#OwnVoices

Introduction

Authors in majority groups (e.g. white, straight, male, abled, etc.) have long told stories that are outside of their experience. For instance, think of an abled man writing about a woman struggling with bipolar disorder. Some may argue that someone with a similar identity and perspective should be writing such a story, rather than the man. After all, a story told by someone within a certain group would be more authentic. Yet, what if the man's mother had experience bipolar disorder, and he'd been close with her? Should he be allowed and encouraged to write her story? Who decides what constitutes a lived experience?

Enter the hashtag #OwnVoices.

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#OwnVoices hit Twitter in 2015. The movement focuses on furthering diversity in publishing by having the author be a member of the marginalized group that the story represents, which is what the hashtag denotes. The idea is that books will have better representation if marginalized authors write from their own perspectives.

#OwnVoices is a complicated idea and discussion. Of the authors who have pushed back on the idea, most have been white. Stories created by authors who do not share the experience can be intriguing and popular; however, the stories may also contain tropes and harmful representations.[1] Yes, authors in majority groups may accurately portray diverse character in a story, but books that fall under the #OwnVoices umbrella may feel more authentic because the author has actually lived and experienced all of the joys and difficulties and frustrations, frustrations and triumphs of the tale they're relaying. 

Marginalized people often have their stories taken from them and published--all while marginalized authors face obstacles to be published. However, publishing has now strived to incorporate more diverse voices from marginalized groups, including ethnic minorities, different sexual orientations and identities, and those with disabilities.[3] The We Need Diverse Books movement (WNDB) has been key in promoting various voices. 

#OwnVoices is not about policing what authors write since authors do write outside their own experiences. In fact, the hashtag itself is largely unpoliced, and is used in varying capacities to recommend everything from comic books to movies and everything in between.[4] Rather, #OwnVoices is about being aware of the stories people promote and seek out, and about carefully considering the perspectives of the people who write those stories. 

Context

In 2015, Young Adult (YA) author Corinne Duyvis began the hashtag #OwnVoices on Twitter in order to recommend books about different characters written by different authors. The hashtag was created to "highlight authentic voices," instead of solely focusing on diverse content in books. 

Because the hashtag has potential to be taken in a variety of ways, the creator of the hashtag later defined key terms to help distinguish the proper, broad use of the hashtag. Duyvis encouraged people to use the hashtag for any marginalized group, "as long as the protagonist and the author share a marginalized identity."[4] However, some terms need to be defined in order to keep the integrity of the basic meaning behind the hashtag. 

Key Terms[4]

Author: Duyvis believed the author's own identity had to be reflected in the character, rather than the identity of the author's parent, child, spouse, friend, etc.

Identity: The character's and author's identity should be matched specifically (e.g. deafness) instead of both falling under a large category (e.g. disabled).

Marginalized identity: Each person has multiple aspects of their identity, such as being a woman and asexual. So long as the author matches one of the marginalized aspects of their character(s), then the work is considered #OwnVoices.

Key Actors

Corinne Duyvis

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YA author Corinne Duyvis created #OwnVoices on September 6th, 2015. On her website, Duyvis identifies herself as a "white, Dutch, cisgender, disabled/autistic, bisexual/biromantic/queer, atheist woman."[6] In addition to her online activism, she is the co-founder and editor of the website Disability in Kidlit, which publishes work that examines the portrayal of disability in YA literature. 

We Need Diverse Books

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We Need Diverse Books is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that "advocates essential changes in the publishing industry to produce and promote literature that reflects and honors the lives of all young people."[8] The organization currently engages in a number of activities that promote diversity in kidlit, including hosting writing workshops, providing grant funding, running mentorship programs, and publishing story anthologies. The organization grew out of a 2014 Twitter exchange between Ellen Oh and Malinda Lo in which they were lamenting the lack of diversity in kidlit.[9]

From the conversation, Ellen started planning a three-day event to "raise awareness, brainstorm solutions, and take action" by calling on people to "diversity your shelves."[10] In a way, Oh, Lo, and the participants of the three-day event laid the groundwork for the future success of Duyvis's hashtag.

