23 Writers With Messages For Straight White Male Publishing

"Listen."

Posted on April 16, 2015, 18:33 GMT

Isaac Fitzgerald

BuzzFeed Staff

We asked attendees at the annual Association of Writers & Writing Programs conference if they had any messages for the predominantly white publishing industry. Here are their answers.

1. "Diversity is not publishing the one story. It's publishing multiple stories from people of diverse backgrounds."

—Karissa Chen

2. "My main characters are not always black."

—Sophfronia Scott

3. "Read less straight white men."

—Natalie Eilbert

4. "We read. (And buy books.)"

—Lisa Lucas

5. "Get over it."

—Susan Orlean

6. "Be honest."

—Yahdon Israel

7. "Listen."

—Lauren Hilger

8. "We owe you nothing."

—Amanda Bullock

9. "Grow up."

—Roxane Gay

10. "Look out the window."

—Jane Ciabattari

11. "Sit down and let us abolish you."

—Franny Choi

12. "Ain't nobody got time for that!?!"

—Ru Freeman

13. "Chill."

—Morgan Parker

14. "[I am an] Asian American author with an Asian American editor."

—Matthew Salesses

15. "She's coming for you."

—Emily Bell and Amelia Gray

16. "Plz stop."

17. "We are not tokens."

—Rowan Hisayo Buchanan and T Kira Madden

18. "You have not doomed us. You've doomed yourselves."

—Saeed Jones

19. "👀 Pay attention to the world. (—Susan Sontag)"

—Jynne Dilling Martin

20. "Hire women. Diversity makes you strong."

—Annelies Zijderveld

21. "We don't need you."

—Jayson P. Smith

22. "Take a vacation (a long one)."

—Chelsea Reimann and Meg Day

23. "Don't assume that you are at the center."

—Cheryl Strayed

The views reflected here do not necessarily reflect those of the Association of Writers & Writing Programs.

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