no one talks about how rick riordan literally scammed disney
dead ass pjo was that seemingly “normal” kids fantasy series with a seemingly white straight kid saving the world and it’s a fucking success. percy jackson? iconic! ppl fucking love percy and his character and then hoo comes out? everyone is pumped bc everyone is in love with that world. the first book? two main bad ass poc characters. the second book? two more bad ass poc characters! the fourth book and there’s literally a gay character and it’s not like disney could say no. hoo ends and then there’s magnus chase and ppl are fucking pumped bc that’s annabeth chase’s cousin and in the first book there’s a muslim girl and by the second book there’s a transgender and genderfluid character. trials of apollo? a main gay couple in a happy relationship and a fucking bi character. could disney say no? no. literal 10 year olds are reading books with heaps of representation all published by disney. rick riordan played the game. you step in thinking ur just gonna get white cishets and you walk out surrounded by different cultures and rainbows.
tldr; rick started out with the basic pasty white and straight series which got hella successful and used his success to pusblish more books and allow only one (1) cishet and only one (1) white
i doubt he planned it but deadass it would be so funny if that’s what happened
I saw him speak on /writing in the UK right before (or early in on when) his series hit it big. Planned. Definitely planned.
Thousand percent planned. Also Percy? Has a learning disability. RR’s son inspired him to write bc he is ADHD and dyslexic. This was all planned. He is all about inclusivity and representation.
He also makes his books incredibly funny, which is rather rare for YA and makes them more accessible to kids who don’t really like to read. In addition to having loads of POV character who have trouble reading themselves.
For those who’ve been living under a YA rock, this is Rick Riordan:
People complain about Rick Riordan “beating a dead horse” but HE CAN BEAT ALL THE DEAD HORSES HE LIKES.
Rick Riordan has actively added diverse characters in all of his books to represent more kids. Characters in his books include:
a Arab-American Valkyrie (Magnus Chase)
a mute elf who uses sign language (Magnus Chase)
a Hispanic son of Hephaestus (Heroes of Olympus)
a half-Cherokee daughter of Aphrodite (Heroes of Olympus)
a Chinese son of Mars (Heroes of Olympus)
a bisexual God/Teen (Trials of Apollo)
a happy and loving gay couple, Nico and Will (Trials of Apollo)
a male dwarf that loves fashion and design (Magnus Chase)
a black daughter of Hades (Heroes of Olympus)
a genderfluid, transgender warrior of Odin (Magnus Chase)
and that’s just off the top of my head!
When Rick Riordan first revealed Nico, a son of Hades in his best-selling Heroes of Olympus series, as gay people asked him “why?” and he said because he wanted kids to see themselves in his books and that all kids need to be able to see themselves in literature and find reassurance that they’re fine just the way they are.
So unlike some people who beat dead horses and don’t even try to be diverse (*cough*JKROWLING*cough*) at least Riordan is constantly adding more and more young heroes and heroines that are diverse, well-rounded, and important.
THAT’S GREAT AND I WILL BUY EVERY SINGLE ONE OF HIS DEAD HORSE BEATING NOVELS FIGHT ME
ALSO, Rick Riordan is heading up his own imprint now of more mythology books for kids, and he’s not writing the books himself, but finding diverse authors to write books about the mythology of their own cultures. Apparently he was getting tons of letters all, “Do Indian mythology next! Do something about Polynesian myths!” or whatever, and he was like, “Those aren’t my stories to tell, but let me find people who CAN write those books for you, and make those books exist,” and that is fucking awesome in every way, you go Rick Riordan, 4 for you, Rick Riordan.
WHAT A GREAT MAN I AM SO EXCITED HOLY BANANAS
Oh I forgot to add that the (ever forgotten) Egyptian Series had two biracial main characters and a relationship that could arguably be classified as healthy polyamory.
if I remember correctly, the ENTIRE REASON he originally wrote the demigods in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series to have ADHD and dyslexia was to give his son (who is also ADHD and dyslexic) a hero like him.
what i do is not up to you 