FAQ Update: Tags for Non-POC Authors
I just updated the FAQ. Most tweaks are minor, but I added one new question and made a major revision to another. For your convenience, the text of both questions are copied below:
How can I find out if an author is a person of color?
While Google will usually tell you if an author is POC, it will almost never tell you that an author is white. If you can't figure out if an author is POC or not, that usually means the author is not POC.
Possible places to look for information:
Who tags the posts? How do I tag posts?
Please tag your own posts, and please pitch in by tagging any older, or incompletely-tagged posts you find. (Any member can correct the tags on any post; any member can create a new tag as needed.) The mods feel undying love and appreciation for those who tag their own posts and who help with tagging others'.
Please tag each book by
When you’re tagging, please, please, PLEASE have a look at existing tags and use existing tags whenever possible. We have so many tags that we'd like members to not create a "ya" tag when the "young adult" tag already exists. (We know that’s bad tagging-theory, but we’re trying to keep the number of tags semi-manageable. Yes, we're quixotic like that.)
Notice, please, the change: we're now tagging POC authors, editors, and illustrators differently from white (co-)authors, editors, and illustrators. This is so that the "a: ", "ed: " and "i: " tags can act as a running list of POC authors, editors, and illustrators, and (hopefully) cut down on confusion about who is or isn't a person of color.
(If you want an action shot, take a look at the tags on this post, which includes one white-edited anthology and a book with a white co-author. [Erm, I could probably have made that far clearer in the reviews themselves.])
Where we need your help: If you've previously posted a book to the comm that has either a white co-author or a white editor, or if you've added a white illustrator to the tags list, would you please edit the tags on that post? I've already made a first pass through the list of editors, but there's no way I can go through that ginormous list of author names and confirm them all manually. So, if you've posted a white co-author, editor, or illustrator to the comm, would you please edit their tags? Or point them out to us, if you need help? Thanks!
And one more thing: a big thank you to everyone who's been conscientiously tagging their posts! It's been looking really good lately, and you've been making my mornings much simpler. :-)
How can I find out if an author is a person of color?
While Google will usually tell you if an author is POC, it will almost never tell you that an author is white. If you can't figure out if an author is POC or not, that usually means the author is not POC.
Possible places to look for information:
- Google image search could help you find an author photo (which can confirm that someone is POC, but not that they aren't, especially in the cases of mixed-race, Native, North African, and Middle Eastern authors)
- author websites (or faculty webpages!)
- Wikipedia article for the author (check both the bio section and the categories list at the bottom of the page)
- author interviews
- reference sites like Voices from the Gaps (see del.icio.us booklists for other lists of authors)
Who tags the posts? How do I tag posts?
Please tag your own posts, and please pitch in by tagging any older, or incompletely-tagged posts you find. (Any member can correct the tags on any post; any member can create a new tag as needed.) The mods feel undying love and appreciation for those who tag their own posts and who help with tagging others'.
Please tag each book by
- author/editor name (see below for more details)
- genre
- subject
- author nationality/ethnicity
- protagonist or location nationality/ethnicity (if different from that of the author)
- "a: " -- POC authors
- "ed: " -- POC editors
- "i: " -- POC illustrators
- "w-a: " -- white (co-)authors
- "w-ed: " -- white editors
- "w-i: " -- white illustrators
When you’re tagging, please, please, PLEASE have a look at existing tags and use existing tags whenever possible. We have so many tags that we'd like members to not create a "ya" tag when the "young adult" tag already exists. (We know that’s bad tagging-theory, but we’re trying to keep the number of tags semi-manageable. Yes, we're quixotic like that.)
Notice, please, the change: we're now tagging POC authors, editors, and illustrators differently from white (co-)authors, editors, and illustrators. This is so that the "a: ", "ed: " and "i: " tags can act as a running list of POC authors, editors, and illustrators, and (hopefully) cut down on confusion about who is or isn't a person of color.
(If you want an action shot, take a look at the tags on this post, which includes one white-edited anthology and a book with a white co-author. [Erm, I could probably have made that far clearer in the reviews themselves.])
Where we need your help: If you've previously posted a book to the comm that has either a white co-author or a white editor, or if you've added a white illustrator to the tags list, would you please edit the tags on that post? I've already made a first pass through the list of editors, but there's no way I can go through that ginormous list of author names and confirm them all manually. So, if you've posted a white co-author, editor, or illustrator to the comm, would you please edit their tags? Or point them out to us, if you need help? Thanks!
And one more thing: a big thank you to everyone who's been conscientiously tagging their posts! It's been looking really good lately, and you've been making my mornings much simpler. :-)