Two things are true about Asexual and Aromantic representation in literature: There is a severe lack of representation but there is also probably more out there than you think. Books with lesser-represented identities often don't get large books deals and lots of publicity. Many of them don't get traditionally published at all and instead are published independently via small presses or self publishing. Having the right resources can make the difference between finding dozens of books with these identities and never reading about them at all. 

Yesterday, Netflix made the unfortunate decision to cancel their show One Day at a Time. Viewers all over social media are rallying to get the show picked up by another network because they are all in love with the groundbreaking characters and storylines. This show is especially loved for showcasing great Latinx, queer characters and storylines as well as storylines focused on mental health. 

While I truly hope that this show gets picked up and renewed, I also know that, in the meantime, people are missing this incredible story. Today, I wanted to share some wonderful YA books that showcase some of the wonderful queer and Latinx voices that are taking the world of literature by storm. 

In my post yesterday, I talked about the need to support marginalized bookish creators with more than just words. This has become only more relevant with some of the recent news in the book community. In light of this, I will be spending time in the coming weeks to highlight diverse creators who publish on multiple platforms. 

Today I am focusing on Booktube. At the moment, Booktube is the most consumed bookish community, reaches the most readers, and receives the most paid promotion from publishers. It has so many amazing marginalized creators, but the most popular and most viewed channels are predominantly run by white, cis, straight, and able-bodied creators. Frankly, there is so much talent on Booktube that, if we aren't watching marginalized creators, it can only be because we are being intentionally exclusionary.

I will be highlighting a mix of small and large channels. I love supporting small channels and seeing them grow, but I also know that even the biggest channels on this list are still 100,000 followers smaller than some of the largest booktubers. These channels deserve to be just as promoted.

The Disasters by M.K. England
Genre and Themes Young Adult / Science Fiction / Friendship / LGBT+
Pages ​352
Published December 18th, 2018  
Publisher HarperCollins
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Hello, lovely readers! I hope the new year is treating all of you well. As I was putting together my most anticipated lists for 2019, I realized there were a lot of YA book with lgbt+ lead characters that were flying under the radar. I wanted to make sure everyone knew about the queer books that were coming out this year so I made this video and post to share with you all. I will be uploading a similar post for every month of 2019 so that no one misses out on these awesome titles. 

2018 has been an amazing year for ace-spectrum characters in young adult fiction. We've gotten ace stories in romance, fantasy, sci-fi, historical, mystery, and every genre in between. There has been romantic ace rep, aromantic ace rep, and demisexual rep. We've had more stories by ownvoices ace authors than ever before and they are telling stories that are so, so important to ace readers. 

Unfortunately, even though asexual representation is getting much more common, it is still sometimes hard to find out which books feature asexual characters. Reviewers often forget to mention ace rep in their reviews and too often these books fly under the radar. To combat this, I've complied a list of every ace-spectrum character I could find in 2018 young adult fiction. This includes main characters, love interests, and side characters. I've also included links to reviews by ace-spectrum reviewers so that you can read their thoughts about each of these books.  

Please be aware that the fact that I included a book in this list does not mean the representation is good. A few of the books have very mixed or negative reviews so I urge you to check those out before you read them yourself if you are worried about poor representation. I included as many links to reviews by ace-spectrum readers as I could find to help you gauge which books are beneficial and which are harmful to ace readers. 

Don't forget to check out the end of the post to enter to win any YA book featuring an asexual character!