queer_scribbling (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
queer_scribbling) wrote2020-08-09 02:15 am
queer_scribbling) wrote2020-08-09 02:15 am
Entry tags:
AUREA Email Follow Up
Context: Roughly two months ago, I mentioned in the comments of the 'The Importance of Representation' AUREA post that I might try reaching out to the Contact email [here].
There's something about being in 'I am writing an email' mode where I feel like I need to be non-confrontational and polite, and I didn't want to dump everything I'd written in the post into one email. I tried to weigh out what seemed like the most important question to get out of the way first when contacting them about their representation post, and I settled on an aspect brought up by Sennkestra [here] about the focus on mainstream media over independent creators.
Sent June 12, 2020 12:50 AM:
I've recently read "The Importance of Representation" and a previous article linked in it ("What to do about elusive aromantic representation"), and I have a question. When the AUREA writer(s) talk about meager representation, should the reader be focusing exclusively on mainstream television and movies through all of these articles?
I ask because someone reminded me of an independent short fiction creator, K.A. Cook (@aroworlds and @alloaroworlds on tumblr, Aro Worlds on Wordpress). Ze also boosts other aro content from other users on hir tumblr blogs and has a directory of aro artists. I can understand wanting to talk about mainstream onscreen representation, but that focus comes across like representation that isn't considered mainstream or movies/shows isn't already in the process of being put out there. For example, K.A. Cook has a collection of free allo-aro narratives that include fanfiction, meta, original fiction, and comics.
I then found out that they had a feedback form open, but I didn't want to fill out information about myself just to eventually get to the space provided to give feedback. I decided to wait and see if I ever got a response, but then I forgot about sending the email. (I also was mentally taken out of commission for quite a bit of July due to Covid-19.) I recently saw K.A. Cook's blogs in the bottom of the 'Aromantics Create(d) Pride' post in the section for engaging with other projects and aro content, which reminded me that I sent an email. I went looking through my Sent folder and realized that Outlook did this thing where the reply was attached to the sent email instead of showing up in my inbox. That is not how my brain likes to manage emails, so jot that down for why I don't use this email for most communication purposes.
Sent August 2, 2020 12:15 AM (read on the 9th at 1:45 am):
Thanks for emailing us about your query! For the purpose of those articles you linked: yes the focus is near exclusively on mainstream media. We wrote those articles to say "hey we belong/need to be on the big screen" while we work to encourage and boost independent works in other ways. Our general belief is that mainstream media and independent aro-made content have incomparable importance and fill different needs.
It wasn't our intention to make it sound like representation isn't being made elsewhere. The inclusion of the media at the end of What to do about elusive aromantic representation and our Aromantics Create Pride event mentioned in The Importance of Representation article were intended to curb that assumption.
In terms of representation we had been working with the idea that there is content that reaches a wide audience (mainstream media, i.e. TV and movies) and content that reaches a limited audience (generally independent aro-made media, in this case). Your reading of our article would suggest that the book and musician that we categorised as "aro-made media that reaches a limited audience" could be categorised differently. We will keep this in mind going forward!
Honestly, I'm probably not going to try to send another email. Email spoons are a very particular type of energy draining spoon, and I would rather spend my energy elsewhere, especially when it's almost two months later.
There's something about being in 'I am writing an email' mode where I feel like I need to be non-confrontational and polite, and I didn't want to dump everything I'd written in the post into one email. I tried to weigh out what seemed like the most important question to get out of the way first when contacting them about their representation post, and I settled on an aspect brought up by Sennkestra [here] about the focus on mainstream media over independent creators.
Sent June 12, 2020 12:50 AM:
I've recently read "The Importance of Representation" and a previous article linked in it ("What to do about elusive aromantic representation"), and I have a question. When the AUREA writer(s) talk about meager representation, should the reader be focusing exclusively on mainstream television and movies through all of these articles?
I ask because someone reminded me of an independent short fiction creator, K.A. Cook (@aroworlds and @alloaroworlds on tumblr, Aro Worlds on Wordpress). Ze also boosts other aro content from other users on hir tumblr blogs and has a directory of aro artists. I can understand wanting to talk about mainstream onscreen representation, but that focus comes across like representation that isn't considered mainstream or movies/shows isn't already in the process of being put out there. For example, K.A. Cook has a collection of free allo-aro narratives that include fanfiction, meta, original fiction, and comics.
I then found out that they had a feedback form open, but I didn't want to fill out information about myself just to eventually get to the space provided to give feedback. I decided to wait and see if I ever got a response, but then I forgot about sending the email. (I also was mentally taken out of commission for quite a bit of July due to Covid-19.) I recently saw K.A. Cook's blogs in the bottom of the 'Aromantics Create(d) Pride' post in the section for engaging with other projects and aro content, which reminded me that I sent an email. I went looking through my Sent folder and realized that Outlook did this thing where the reply was attached to the sent email instead of showing up in my inbox. That is not how my brain likes to manage emails, so jot that down for why I don't use this email for most communication purposes.
Sent August 2, 2020 12:15 AM (read on the 9th at 1:45 am):
Thanks for emailing us about your query! For the purpose of those articles you linked: yes the focus is near exclusively on mainstream media. We wrote those articles to say "hey we belong/need to be on the big screen" while we work to encourage and boost independent works in other ways. Our general belief is that mainstream media and independent aro-made content have incomparable importance and fill different needs.
It wasn't our intention to make it sound like representation isn't being made elsewhere. The inclusion of the media at the end of What to do about elusive aromantic representation and our Aromantics Create Pride event mentioned in The Importance of Representation article were intended to curb that assumption.
In terms of representation we had been working with the idea that there is content that reaches a wide audience (mainstream media, i.e. TV and movies) and content that reaches a limited audience (generally independent aro-made media, in this case). Your reading of our article would suggest that the book and musician that we categorised as "aro-made media that reaches a limited audience" could be categorised differently. We will keep this in mind going forward!
Honestly, I'm probably not going to try to send another email. Email spoons are a very particular type of energy draining spoon, and I would rather spend my energy elsewhere, especially when it's almost two months later.
no subject
I specifically want to circle ~venatrixlunaris' comment: