Introduction

Hello, lovely people, and welcome to my blog!

For my very first post, I felt it was important to introduce myself and my blog so that you have a general idea of what I am up to. I know it’s not really interesting for some people, but I thought it might be cool for you to learn a bit more about it.

Who is S.K. Willis?

The first question you are probably asking is: who is behind S.K. Wilson? The answer: nobody interesting. S.K. Willis is a pseudonym that I decided to use in order to remain anonymous. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to keep my identity a secret, and I have no particular reason for that, except that I have always been a mysterious person who never lets anything out—besides, who doesn’t like a bit of mystery?

One thing you should certainly know is that English is not my first language. Yep! Because I’m French—not sure if that’s a good or bad thing. Currently, I’m nineteen years old—a 2003 kid, just like Olivia Rodrigo, hehe—, and I’m studying English literature. If I had to describe myself in three words, it would be: introverted, withdrawn, and isolated (yes, I should probably find something better).

My Relationship with Writing

Writing and I go back years. I don’t know at what age I got interested in it, exactly, but I remember being in primary school and already writing stories. They were mostly about imagining a life with my crush, but you could say it was a great experience. In middle school, too, I was writing and posting on Instagram. It was awful, but it also led me to discover Wattpad, and it was on that site that I really started to get serious about writing with my story Sensitive Love.

About the Blog

So coming back to this blog. Beyond talking about my books, I also want to discuss writing more globally. I’m still young, and I know I’ll still be learning a lot, so it seems perfect to share all that, as well as my feelings. I want this blog to be helpful to others, even if only a little. It is also a way for me to motivate myself and introspect on my experience.

Along with writing, I would appreciate talking about reading and the books I am currently reading. In 2022, I got motivated to read again, and I want to share that with you here. I’d also like to talk about authors who aren’t particularly well-known or famous, as I feel it’s always good to diversify your reading beyond just what you see on TikTok or Instagram.

Of course, I’ll be sure to share with you the latest album that touched me or my current playlist because music is always a great source of inspiration for me, so I feel that this is a way to maybe stimulate others.

Conclusion

I’m still a newbie at all this, so I hope this post isn’t too embarrassing. Anyway, I’m looking forward to sharing this with you and being able to communicate all the things that are important to me—and there are many. So from the simple advice to the awkward anecdote, I hope you’ll find this blog interesting.

Don’t hesitate to follow me on my social networks to discover more things or to send me messages. I’ll answer them with pleasure!

I hope to see you soon for a new post!

With love,

S.K. Willis.

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Song of the day: HAPPY by NF.

The truth is I need help, but I just can't imagine

Who I'd be if I was happy

Introduction

Hello, lovely people, and welcome to my blog!

I’m back today for my second post, and I must admit that I’ve been hesitating about what I should discuss. On the one hand, there are many things I’d like to talk about; on the other hand, I’ve yet to find a way to do it. So today, I decided to talk about diversity in books. It’s a vast topic, I know, but it was important to me because it’s also an increasingly important one. I will mainly focus on diversity in terms of skin colour and origins, but of course, it can be extended to other aspects.

Diversity while Growing Up

I have to admit that growing up, I never really thought about diversity in characters, whether it was in their skin colour or in particular attributes that made them different. It wasn’t until later that I really started to pay attention to it because, well, it’s something that’s important to me.

As an Author

As an author, I always wanted my characters to have differences and not just represent one category of people but many. This is something I never really took the time to think about; I already knew that I wanted to introduce new things and reach new people. Just as I had never felt fully represented, I wanted others to feel portrayed. And through various things. Whether it’s in a romance, with characters of colour, or simply through the background of one of the characters. All of that is very close to my heart, and that’s where I want to go.

As a Reader

As a reader, though, it’s different. I want to diversify my reading, but it doesn’t come naturally. When I see the covers, I often complain that there are always (and only) white couples, but I don’t do much to change that either. Indeed, non-white couples are not particularly highlighted—especially in my country, where they don’t make much of an effort.

But we also have a responsibility as readers to look beyond what is presented to us. It’s hard for me to do that because when I choose a book, I do it mostly by instinct and judging it by its cover (because I’m precisely the definition of superficiality), but I think I should make a bit more of an effort to integrate diversity into what I read, both because I need it, but also because we all need it to avoid being locked into a norm.

My Way of Diversifying

Coming back to writing, I have my own way of evoking my character’s distinctions in terms of their origins/skin colours. As a person of mixed race, origins are very important to me, and I like to use different cultures in my books to talk about them. So to address them, I do it primarily through words and not through description—I’m not too fond of them. And it’s a bit the same when it comes to skin colour.

I have a bit of a problem with having to physically describe each of my characters just to know what colour they are (I mean, it’s necessary, but I hate having to write all these details). Especially because you have to do it with each character—which some people don’t—because you can’t afford to think that a white character is a “standard” character, you know? So personally, I prefer to talk about their origins (which sometimes give this information), the experience they may have had because of their skin colour, or simply talk about it through dialogues. It may not be the best way, but it’s the one I prefer to adopt.

Personally, I’m a bit tired of seeing skin colours described by food or other terms like that, you know? They shouldn’t be approached as differently as when you say, “Her skin is as white as snow”. When I want to talk about differences, I don’t want to do it differently. I want to integrate them into my story in a natural way. And I don’t think I can do it perfectly today, but I hope to do it one day.

Conclusion

Some people may not be aware of it, but diversity is essential. I think that all people of colour will be able to attest to this, but we also need to feel represented, not only through films that express the violence that we may experience but just something that evokes everyday life. Because we, too, want to have our romances. We want to have our badass heroines who break everything. We want that girl with the magic powers. We just want to be more represented, so that’s the mission I’ve given myself in my stories: to bring diversity.

So to the readers: take the time to browse all shelves.

And to the writers: please, look further for your stories too.

No representation is better than a bad one, so take the time to do your research, too, if you ever need to. It’s all important. And I’m not forcing anyone to diversify their characters because, ultimately, it’s up to you, but I can tell you that millions of people are still waiting to see themselves in books. Of all colours, of all origins, of all imperfections: they are waiting.

So let’s end their waiting and give them what they deserve.

With love,

S.K. Willis.

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Song of the day: Best Friend Breakup by Lauren Spencer Smith.

Always thought that it’d be love

That was gonna mess me up