A Hidden Light: Surplus LGBTQ+ Characters in Contemporary Young Adult Fiction
This panel will bring together scholars interested in the intersection of gender studies and young adult literature, investigating this surplus of surplus characters as authors scramble to include LGBTQ+ perspectives in their work. What is the effect of this surplus nature on the reader, whether queer or not, and how can writers avoid this cursory diversity in their own writing. The counter-example is the authors that manage to successfully write queer characters in contemporary Young Adult Fiction. How do these two sides of the coin impact a reader as they see queer characters presented as supplemental versus central?