Let’s Talk Bookish – Promoting Diversity In the Book Industry

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme, hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books & Dani @ Literary Lion, where they discuss certain topics, share their opinions, and spread the love by visiting each others’ posts.

Prompt from Nicole @ THOUGHTS STAINED WITH INK)

How can we, as bloggers, promote diversity of all sorts in the book world? What are some things you think publishers should do to promote diversity? Is there something a publisher or another blogger is doing right now that you think is a step in the right direction? What are some things you do personally?

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A similar topic to last week, yet also super important and distinct in its own right. I definitely think that as bloggers, we should try and promote all sorts of diversity using our platforms. After all, beyond just speaking our own thoughts here on our blogs, it is also a chance to reach out to the world and try to make a difference, whether the actual effect be big or small.

I think as bloggers, if there ever is an opportunity, it’s good to give a shout out or a nod to the diversity, in order to promote it whenever possible. But similar to what I said last week, there isn’t really a need to try and shoehorn “diversity” into everything – focusing on diversity where appropriate is already more than enough to do our part.

Something we did here recently at Down The Rabbit Hole was to promote Asian authors, not only because of the recent news, but also because we are Asian, and it is part of our identity. It truly felt nice to have a dedicated post to promoting these authors, as many of them are amazing authors and deserve to have the recognition, despite the current setting around Asians in the news. I feel that taking the time here and there to do appreciative posts or shout-outs are the best way to naturally incorporate and promote diversity, to show that being diverse is the natural way of things, and not something that should be so foreign and “forced”.

Perhaps this is just my personal opinion, but having these kinds of opinions being forced down my throat at every opportunity tends to leave me feeling jaded. I prefer a more natural approach so that I can truly absorb and reflect on these types of issues, as I tend to naturally ruminate and contemplate (possibly overthink) these ideas in my head anyway. There are some out there though who don’t get the message unless it’s big and bold – so I totally understand the need for the strong messages too.

I personally am not too familiar with how the publishing world works, but I definitely hope that there are equal opportunities for all authors to publish, though I know that this is rarely the case. I would think that having different events promoting different kinds of authors or diverse content could be a fun and engaging way to get people talking about (and interested in) diversity. There may already be publishers doing this – please let me know below if they do!

Lastly, I personally try and read a range of authors whenever possible in order to broaden my perspectives. I don’t generally look for diversity in the actual content of the book, but I love when authors include diversity in their books, as it truly makes it feel more authentic to real life. It’s a funny balance where I don’t look for it, but if a friend recommends a book to me based on the diversity in it, I get all excited to read it. But maybe I’m just weird.

What are things you all do to promote diversity? Let me know below, and perhaps I will try and incorporate into my own life as well!

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And that’s it for the March topics – I’ll see you next week for the start of the April LTB topics, which promise to be exciting. Please follow Rukky and Dani on their respective blogs, and feel free to submit your own ideas for topics too!