Writing Latinx Characters

Hello everyone!

I'm new to the writing world, and have an idea I'm extremely excited to start working on.

Enter Leo Amaro, who is Guatemalan, and a step down from main character statues (and I've admittedly grown attached too).

The catch, I'm not Guatemalan. I absolutely love Latin American culture (really all cultures lol), and the last thing I ever want to do is represent a culture improperly. 'Making' Leo Guatemalan didn't come as a choice, but rather came along with the story idea that I have, it's a part of his character and I'm ready and determined to do the research involved.

Racial conflict has really been emphasized lately, and culural appropriation is problem. I never want to contribute to either issue.

ANY tips about writing POC, Latinx, and Guatemalan characters, are greatly appreciated. Thank you very much for reading

 

Write them like the rest of your characters. They are still people. You can throw in
an odd word or two here and there in dialogue in their native tongue, if you want.
It helps to know the culture and how it fits with the time period your are writing in.

Couple of links you might find of interest/helpful.

https://www.roughguides.com/destinations/central-america-and-the-caribbean/guatemala/culture-etiquette/
http://www.countryreports.org/country/Guatemala.htm

Good luck and hope it is helpful to your work.

 

Thank you!

 

I don't mean to ask this in smartass way, in fact I'm probably showing my ignorance (again), but what are 'Latinx'?

 

It's a gender neutral term for Latin Americans.

When referring to a male, group of males, or a group of males and females you call them Latino/s. When referring to a female or a group of females you call them Latina.

Don't feel bad for asking, most people (including me) are happy to educate and discuss