Librarians

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As a group, librarians have had a significant impact on the online and offline effects of #OwnVoices. Local library Twitter accounts use the hashtag as a way to promote Ownvoices books, often including a link to the library's website that takes the user directly to a curated section of Ownvoices books. These kinds of tweets not only bring attention to diverse books and authors, but they also make it easier for readers to access them. 

Authors and Artists

With arguably the most at stake, authors--particularly kidlit and YA authors--keep the hashtag alive by using it as a way to document the state of progress within the publishing community. Since the conception of the hashtag, the tweets have ranged from celebrations of publishing deals, laments of BIPOC discrimination, and anything in between. The creators using the hashtag provide readers with an insider perspective on the publishing world. 

Social Media Presence

Related Hashtags

• #WeNeedDiverseBooks (#WNDB)

Google Trends data for "We Need Diverse Books" from March 3rd, 2015-March, 3rd, 2021[12]

Google Trends data for "We Need Diverse Books" from March 3rd, 2020-March 3rd, 2021[13]

This hashtag shares a similar sentiment with #OwnVoices, though the focus here is not necessarily on diverse authors. Duyvis herself mentions that #OwnVoices arose from her frustration with the publishing industry's focus on books with diverse content rather than diverse authors creating that content.[14] In practice, though, #WeNeedDiverseBooks and #WNDB are mostly used to highlight books by Ownvoices authors. The tweet below from the Cooperative Children's Book Center from the University of Wisconsin-Madison illustrates the influence of #WeNeedDiverseBooks and #WNDB on publishing Ownvoices authors. 

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While the two hashtags have certainly influenced publishing and reading habits, the Google Trends data from September 6th, 2015--the day #OwnVoices was created--to March 3rd, 2021 reveals that #OwnVoices has emerged as the more popular search term, though both have had remarkable staying power throughout the last five-plus years.

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Most Important Posts/Pages

Like most hashtags that are more cause than meme, #OwnVoices has been used for a variety of purposes. While the purpose was singular and clearly defined by Duyvis's foundational tweet, its use has varied as it has become more popular. On September 6th, 2015 when replying to her own tweet proposing a hashtag for recommending books written by diverse authors, Duyvis tweeted "#ownvoices to recommend kidlit about diverse characters written by authors from that same diverse group."[17]

Twitter users picked up Duyvis's hashtag and started recommending books or asking for recommendations using that hashtag. The tweet below from award-winning YA author and literary agent Eric Smith exemplifies this practice.[18]

Search results for the most popular tweets using #OwnVoices in 2021 highlight a new kind of practice: authors publicizing their Ownvoices books. In one of the more popular tweets to feature the hashtag, Lillie Lainoff relayed her POTS diagnosis to readers while also announcing her new book featuring a main character with the same condition.[19] These kinds of tweets not only publicize Ownvoices books but also allow authors to own their identities. By sharing themselves, authors can empower viewers of the tweets to do the same.[20] These tweets are a way of combining the personal and professional. 

However, these kinds of posts are not without criticism. In a tweet even more popular than Lainoff's, Filipino YA author Rod Pulido came out as bisexual and shared a link to his "coming out truth."[21] The comments on the tweet are almost all supportive, but his coming out truth speaks to the pressure within the publishing world to out Ownvoices authors. He recounts the struggle to find a publisher for his novel Chasing Pacquiao, which features a queer character, because at the time he was still uncertain about his sexuality and publishers were worried the novel would not quality as Ownvoices.[22]

 Stories like Pulido's have spawned a host of tweets that criticize the way the publishing industry has used #OwnVoices "as a cudgel," to use the words from a tweet by @gildedspine.[23]

Duyvis even retweeted it in a show of support.[24]

Given this issue is ongoing at the time of writing, it remains unclear what kind of impact these tweets will have on the hashtag. It is well known that hashtag activism requires boundary work, and it appears that the authors and readers are currently looking to redefine the boundary, to return the hashtag to its roots as a tool for readers.

