? The easy part is by treating my characters the same as I treat my friends from similar backgrounds. But I’m not perfect, and I’ve been known to mess up. Phrase something poorly, or miss the point. I try to be cognizant of what I put in writing, and I think seeing the words staring at me help me to be more aware. (Plus, I have time to think about what I am saying, instead of blurting out the wrong words!)
Over the years, I’ve interacting with people from a lot of different backgrounds, and learned a lot from them. I try to let that flow into my writing as I populate my stories. That way diversity happens naturally and isn’t forced. You know, like would happen in the real world under the best of scenarios. (Which, I’ll admit, don’t happen nearly enough.)
Let’s find out what the other authors in this hop have to say. Hopefully, there will be links you can follow below. (This feature hasn’t been working right lately, and it’s making me crazy!)
Anyway, until next time, please stay safe.