The Iceberg

Culture is like an iceberg. There are cultural markers like holidays, food, clothes, etc. that stand out as the the small tip of the iceberg obvious above the water’s surface. What we need is work that represents the mass of details, nuances, and variety that truly define a culture. No culture is a monolith, nor is any culture explained simply by their most obvious difference from mainstream white society, but these details are concealed below the surface. Writers have to do the work to get at the base of the iceberg if they want to portraying authentic minority characters. 

- From an SCBWI panel discussion with David Bowles, Linda Sue Park, and S.K. Ali

This idea was attributed to a talk Park attended by Leah Henderson. A perfect example of the goal of Words Unbound: share in the community, share the wisdom and we all grow together.