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Impact of the Movement

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Refinery author Kat Rosenfield points out that there is a debate whether or not literature about marginalized people should be written by authors of the same identity group, which is a common one in YA fiction.[27] It's also the motivating force of the #OwnVoice movement, which aims to improve diversity in the industry by matching authors to subject matter. Many initially thought well of this idea and began to spread important messages and campaigns backing up authors illustrating stories of the cultures they came from. The hashtag on Twitter provided authors with the chance to have their works and stories showcased with the backing of authenticity. The #OwnVoices movement enabled minority authors to have their time in the spotlight and improve the number of novels produced by marginalized groups. Compared to 2014, only about a quarter of the books published about African Americans were by African American authors, with those numbers being consistent across the board. In 2019, the number of minority authors publishing their stories about or for minorities had increased to the hundreds.

Data on books by and about  Black, Indigenous and People of Color published for children and teens compiled by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison.[27]

Data on books by and about  Black, Indigenous and People of Color published for children and teens compiled by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison.[27]

Critiques of the Movement

However, after some time, the conversation switched to an increasing number of canceled books and controversy over an author's protagonist or setting background. In Rosenfield's article, she tells Kosoko Jackson's story, whose debut novel was pulled due to the #OwnVoices callouts. While Jackson's protagonist was reflective of who he was, a "black and gay male," his novel's setting, "war-torn Kosovo in the 1990s," is what caused the controversy.[28] Critics said that the story of Kosovo was not his to tell. The irony in this story is that Jackson tweeted this to social media before the #OwnVoices movement started: "Stories about the civil rights movement should be written by black people. Stories of suffrage should be written by women. Ergo, stories about boys during horrific and life-changing times, like the AIDS EPIDEMIC, should be written by gay men. Why is this so hard to get?"[28] Jackson's ideas are not wrong in the sense that stories from people of color and various cultures should come from their own lives. According to Rosenfield, "many authors say that the single-minded focus on 'authenticity' as a standard for publication has begun to act as a hindrance, not a help."[28] The controversy behind #OwnVoices and these cancellations blur the lines between readers experiencing representation and sanctioning authors for creating diverse worlds in their stories. 

Readers also receive the short end of the stick when they are subjugated to perceived misconceptions about marginalized people. Writing about #OwnVoices for Book Riot, Danika Ellis points out that "The funny thing about such a general concept, though, is that it doesn't map on to every marginalization in the same way."[29] Members from various marginalized groups voiced their interpretations of #OwnVoices, like Dahlia Adler who pondered the pressures authors would feel about sharing their personal struggles and stories. While supporting #OwnVoices generally, she writes, "as someone on the author side, I'm seeing it cause a lot of harm among authors who can't come out but now feel they have to."[28] Authors and readers of the black community voiced their concerns on the repetitive misconstructions of the black narrative. YA author Francina Simone frustratingly points out the problem with books permanently in the 'other' category: "Issues are important for sure but damn! Can a bitch be entertained? Can I be Black and be entertained?"[28] Her comments raise an important criticism of the #OwnVoices movement, how it persecutes authors whose struggles and issues are not in line with the general consensus of marginalized groups' life experiences. It paints the picture of expecting every group's life to be filled with strife and tragedy when that is far from the case. As Simone points out, struggles are not her whole life.[28]

Conclusion

What began as a hashtag meant to recommend books about diverse characters written by authors belonging to the same marginalized group grew into a movement with both positive and negative consequences. From the research we found, #OwnVoices did have an impact on the publishing community, as more and more publishing agents sought out diverse authors and diverse content. #OwnVoices most likely affected reading habits as well. However, along with the promising value, the hashtag also housed controversy. Many authors felt pressured to out themselves in order to promote their work and “qualify” as #OwnVoices. Moreover, with the push towards diverse authors and stories came an assumption of what these stories would showcase; people came to expect stories of suffering and other narratives that individuals suppose a marginalized group’s experiences to be. Yet, #OwnVoices is still actively being used, so its future is uncertain.

