artbeautypaintings
Hey writers? Here’s a tip: If you want to write a character with an identity that you don’t share and don’t know much about? Put in at least a couple of hours of research before doing anything else. Don’t immediately send an ask the script-x blogs or writingwithcolor or any of the other great resources out there. Start with a google search. Start with a careful search of the blog you want to use as a resource. Look for open forums for people who identify as x.
By the time you come ask a real person to spend time and effort teaching you about an identity, you should know a lot. At the bare minimum, you should:
- Know what defines that identity. Not just current standards, but definitions across history. How do members of x define themselves? How are they defined legally? Socially? How do these definitions vary from what your original assumption was?
- Understand basic cultural context. Find a description of what it’s like to be an x. Find five more. Compare and contrast.
- Recognize common stereotypes. It’s incredibly easy to find lists of stereotypes online. Familiarize yourself with them now, and keep them on hand while editing.
- Know names and work of several modern x activists. Follow some of them on social media. Listen to what they say.
- Have a bullshit meter. If an identity exists, there will be misinformation about it. With practice, you can get better at distinguishing realistic depictions of what life is like, hyperbole, minority experiences, and trolling. Anyone giving you advice may be wrong. Everyone giving you advice can only speak from a limited perspective. Don’t dismiss lived experience out of hand, but do think critically before taking everyone on their word.
Happy research and happy writing!
1400 year old ginkgo tree.
地點：陝西省西安市古觀音禪寺
Photography: Han Fei
Increased levels of Smad7 in T-cells is linked to multiple sclerosis-like symptoms in mice. In the intestines, the T-cells were more frequently activated and migrated to the central nervous system, where they triggered inflammation. Similar activation was seen in human patients with multiple sclerosis. The findings provide further evidence that multiple sclerosis may start in the intestines and spread via the CNS.
