I've told this story before, but with our first book, I had a character who's been white since his inception. I had Henry Cavill in mind as his body model and everything. *happy swoony sigh* But, literally the night before we published, the Question came back. Was there any real reason he had to be white? And the answer was no. So, I spent the next few hours picking through the manuscript making changes.
The next day, when I told our alpha reader about it, he responded with, "Wasn't that your only straight white male?"
Whoops.
So, Faerie Rising is lacking in straight white men. We have straight men. We have white men. But none who are both and, the best part? No reader, in the seven years the book has been in the wild, has ever noticed, at least not enough to comment on it.
The next day, when I told our alpha reader about it, he responded with, "Wasn't that your only straight white male?"
Whoops.
So, Faerie Rising is lacking in straight white men. We have straight men. We have white men. But none who are both and, the best part? No reader, in the seven years the book has been in the wild, has ever noticed, at least not enough to comment on it.