Once upon a time, not long after the War to End All Wars and the great influenza pandemic combined to take millions of lives around the world, a man left Warsaw maybe half a step ahead of the authorities. The authorities were looking for a Jewish man, but this man (Martin) could pass for Polish so long as he kept his pants on. He declared himself a Catholic, hopped on a boat, and made his way to New York.
That man was my great-grandfather.
Now, I’m not claiming Jewish identity. For those who look at the ethnic side of Judaism, descent is reckoned through the mother, and Martin was a cis man. I can’t claim a place within Judaism based on descent. I would have to undergo a conversion process. While I’m interested in this aspect of my background for historical reasons, I’m not big on organized religion for myself personally and I don’t think I’ll be doing that. I am not Jewish, either by my own reckoning or by the reckoning of most Jewish people.
To anti-Semites? Yeah, it counts, and they’re not shy about it.
Is the family who Martin left behind, apparently with some justification, any less dead because I don’t share their religion? Nope.
I don’t belong to the Jewish community, who have every right to determine who is part of their community obviously. And I can’t be fully part of the majority community either, because while not everyone marches around with tiki torches and red hats there are a lot of people with strong feelings about folks with Jewish backgrounds.
When I saw Elizabeth Warren’s DNA test announcement and the controversy surrounding it, I recognized a lot of my own experience in her. Just, you know, on a much larger scale. I’m not a senator, nor would I want to be. The Cherokee Nation gets to define who belongs, and that’s right and good, but to say Warren and her family haven’t faced discrimination for even a small part of their background is a little farfetched.
Why is any of this important?
This isn’t a political blog, not really. (Of course, since I write primarily LGBTQ+ romance, everything has at least a peripheral touch of politics somewhere.) Questions about my background, or Elizabeth Warren’s, are all about identity, and identity is a central part of character.
Right, character. The whole point of romance.
There’s another big fight brewing about a new policy being unveiled by the current administration, one that seeks to put strict limits on the definition of gender. It doesn’t just affect trans people, but also people with certain endocrine conditions and intersex people as well. What it boils down to is, “who gets to decide my identity?”
Think about identity for a minute. Think about your identity. What are the circumstances that lead you to hold that identity? Who chose that identity for you? Was it your parents? Was it you? Your school, your friends, your government?
Now, assuming you’re a writer, take a look at your character. Ask the same questions of them. I’m releasing a new book next month. One of the main characters is Luis. He’s an FBI agent. He’s worked hard to get to where he is, and when he’s reassigned it’s a major blow to his identity. When his very job is threatened, it’s a crisis for him. Who is Luis, if he’s not a federal agent anymore? That part of his identity, such a crucial part of him, isn’t his to control.
Are there parts of your character’s identity that they choose to ignore, or hide? In the book I’m releasing next month, Hunter, Donovan (the other main character) has spent his entire life in the closet. Other aspects of his identity – Roman Catholic, policeman, good son, et cetera – have made him feel as though he must deny the “gay man” part of his identity. That denial has cost him dearly in the past.
In Beverly Jenkins’ Forbidden, which is one of my favorite romance novels ever, the love interest is hiding a huge part of who he is, from everyone in the town. Keeping his secret does cost him, and it has the potential to cost him even more.
Are there parts of your character’s identity that were defined for them? Is the gender someone else assigned for them at birth right, or do they not quite fit into that identity? Has someone else defined their role in society? Does your character accept that, or do they chafe against it? In Starlit, Sahak was intended for slavery, but he rejected that role and escaped.
Looking at current events – or our own lives – can provide a lot of fodder for stories and for character development. All we have to do is know where to look.