Examining Intersectionality Through Diverse Voices: On Writing Pelagarchia

Abstract

This MA thesis includes two components: a creative writing novella of around bout 23,500 words, and an exposition of approximately 7,400 words, that details the theoretical framework and writing process of the creative piece. The novella is comprised of the prologue, twenty chapters, and epilogue. The story is set in the fictional world of Pelagarchia. This world has four island nations and a small central island where the adult citizens meet for an annual summit. The main protagonist, Kaia, will be leaving for her first visit to the annual summit. The first love interest, Axxyl, is a non-binary sailor who that has known the protagonist since childhood. When Kaia arrives at the summit meeting she meets another love interest, Zan. His father is a powerful king who wants to reclaim all of Pelagarchia for himself. This eventually thrusts her into the center of a great conflict. The genre of the novella is New Adult Fiction Romance. The prologue and epilogue are written in third-person omniscient narration, while the chapters are written in multiple alternating first person point of view. Themes included in this novella are: coming of age, first love, queer identity and romance, feminism, and diversity.The exposition examines the writing process and theoretical framework of the novella. It reviews the writing and revision process, as well as other literary elements including the development of: setting, characters and , plot. It also gives an in-depth look at some of the techniques I used, such as ‘show vs. tell,’ developing a diverse world, and creating unique character voices. The overall goal for this thesis is to examine the need for more intersectionality in modern literature.