Ask an Expert: Sensitivity Reading and Diversity

Getting help from an expert can enhance any author’s work.

Writing Diversely, created by Renee Harleston, is an editing, writing, and consulting service dedicated to helping writers create diverse and inclusive stories. Harleston spoke with BookLife about how to find and select the right sensitivity reader, and how they can make a good book even better.

Can you define what a sensitivity reader is for those who may not know?

Sensitivity readers are editors that use our lived experience, identity, culture, education, and professional experience to advise and correct bias and ignorance, and promote authentic and full representations of marginalized identities and culture in fiction and nonfiction texts.

Why do you think so many authors are using sensitivity readers?

We’ve seen a cultural shift in awareness and a lower tolerance for misrepresentation, no representation, and incomplete or outdated representation in media. Some authors are more aware of how words and actions affect others, and they want to protect readers, especially children, from offensive or harmful representations. The publishing industry has been called out recently, and more than once, on how white stories and white authors dominate the shelves—and not just white, but other majority identities as well. I think sensitivity readers are becoming popular as one tool the publishing industry is using to correct these issues.

Why do you think it is important—specifically for indie authors—to invest in sensitivity readers for their works in progress?

It’s an investment in helping to make the story authors have already put so much time and energy into the best it can be. There’s nothing worse than being enthralled by a book and being stopped in your tracks by a scene that isn’t culturally accurate or reinforces a stereotype. We help ensure your characters and the situations they find themselves in are rich, complex, authentic, and as true to life as possible.

Do you think beta readers can pull double duty and be sensitivity readers as well?

Sure, if they have the skills that I mentioned above. Much of sensitivity reading in practice is similar to beta reading. But don’t rely on your beta reader to give you feedback you would receive from a sensitivity reader unless both parties feel comfortable with the beta reader taking that on.

What is the most important quality or skill set a sensitivity reader should have? And what should authors look for when vetting sensitivity readers?

Sensitivity readers have to be constructive. It’s one thing to recognize something should be corrected. It is another thing to be able to provide the appropriate feedback, share the historical and contemporary context for why an edit should be made, and give suggestions on alternatives for the author. Authors should look for readers who align most closely with the identities of their characters. They should also look for what other types of work, education, or hobbies may deepen their expertise on a subject.

How does an author go about finding a sensitivity reader?

You can go on websites like Writing Diversely, where we have a list of readers and editors you can hire. If resources and money are preventing you from hiring someone, look to your network. You may know people who can help—reach out to them but offer to pay what you can or trade services with them so that, even though you aren’t paying them, you can offer just as much help as you’re getting.

What questions should an author ask their sensitivity readers?

I think authors should ask potential sensitivity readers questions like: What is your expertise? Do your identity and experience match my needs? Do you have experience with my type of project? In what format do you return feedback? Can you explain your process of reading a manuscript and what you are looking for while reading?

When you take on a new project as a sensitivity reader, what is your process?

There is no magic process because every project is different, and this is different for every reader. For me, I make notes as I read—especially character descriptions, dialogue, character arcs, and major plot points. As I read, I evaluate whether they are free from bias or stereotypes or not. How might it be interpreted by a reader? I also pay attention to the authenticity of dialogue and the characters’ interactions with one another and their environment. While I’m doing this, I’m also making a note of the context, time period, story arc, and purpose of the characters and scenes to make sure my notes take all of those things into account, as well.

Have you ever had any pushback from an author with your notes? How did that get resolved?

Pushback is rare; questions are common. To resolve some feelings toward more difficult feedback, I try to explain to the author that this kind of feedback is hard to process because it could feel very personal. I try to get some clarity on the reason for their pushback. It could be they are unfamiliar with the concept I’m referring to, or they may feel like the feedback was out of context. Ultimately sensitivity readers cannot make an author revise or rewrite content, so I remind them that the choices are up to them.

We help ensure your characters and the situations they find themselves in are rich, complex, authentic, and as true to life as possible.

How did you become a sensitivity reader?

One of my best friends from college is a literary agent, and one day we were just talking about books and how many of them get their Black characters wrong. She told me I would make a good sensitivity reader, and she even let me know where I could get started doing it back when the OG Writing in the Margins list existed. I researched what sensitivity readers are, what they did, how they give feedback, et cetera, and got started by joining that list.

What advice would you give someone who wants to become a sensitivity reader? What qualifications should they have?

Above all else, sensitivity readers have to be constructive. It’s one thing to recognize something should be corrected. It is another thing to be able to provide the appropriate feedback, as well as the historical and contemporary context for why an edit should be made, as well as give suggestions on alternatives for the author.

Do you think there are instances where an author should have more than one sensitivity reader?

Yes, some people prefer that. One person can’t speak for an entire culture, identity, or race, so it may be advantageous to get multiple readers. You may also need multiple readers if you have a diverse cast of characters. Sensitivity readers may only feel comfortable giving feedback on their own particular identity and can’t speak to another marginalized identity.

Do you think all novels should involve a sensitivity reader?

Sure, why not? We all have biases, good and bad, and blind spots that can show up in our work. They may not necessarily be harmful as far as overtly offensive representations, but they also can create stagnant, cliche characters that don’t make room for the full representations.

Tiffany Richardson is the co-founder of Big Black Chapters, a website dedicated to providing advice, networking opportunities, and promotion and marketing for indie authors of color.