The Diverse Baseline (2025 Version)Mission:Read 1 book by a nonwhite and/or mixed race author per month, for the entirety of 2025 (a total of 12 books), in order to reflect upon our reading habits, and to build habits that reach for nonwhite and mixed race authors.Guidelines:Each month, there will be one prompt.You can choose which book to read each month, as long as it fits one of the prompts from our list (you can choose from 70+ prompts!). You’re welcome to read more books fitting additional prompts.All books need to be written by nonwhite and mixed-race authors. Books with nonwhite and/or mixed-race main characters written by white authors do NOT fit the brief. Make sure you double check with at least a web search to make sure that the authors and books you’ve chosen fit the challenge.Readers are welcome and encouraged, to share recommendations, and to add those books to the Storygraph Challenge (Note: research your authors/books before adding them to the prompts, as we can only “hide” books that don’t fit and don’t actually have the ability to take them off the lists for everyone. We will not be providing a comprehensive list of authors, as there are thousands of authors out there, and we do not consider ourselves “experts” on anything. We encourage you to do your research to ensure your books are fitting the brief, and when mistakes are made, that’s totally fine. No challenge or person will ever be perfect, and we should let go of that expectation. We believe in you.)Community:Co-creators will be sharing their own picks for each month. Margherita hosts a monthly Fable book club where xe focuses on romance and chooses books that fit the prompts, and Brittany will be hosting a StoryGraph read-along each month with her choice. Margherita also often posts round ups around different tropes, identities, and more. Brittany posts book reviews on Instagram and StoryGraph all year long.Join our Discord to share book recommendations and updates with other participants and the challenge co-creators!Subscribe to the newsletter to make sure you don’t miss important updates throughout the year.We loved being tagged in your monthly wrap ups and reflections, and hope to see this momentum continue into 2025. We can’t wait to read your reviews once you’ve completed the prompt for each month, whether it’s on Goodreads, StoryGraph, Instagram, TikTok, or any other avenue you post reviews!Reminders:Please remember: this is an optional challenge. If it does not feel motivating and is instead causing more harm to you than helping, you are not required to participate, you are not looked down upon for not participating, and/or you are not being judged for tapping out of this challenge. The co-creators feel similarly about running this challenge; we want to keep it fun and of course, as a tool for growth.This challenge’s core mission is meant to encourage readers to reflect upon their reading habits, and to move forward intentionally to be mindful about the “baseline” of what we should be reading if we are going to call ourselves “well read”. It is not meant to be a comprehensive checklist; it’s a starting point for inward reflection.We are simply asking, “Whose voices am I leaving out? Have I made a concerted effort to diversify across genres, identities, and more?” This challenge will look and feel different for everyone, and that is a beautiful display of diversity of thought and lived experience :)To be abundantly clear, there is no prize for completing the challenge 100% and there is no punishment for not. This is OPTIONAL and should be FUN! If not, we encourage you to seek other challenges (there are plenty from such amazing creators) that do fit what you are seeking for your 2025 goals.There are no value judgments placed upon folks who join or do not join a challenge. If the challenge is not fun, exciting, or motivating to you, that’s okay. No one is pressuring you or forcing you to do anything you do not want to do—if you feel pressured, we invite you to interrogate that, but the co-creators of TDB are not policing anyone on how they go about a challenge. Our only guideline is that you choose nonwhite and/or mixed race authors for our challenge.Our challenge is meant to encourage you and to inspire reflection. Some folks don’t need a challenge to do that, while others do! Both are valid. No matter what, we are rooting for you in your reading journey ahead!List of Prompts:Disclaimer: This is NOT meant to be a comprehensive list of every single identity and genre out there. This is meant to guide you to reflect upon the baseline of YOUR reading habits. Also, Brittany provided recommendations under many of the StoryGraph prompts <3• Poetry• Fat main character• Black Diaspora author• Northern African author• Central/Middle African author• Southern African author• East African author• West African author• Latine Diaspora author• Caribbean author• Central American author• South American author• Mexican author• Historical Fiction• Historical Romance• Contemporary Romance• Romantic Suspense• Holiday Romance• Found family• Translated work• A book originally written in a non-European language• Indigenous/First Nations author• Jewish representation• Muslim representation• Buddhist representation• Hindu representation• Book about colonization• Asian Diaspora author• East Asian author• South Asian author• Southeast Asian author• Native Hawaiian author• Pacific Islander author• Young Adult Book• New Adult Book• Middle Grade Book• Picture Book• Middle-age main character (35-59)• Older main character (60+)• Gay representation• Bi/Pan representation• Trans representation• Ace/Aro representation• Lesbian representation• Queer/Questioning representation• Indie author• Novella• Sensory disability representation• Psychiatric disability representation• Invisible and/or undiagnosed disability representation• Cognitive and intellectual disability representation• Physical disability representation• Real people on the cover• Biracial or mixed-race author• Anthology• Book about abolition• An author who comes from a country where genocide or conflict is taking place (Armenia, Congo, Palestine, Sudan, etc.)• Retelling or re-imagining• Fantasy/Science Fiction• Memoir• Horror• Thriller• Mystery• Literary Fiction• Speculative Fiction• Surrealism, Magical Realism, or Fabulism• Graphic novel or comic book• Nonfiction about intersectional feminism• A sequel to a book (finish that series!)• A new-to-you author• Book of your choice• A book off your TBR• A book recommended by a friend• A book with less than 200 reviews on Goodreads/StorygraphWhere the Challenge will Be:Like in 2024, there is a StoryGraph challenge. In 2025, let’s do our collective best to ensure the books we add fit the prompt, for the people in need of a place where to find books for each prompt.There is also a discord server now, for those that want a place where they can engage with others regarding the challenge. Please keep in mind we are two people who volunteer to do this beyond our other responsibilities, so we deeply appreciate your patience and understanding.In the home page you will be able to find all the links.
