My protagonist is illiterate. She recognizes a few
letters, she knows how to read her name, and she loves listening to stories
more than anything. But she cannot read.
Her name is Serena, and she is a bad blood. The only bad blood to
escape execution. Now symbolized for an election, she must prove her people are
human despite hindering abilities before everyone is killed and a city is
destroyed.
While Serena lives in a futuristic world where magical
children like her are executed, illiteracy is a very real issue in our world
today. An issue I wanted to discuss in my Bad Bloods duology. There are a lot
of misconceptions surrounding illiteracy—some of which I discuss in an article
Tackling Diversity in YA—but the main one is the fact that illiteracy isn’t as
uncommon as the average reader might think.
1 in 4 children in America grow up without learning
how to read. (DoSomething.Org)
For readers, this fact might seem startling. Readers
generally know other readers, after all. And—on top of that—many of the
characters in YA fiction love books, because readers love books, and it’s easy
to relate to a character that loves the same things as them. For many readers,
it’s impossible to imagine a world without reading, even in fantasy and sci-fi
settings. I, for one, definitely struggle with that concept, but illiteracy is
a reality for many young people, especially women all over the world. Granted,
I will be the first to admit that I did not set out to write Serena as an
illiterate person to spread awareness. No. I originally set out to write her as
a character who didn’t enjoy reading due to severe dyslexia—something my
brother and father deal with to this day.
As a child, growing up in a household where my two
role models didn’t read was very difficult, especially when my late mother was
a reader but no longer able to share that joy with me. That being said, we can
relate to one another—readers or not—as people, and since so many characters
are readers, I wanted to remind readers we can love those who don’t read, too
(although maybe we can help them find the perfect book so they try reading
again)! We can also understand how illiteracy happens, and hopefully, we can
learn to sympathize with it and also help others learn to read in the future.
The issue of illiteracy developed with Serena’s
character over time, but I wouldn’t change Serena for the world. She is smart.
She is caring. She loves ice cream, her friends, and stories told beneath the
full moon. She falls in love. She cries. She feels pain and sorrow. She laughs.
Serena may be illiterate, but she still has a story. And so do the millions of
people around the globe dealing with illiteracy today. That is why she’s my
protagonist.
