: Re: How do I write for the majority, without alienating my minority? This is something of a companion question to How does one write from a minority culture? A question on cultural references I

@Sims2267584

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Amadeus and Logan's answers are already good. I'd like to expand a bit about the "no explanation needed" that Logan presented.

Your assumption is that the majority-readers needs explanation. This is not true: as humans, we are good at drawing lines between dots and dealing with missing or partial information.

If a read of a jewish character performing a ritual, I actually wouldn't expect to understand everything, nor to grasp all the intricacies of a religion I don't know. If I wanted to understand everything about jewish culture and/or religion, I wouldn't be reading narrative. I would be reading essays, historical sources, and guides on the topic.

Compare this with how a lot of eastern culture is alluring to the western audiences exactly because it feels foreign.

So, if a character does X in a certain minority cultural context, majority readers are likely to accept it no explanation needed, while minority readers will understand and feel represented.

You need to explain things to majority readers only if your plot and character development heavily relies on the cultural background you're portraying.
If your plot revolves around the rules of Sabbath, you want your majority readers understand them enough to make the plot effective - and in this case, Amadeus' suggestions come in handy.

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