The Arsenika submissions portal includes an optional demographics form for people to fill out. The following data was collected between July 2019 and April 2020. Over that time, I received 1,650 submissions of prose & poetry and 111 responses to the demographic survey. As writers can submit multiple pieces for consideration, it’s unclear exactly how many individuals submitted during that time. (If anyone knows how to count this easily on Moksha, please let me know.)
Some of the questions had freeform text fields rather than multiple choice options for the reply. For ease of analysis, I’ve grouped together some of the responses under umbrella terms. Unfortunately, Excel’s pivot table function didn’t allow me to count a single response as belonging to multiple categories (unless I’ve missed a feature, which is very likely). As I’d prefer to keep data confidential—some respondents were very specific with their answers—I will not be including the detailed response breakdown. I apologize if there’s any misrepresentation in my methodology.
In the following tables, the top response (or top two responses, if there are more than four options) is bolded and italicized.
Age
The average age of respondents was 40 years old (median 39, mode 38). The youngest respondent was 11 years old, and the oldest was 79 years old.
Gender
| Gender | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Nonbinary | 11 | 9.9% |
| Women (cis & trans) | 61 | 55.0% |
| Men (cis & trans) | 36 | 32.4% |
| Questioning | 3 | 2.7% |
Personal Pronouns
| Pronouns | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| he/him/his | 24 | 21.6% |
| she/her/hers | 56 | 50.5% |
| they/them/theirs | 5 | 4.5% |
| Neopronouns | 2 | 1.8% |
| Multiple | 11 | 9.9% |
| Undecided | 1 | 0.9% |
| (blank) | 5 | 4.5% |
Country of Residence
| Country | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Algeria | 1 | 0.9% |
| Australia | 2 | 1.8% |
| Botswana | 1 | 0.9% |
| Brazil | 2 | 1.8% |
| Bulgaria | 1 | 0.9% |
| Canada | 10 | 9.0% |
| China | 1 | 0.9% |
| Denmark | 1 | 0.9% |
| Germany | 2 | 1.8% |
| Greece | 1 | 0.9% |
| India | 1 | 0.9% |
| Japan | 1 | 0.9% |
| Kenya | 1 | 0.9% |
| Mexico | 1 | 0.9% |
| New Zealand | 1 | 0.9% |
| Northern Ireland | 1 | 0.9% |
| Portugal | 1 | 0.9% |
| South Korea | 1 | 0.9% |
| Spain | 1 | 0.9% |
| Sweden | 1 | 0.9% |
| UK | 11 | 9.9% |
| USA | 68 | 61.3% |
Nationality
| Nationality | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Algerian | 1 | 0.9% |
| Armenian | 1 | 0.9% |
| Australian | 2 | 1.8% |
| Brazilian | 1 | 0.9% |
| Bulgarian | 1 | 0.9% |
| Canadian | 10 | 9.0% |
| Danish | 1 | 0.9% |
| Ghanaian | 1 | 0.9% |
| Greek | 1 | 0.9% |
| Indian | 3 | 2.7% |
| Kenyan | 1 | 0.9% |
| Mexican | 1 | 0.9% |
| New Zealander | 1 | 0.9% |
| Portuguese | 1 | 0.9% |
| South Korean | 1 | 0.9% |
| Spanish | 1 | 0.9% |
| Swedish | 1 | 0.9% |
| UK | 12 | 10.8% |
| US | 64 | 57.7% |
| Other | 1 | 0.9% |
| (blank) | 5 | 4.5% |
Racial/Ethnic Background
I’ve simplified the results by assigning ethnicities to races based on how the United States categorizes them, as the bulk of publishing data on representation originates from the US (where I’m also based). The category “Caucasus/Northern Africa/Levant” groups together some ethnicities that are sometimes conditionally considered White.
| Race | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Black | 8 | 7.2% |
| Caucasus/Northern Africa/Levant | 7 | 6.3% |
| White | 67 | 60.4% |
| Latinx | 5 | 4.5% |
| Asian | 6 | 5.4% |
| Multiracial | 8 | 7.2% |
| Indigenous | 4 | 3.6% |
| (blank) | 6 | 5.4% |
Do you identify as LGBTQIA+?
| Response | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 56 | 50.5% |
| No | 45 | 40.5% |
| Questioning | 9 | 8.1% |
| (blank) | 1 | 0.9% |
Are you disabled?
| Response | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 27 | 24.3% |
| No | 72 | 64.9% |
| Intermittently | 12 | 10.8% |
| Formerly | 0 | 0.0% |
Is English your primary language?
| Response | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Yes, at work/school and at home | 97 | 87.4% |
| Yes, but only at work/school | 4 | 3.6% |
| Yes, but only at home | 3 | 2.7% |
| No | 7 | 6.3% |
If English isn’t your primary language, what language(s) do you typically use?
| Language | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Arabic | 1 | 6.7% |
| Danish | 1 | 6.7% |
| French | 1 | 6.7% |
| German | 2 | 13.3% |
| Greek | 1 | 6.7% |
| Hindi | 1 | 6.7% |
| Japanese | 1 | 6.7% |
| Korean | 1 | 6.7% |
| Marathi | 1 | 6.7% |
| Portuguese | 2 | 13.3% |
| Spanish | 4 | 26.7% |
| Swedish | 1 | 6.7% |
| Urdu | 1 | 6.7% |
| Total | 15 (some respondents counted twice) | 100.0% of 15 |
Are you in poverty and/or working poor?
| Response | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 18 | 16.2% |
| No | 77 | 69.4% |
| Unsure | 15 | 13.5% |
| (blank) | 1 | 0.9% |
Do you practice any religion(s) and/or folk traditions?
| Religion | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Buddhism | 3 | 2.7% |
| Candomblé | 1 | 0.9% |
| Christianity & Catholicism | 13 | 11.7% |
| Islam | 2 | 1.8% |
| Judaism | 4 | 3.6% |
| Paganism | 8 | 7.2% |
| Quakerism | 1 | 0.9% |
| Satanism | 1 | 0.9% |
| Secular/Nonreligious | 46 | 41.4% |
| Unitarian Universalist | 3 | 2.7% |
| Unspecified | 5 | 4.5% |
| (blank) | 24 | 21.6% |
What is your highest level of education?
| Response | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Elementary school | 0 | 0.0% |
| Middle school | 2 | 1.8% |
| High school | 9 | 8.1% |
| College/University | 60 | 54.1% |
| Graduate school | 40 | 36.0% |
Are you currently in the military or a veteran?
| Response | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 6 | 5.4% |
| No | 104 | 93.7% |
| (blank) | 1 | 0.9% |
Is writing your main occupation? If not, what is?
| Occupation | Number of Respondents | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Administration | 9 | 8.1% |
| Education | 14 | 12.6% |
| Homemaker | 2 | 1.8% |
| IT | 8 | 7.2% |
| Medical | 5 | 4.5% |
| Sales | 2 | 1.8% |
| Sciences | 3 | 2.7% |
| Student | 12 | 10.8% |
| Translation | 3 | 2.7% |
| Writing/Editing | 32 | 28.8% |
| Other | 5 | 4.5% |
| Retired | 6 | 5.4% |
| Unemployed | 1 | 0.9% |
| (blank) | 9 | 8.1% |
All data from the survey has now been deleted from Airtable, my hard drive, and the cloud. Please send any feedback to editor@arsenika.ink.