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Should writers create more male heroes?

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Hey, Reader. You're possibly wondering why worry about that. What about more women characters, or people of other races, etc?

I hear you. That's all valid. Still, there's even more to consider.

Without a father, I looked to comic books, television, and film for my male role models. Luckily, I picked some good ones.

For observational skills and deductive reasoning, I picked Sherlock Holmes.

I chose the Lone Ranger and Tonto for integrity, selflessness, and bravery. Please note I said and Tonto.

I picked James Bond, Peter Gunn, T. H. E. Cat, and Simon Templar for sophisticated class and style.

For a sense of humor, I picked Dick Van Dyke Don Adams and Jonathan Winters. And some wacky cartoon characters.

There was another comedy hero who was loved by millions. He's fallen from grace since then but was a beacon in my youth.

For youthful energy and wide-eyed wonder, I picked Jonny Quest. With Hadji and Race Bannon, because adventure was always around the corner.

There was also an assortment of comic book heroes like Batman, Superman, and the Blackhawks.

For my belief that interracial collaboration was possible in a world that had screamed the opposite for more than centuries, I ran to The Mod Squad and I Spy.

Remember that those moments in television history broke barriers that had existed for generations.

See, for those of us who grew up without strong male characters in our real life, you found substitutes wherever you could.

They served as placeholders until age and education revealed more flesh and blood role models to look up to.

What's that got to do with writing?

Who do we mimic? How do we choose what we say and believe?

Yes, some of it is from our day-to-day experiences. But don't tell me that you don't that you weren't ever influenced by the books you read or the films and plays you saw.

Don't tell me that at some point you didn't want to be like fill-in-the-blank. Or wish you had the same fill-in-the-blank. Didn’t want to drive that car that fill-in-the-blank.

And as our creative lives expand, we create new things often influenced by the old. Some of us do fight for change. But somewhere in that seasoned brew that we call our own personality is an influence of characters that we watched parade before us, for sure.

And what we create going forward will influence others.

So don't be afraid to look back in order to go forward.

Oh, if while looking around, you don't see the heroes of the same gender, race, culture, lifestyle, or beliefs that you have, that doesn't mean they don't exist. It may mean they're just not getting the same exposure.

And if they don't exist ... create them. Perhaps make them even better.

Now go forth and be brilliant.

Best,

Alex "Easy Rollins" Simmons

PS. If you're not sure that our lives influence our art and vice versa, check out episode #282 of Tell The Damn Story. The author's real-life tale might help.

#TellTheDamnStory #WritingCommunity #Storytelling #CreativeWriting #AuthorLife #Inspiration #EthicsInWriting #PodcastDiscussion

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