(no subject)

[alexseanchai]

I wonder if it's possible to write a story with a genderfluid lead without calling attention to the fact except via changing pronouns (and possibly name—like, Alexandra for when the lead is female, Alex for when the lead is male or agender or bigender or whichever one I decide to go with) and without confusing the fuck out of the presumably-not-up-on-gender-minorities-except-maybe-trans-folk audience.

I mean, I could and probably should explain the concept in the story, but that's not as fun as seeing if the audience picks it up unprompted.

Comments

Yes...

[ysabetwordsmith]

... and in fact it can be even more subtle than that. I have some genderflexy characters who don't switch pronouns, or don't always switch. They may or may not explicitly describe themselves as genderfluid, queer, whatever. You can just write them as they are, and some readers will clock them and others won't.

For examples, see Quinn in Schrodinger's Heroes and Maryam Smith in The Steamsmith. You might also like "Crosswise," a poem about Quinn switching between masculine and feminine modes explicitly -- but without ever revealing the precise sex of the body.

Re: Yes...

[alexseanchai]

*nodnod*

I meant the story I started an hour or so ago to be that story, but instead this story is all cisfolks (I think) and requires a trigger warning for sexual assault, wtf brain this is not what I wanted why do you do this to me.

Re: Yes...

[ysabetwordsmith]

I know how it goes when characters run off and do what the heck they want instead of following the planned plot. But then again, I hate the idea of having to do all the work myself, so I'm willing to put up with this as the necessary price of having self-animate characters.

Re: Yes...

[alexseanchai]

Good point.

Not that I had much plot. I needed a thing to motivate the riddle game that's the key feature of Child 1, and the thing ended up being 'guy traps sisters with magic, one sister traps him back and challenges him to a magic contest', only the nature of the challenge requires the challenged to name the terms and he goes for riddle game.

...phrased like that the sexual assault sounds extraneous. Not sure whether to hope it is (because then I can be rid of it) or it isn't (because then I wouldn't have to rewrite). I'm leaning toward the latter, because I've got a bit of rape culture meta in there that I like.