Representationmatters Stories

Deja Washington, a 32-year-old Black woman and established book editor at a prestigious New York publishing house, has sworn off Valentine's Day after a string of disappointing relationships that always seem to fizzle out just when things get serious. When she's assigned to work with Takeshi Yamamoto, a 35-year-old Japanese-American literary translator known for his meticulous perfectionism and emotional reserve, their professional collaboration begins with immediate friction-her spontaneous editing style clashes violently with his methodical approach to preserving authorial intent. As they're forced to work together on an urgent project translating and editing a controversial manuscript over the two weeks leading up to Valentine's Day, their constant arguments slowly reveal the deep wounds and fears they both carry: Deja's abandonment issues from a father who left when she was young and a pattern of choosing emotionally unavailable men, and Takeshi's struggle with vulnerability after a broken engagement three years ago left him convinced he's incapable of meeting anyone's emotional needs. The story unfolds across intimate late-night editing sessions in Takeshi's cramped Brooklyn apartment, tense meetings in Deja's corner office overlooking Manhattan, and stolen moments in the rare bookshops and quiet corners of the city they both love, as they navigate professional respect bleeding into genuine friendship, and friendship igniting into something neither of them planned for but both desperately need-if only they can overcome their fears long enough to let each other in.

Twenty-six-year-old Tori Williams catches her white fiancé in bed with her coworker three months before their wedding, discovering an eight-month affair that shatters everything she believed about love and her own worth. Devastated by betrayal and drowning in PTSD, she flees to Kyoto, Japan on a two-year MFA scholarship in design, desperate to escape the wreckage of her life in Atlanta. Arriving broken and barely functional, Tori navigates crushing loneliness, brutal culture shock, and hypervisibility as a Black woman in homogeneous Japan. She faces constant stares, microaggressions, and the exhausting work of existing in a country where she'll always be Other. Through traditional joinery workshops, she meets Ren Beaumont-a half-Japanese, half-French architecture student with devastating good looks and an emotionally unavailable playboy reputation, haunted by his own family wounds and running from intimacy through meaningless hookups. As they learn kintsugi-the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold, making it more beautiful for having been broken-two shattered people begin to recognize themselves in each other's cracks. Tori must decide if she can trust again after annihilating betrayal, while Ren confronts whether he's capable of the vulnerability real love requires. Through cherry blossom seasons and autumn leaves, temple gardens and late-night workshops, they discover that healing doesn't mean becoming who you were before breaking-it means honoring the cracks while building something entirely new. This is a story about surviving trauma, finding home in unexpected places, chosen family that saves lives, and learning that broken and whole aren't opposites-they're the same thing, gold-filled and beautiful. ©️ Relle H

Seventeen-year-old Dessa Winters earned her place at Celestine Academy through raw magical talent, not family connections. But when an ancient treaty forces her into marriage with Lysander Vael-the beautiful, arrogant heir to an ice-wielding dynasty-her future shatters. He loves someone else. She never wanted this. And their legendary rivalry is about to become something far more devastating when politics demands they marry. Mature slow-burn fantasy romance. Arranged marriage. Fire vs Ice. Trauma and transformation.

Marcus Wheeler is a 26-year-old trucker who thinks he's seen it all-until a routine delivery to a small Illinois town called Anna changes everything. Some places in America never moved forward. And sunset is in four hours.

🌍 Sixteen countries. Sixteen voices. One mission. In the heart of Seoul, a radical new reality show is born - not to find the most famous teen, but the most authentic one. No auditions. No filters. Just truth. The first stop? Kurdistan. In a mall outside Duhok, surrounded by face masks and K-pop posters, the crew finds her - Mira. Sixteen. Fierce. Invisible to the world, but impossible to ignore. With just one look into the camera, Mira turns the whole project upside down. 🎬 "Because I come from a place people forget exists. I know what it feels like to be invisible." By the end of the day, she's not just a contestant. She's a statement. A spark. A risk. And she's only just begun.

Akira is the younger sister of Callum and the older sister of Ezran. Akira had always dreamed of being a powerful hero warrior who would save innocent people, learn magic and fight bad guys. That's all she ever wanted. Being so naive and simpleminded, thinking it would be so easy to achieve such a dream. Then...life went downhill...her father was assassinated by Moonshadow elves and now she is uncertain of her path and purpose, will she achieve her dream...? (And reminder!! This is my first story, please forgive me if there are any grammitcal errors or the theme or plot don't make sense. And also, most of the photos you see in this story aren't mine! I'll put "my photo" under an image if it's mine.) EDIT: (Btw if you haven't seen TDP - The Dragon Prince, go watch it. Right now. It's such a good show. It has diversity, good representation, beautiful characters and chemistry, and an amazing plot. -I suggest watching it on Netflix.) This story mainly focuses on maturity and may not have as much romance. .... or will there? Edit 9/30/25 y'all i lowk don't know if Ima come back to this story it's a hot mess, I was a hot mess I wrote this like the summer of 8th into 9th....💔💔 stay connected in case I try to fix this garbage or develop a new story.