References

[1] Whaley, Kayla. "#OwnVoices: Why We Need Diverse Authors in Children's Literature." Brightly: Penguin Random House. 3 Feb. 2019, Why We Need Diverse Authors in Children's Literature (readbrightly.com).

[2] Link: Own Voices | The Seattle Public Library | BiblioCommons

[3] Bookvillageadmin. "The Struggle Between Diversity and #OwnVoices." MG Book Village, 8. Aug. 2019, The Struggle between Diversity and #OwnVoices - MG Book Village.

[4] "#OwnVoices." Corinne Duyvis.

[5] Link: https://twitter.com/corinneduyvis/photo

[6] Duyvis, Corinne. “Biography.” Corinne Duyvis, www.corinneduyvis.net/bio/.

[7] “WNDB_Illustration_2.” WNDB. https://diversebooks.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/WNDB_Illustration_2.png

[8] “About WNDB.” We Need Diverse Books, 24 Jan. 2021, diversebooks.org/about-wndb/.

[9] Link: https://twitter.com/malindalo/status/456820794417352705

[10] “About WNDB.” We Need Diverse Books, 24 Jan. 2021, diversebooks.org/about-wndb/.

[11] CCBC. “The Collections Logo.” Minds@UW. https://minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/id/0b2217fd-01c5-4d08-bf95-179e667417db/ccbclogo.jpg?sequence=-1

[12] Link: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2015-03-03%202021-03-03&geo=US&q=We%20Need%20Diverse%20Books 

[13] Link: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2020-03-03%202021-03-03&geo=US&q=We%20Need%20Diverse%20Books 

[14] Hoffmann, Ada. “Interview with Corinne Duyvis about Otherbound and On the Edge of Gone.” Disability in Kidlit, 24 Mar. 2016, disabilityinkidlit.com/2016/03/24/interview-with-corinne-duyvis-about-otherbound-and-on-the-edge-of-gone/. 

[15]Link: https://twitter.com/CCBCwisc/status/1338985403571982337 

[16] Link: https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2015-09-06%202021-03-03&geo=US&q=We%20Need%20Diverse%20Books,Own%20Voices 

[17] Link: https://twitter.com/corinneduyvis/status/640584099208503296 

[18] Link: https://twitter.com/ericsmithrocks/status/773866976078954496

[19] Link: https://twitter.com/lillielainoff/status/1366216740879876100 

[20] Amy. “New York Times Study: ‘The Psychology of Sharing. Why Do People Share Online?".” New York Times Study: "The Psychology of Sharing. Why Do People Share Online?" | TeXt Ex Machina, 18 July 2011, text-ex-machina.co.uk/blog/new-york-times-study.html.

[21] Link: https://twitter.com/RodAPulido/status/1366810540983480320

[22] Pulido, Rod. “Late to the Party.” Rod Pulido, Rod Pulido, 2 Mar. 2021, www.rodpulido.com/blog/late-to-the-party. 

[23] Link: https://twitter.com/gildedspine/status/1363994255954505729

[24] Link: https://twitter.com/corinneduyvis/status/1364191850815492097

[25] Link: https://twitter.com/justinaireland/status/1366861060704264197 

[26] Link: https://d28hgpri8am2if.cloudfront.net/book_images/onix/cvr9781534409002/our-stories-our-voices-9781534409002_lg.jpg 

[27] Link: https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/literature-resources/ccbc-diversity-statistics/books-by-about-poc-fnn/

[28] Rosenfield, Kat. “What Is #OwnVoices Doing To Our Books?” How The OwnVoices Movement Is Changing YA Literature, 9 Apr. 2019, www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/04/228847/own-voices-movement-ya-literature-impact.

[29] Ellis, Danika. “The Problem With #OwnVoices LGBTQ Lit.” BOOK RIOT, 22 Apr. 2017, bookriot.com/the-problem-with-ownvoices-lgbtq-lit/.