Dear Ms. Simone. I am writing my first script for a comic book. And now i realized my main bad guy, a mob boss,is gay and in love with his right hand man. Is that offensive since the gay guy is also the main villain? Thank you for your time.

Okay. Two things.

First, I am not any kind of authority or expert on what is acceptable to LGBTQ people. I still get asked these questions all the time, even from other pros, and I have to say, I just don’t understand it. There are lovely LGBTQ people who are incredibly generous with their time who could answer your question with their own personal knowledge borne of life experience. If you want to know about gay people, I say ask gay people, it’s not like they don’t exist.

Second, all questions that start, ‘is this offensive?’ have the same answer, which is that it depends on execution. Are your characters stereotypes? Do they present as remotely human? Are they given agency and detail? Are they merely presented as salacious? 

One writer could make a story about a rock at the bottom of the ocean incredibly offensive and another might make a story about stereotypes uplifting and life-changing. EVERYTHING is in the execution.