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Hi everyone!

I just wanted to get your thoughts on what populations you would like to see better represented in fiction (maybe they are either 1. represented poorly/inaccurately or 2. They are never/rarely represented at all). I wanted to do a poll/vote on what types of characters writers should incorporate more, for example, here are my ideas:

Neurodiversity & psychological challenges

• Individuals who are intellectually challenged; Down Syndrome and other chromosomal variances
• OCD, intrusive thoughts, eating disorders, Dissociative Identity Disorder/schizophrenia are not often represented, especially in Christian fiction.
• Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)  – particularly high-functioning females of minority races. Also, hidden/unknown learning disabilities, ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) and similar conditions.

Outward characteristics

• Obese or underweight characters (I’ve heard that overweight characters, especially, are not often represented in fiction)
• Minority races/ethnicities: Indian, Native American, Asian, black, and Hispanic
• Poverty. Fiction may tend to revolve around wealthy or middle-class characters.

Specifically, I also thought it would be important to represent certain populations from a Christian perspective. For example, I don’t think Christian writers should shy away from including LGBTQ+ characters and characters of other religions (e.g., Buddhism) because we can shed light on a Christian perspective of these issues.

Feel free to add your ideas. What other types of people would you like to see represented in fiction (especially Christian fiction)?