A story that focuses on eight high school senior students. A group of eight student who always seem to never fit in with the other kids in school. Join them as the go through external and internal conflicts. This story is a representation matters book. (:

Never in a million year's would anyone think you could be so lucky to meet your life partner in your teens ? But that's exactly what happened to Mariah and Tessa when they see each other in a Boston bar while they are attending University/college. They go on to explore each other and see what it's like to fall in love at a very early age and also have a few up's and downs along the way. At the end of the day the only thing that matter's is the bond these two women have for each other and how they navigate through life together and have each other's backs .

The Earthen Series Part Two**Find out what happens, as your favourite characters try to unscramble their troubles and get back to working towards their original motive - save the Earth. As the humans work towards an Earth with humans on it and the aliens work towards an Earth without the humans on it, it's evident that the Avo is an essential key to capture absolute control of the Earth. Who will get their hands on the Avo - the Humans or the Ytai? Regular teens Aija, Zuri, and Ze, had their lives take a dark-turn after their encounter with a new world - aliens. The Ker'zan does not go well - for anyone, either good or bad. Aija chose to return to her enemies but never made it. Ze decided to escape to a new planet, while Zuri gets caught under the crumbling building after losing Kuna to a Gale operative. And the question remains - whatever happened to Thieron? Follow the humans and the ytai as they race towards getting the Avo on new territories - Ytean, and struggle as new feelings threaten to pull apart friends, and as the truth changes the course of the entire quest of who takes over the Earth. **** Frequently updated as and when a new chapter is ready. Follow the official Instagram account: @theafirebook.

Minerva Manchester, an 11-12 year old girl living in Berlin NH falls for an 11 year old boy named Evan Butterfield at her school, but the only catch is that her feelings towards him aren't in the traditional sense that everyone else feels.

Teen fiction. Humor. Romance. If Summer was a person, Blanche would hug her tight, and never let go. That's how much Blanche Reeves loves Summer. Right from the glistening sun rays to the chirping birds and insects. Okay, maybe not insects, but that doesn't waver Blanche's zeal at all. Adding to her enthusiasm, she's presented a chance of spending three weeks of Summer with her best friend and a charming stranger. Accepting it, she thinks this might just be the best Summer ever. Or maybe not, seeing similitudes of that one incident Blanche can never forgive herself for, come knocking at her door.

Single Puerto Rican mother, Ariella Barnes, tries to keep her family together while going through financial problems, but her life takes an unexpected turn, changing everything and everyone, starting with her kids, when a not so stranger, stranger, shows up at the front porch with a casserole. All Copyright reserved

Brianna, Evelyn, Liam, and Carlos find out that their small town of Wackleburrow is no ordinary place. They start a paranormal activity group, called Creepy Crew, together to find out what goes on here. Once they follow a creepy map from a fortune teller underground, they encounter a strange ghost dungeon ruled by a dragon. Read on and figure out what is up with the town!

It's no longer acceptable to merely throw some queer characters into a story, especially when that storyline is perpetuating and supporting harmful narratives. The LGBTQ(IA+) community deserves to see representation that celebrates queer relationships and normalizes them. We want to see hand holding, the slow burn build up, the first kiss, the first date....we want everything that heteronormative society has been given from the creation of entertainment until now. We are tired of painful, traumatizing portrayals of our lives - we want our happily ever afters.

[UNDER EDITING - 22/55 done] ---- Sakari has always been a fan of Tigorian mythology ever since her mother read parts of it to them as a child. It was also a way for Sakari to cope after her father, Lawrence 'Ren', had gone off to a long war. She hadn't thought it was real, just myths, until her first day of school at Kiyosumi happens. Follow the sixteen year-old as they meet the entities and help them find the rest as they go on a journey that will not only change them, but also grow new friendships and bonds. ------ [POC] | [LGBTQIA+] [DISORDERS] | [DIVERSITY + REPRESENTATION] [TW: Might include graphic mentions of violence and gore from time to time. Strong language. Will have trigger warnings at the beginning of chapters that will have said violence and gore.] [Rating: Mature] [⚠️= Chapters with said TW ^^^^]

An essay by yours truly.

Love comes when you least expect it !! It can turn into your soul mate if your lucky . Love is Love no matter what gender you are. It shouldn't matter to anyone who you love but yourself .#representationmatters #Loveislove Mariah a business woman and Tessa a musician and song writer fall in love from the first moment they set eyes on one another, and so begins an epic love story/

Searyn, born the same day as Korra's fateful death, lives in a house with criminal parents. After making his up his mind to run away from his parents, he finds a village not too far away from his home. Now, him and his Airbending friend, Loris, go on a diplomatic mission to Capital City, Fire Nation. Here, a new story unfolds, and Searyn will become the most spiritual Avatar known to man.

📚 Book 1 of Melody's Magical African Adventure is just the beginning! From the pyramids of Egypt to the streets of Nairobi, Melody explores 10 African countries in each book - and there are 5 parts in the full series, celebrating ALL 54 African countries in a fun, magical, and relatable way for kids everywhere. 🧒🏾✨ Packed with culture, history, food, music, and joy - this is the African storybook we've been waiting for. 🎒 Tag a parent, teacher, or book lover who should meet Melody!