In this tense day and age where representation matters and questions around who can tell whose stories abound, the topic of writing people of colour as a white author is still a difficult one.

Some believe that it shouldn’t happen period, while others say that its a good thing to have more people embracing more diverse characters. I am, obviously, of the latter opinion, but I’m also aware that as a white author in the space, I need to be careful about the ways that I write these non-white characters.

There are multiple reasons for this, but most importantly, I don’t want to contribute to negative depictions or stereotypes. That means educating myself on what those are, and how these people of colour have been represented historically so I can break away from that.

As a white, Australian woman I am not exactly the face of intersectionality. However, I wanted to push myself to write an amazing character that made sense in the context of the story, and ultimately, isn’t that the most important part?

The character that I’m talking about is Nadya Stepanova, the main female character in my first published book Tale of the Dragon Champion. Nadya is described as having medium brown skin, honey-coloured eyes and curly black hair, and I picture her looking similar to the actress Savannah Steyn. Further, her home country and the setting of the story is Kerzov, a land which is inspired by slavic cultures, and many of the people around Nadya do have paler skin.

So why did I make her a WOC in this story?

First of all, why not? Whiteness has been the norm for centuries in literature, and we must all be part of changing that standard.

But there are other valid reasons too. First of all, while creating this world I knew it needed to be diverse. Fantasy worlds have historically focused on medieval, European cultures and locations, and I wanted to change that. Instead, the six major countries of this world draw inspiration from numerous regions and various time periods, including Scandinavian, Slavic, Middle Eastern, African, Greco-Roman, Polynesian and East-Asian cultures. I did this because these places and times fascinated me, and I wanted to learn more about them. I also find it interesting to imagine how these ancient cultures might have adapted differently. Unfortunately, they will likely never be perfect representations, but I have enjoyed building out these countries and exposing myself to other incredible histories and cultures.

As a result of this diverse world, it became clear to me early on that Nadya would be a woman of colour, due to the nature of her family’s history.

You see, in this world, there are six types of magical beasts too, supposedly the forms of the six major gods. Vaztor the dragon god, Serinna the phoenix goddess, Otzain the basilisk god, Zvieran the qilin god, Notris the kraken goddess, and Emeri the direwolf goddess.

Every beasts is able to channel or manipulate an element, and has special abilities on top of their strength and speed. But these beasts can only bond with special humans called ‘Beast-Born’ who are also the descendants of the gods. Perhaps its a bit elitist, but the Beast-born are literally part-beast themselves. Only they are able to keep up with the magical creatures.

Sadly, as is goes, where there is power, there will be corruption too.

500 years before the story in Tale of the Dragon Champion takes place, the Khan-Tsarin family came to rule over Kerzov. They developed over the years until one of the princes, a man named Nadenkayen, decided to conquer the rest of the continent. From the north, he and his forces advanced south and you know how the story goes. These emperors ruled for a couple hundred years until they were overthrown and the continent was divided up by those who came to power in the vacuum after their deaths.

During their rule, these emperors married partners from all over the continent to strengthen their bloodline with the power of multiple gods and goddesses, and to secure positive relations with the other powerful families. What better way to appease your magical enemies than to make them your family? How better to satisfy your people than to have someone who looks like you atop the throne?

After the Fall, most people believed that everyone in the old Khan-Tsarin family was dead, and most people were happy to forget all about them. But as it happens, Nadya (spoiler-but-not-really) is the sole surviving heir of the last empress, Evykana, and the dragon-god Vaztor.

As Evykana’s father was from Zanbar, the African-inspired country, it made sense for Evykana and Nadya to look different.

Ultimately, the choice was important to reveal more about the world that I was writing, but it also shows that women of all colours and backgrounds can be powerful, capable, and complex. For more, I will link the ebook here so you can read an excerpt and decide if you want more!