Sensitivity reads – what are they?

Old embossed book.

Long time since I’ve posted, my apologies. Got hit with computing issues right when I was finishing up not only a freelance assignment, but also a graduate semester.

In any case!

I love working towards inclusion in games, video gaming and in tabletop. But sometimes, I have to go outside of my experience: whether it’s regarding another sort of disability, or regarding experiences of people of color (which I am not), and so on. In these cases, a sensitivity read can be useful to point out any use of stereotyping, clarifying viewpoint (such as a character having biased or racist opinions but not the author), making sure experiences ring true if (say) a queer character or a character of color is a minority, and so on. Sensitivity readers tend to be members of historically and currently marginalized populations themselves, possibly several at once (such as being queer and disabled, or a person of color and a religion other than Christian, or so on), and therefore treat them well – do not take them for granted, and offer payment and credit for their work. Sensitivity readers check for internalized bias and cultural inaccuracies, but do not guarantee against making any mistakes.

For more details, as well as how sensitivity readers are not “the PC police” or censor writers, please check out this HuffPost article by Ryan Douglass on what sensitivity readers actually do. In addition, to help in “writing the Other”, please check out the Writing the Other website and courses.

I myself do offer editing services as well as sensitivity reads. To contact, please use the following form.