CALLING ON TRANS* READERS!
Hello, hello, hello darling readers! Happy Tuesday!
Today I am calling out to trans* readers. I need your help and I want your input.
Let me back up a little bit and explain. No there is too much - let me sum up. (Sorry. Sorry! I can't help it).
As longtime blog followers and readers know, I'm very much into diverse representation, because diversity is reality, and representation can change lives. Writing truthful and fully realised portrayals of people, instead of homogenous, white and straight-washed versions which reflect the warped ideals of an oppressive Kyriarchy not only makes the world a better place, but leads to much, much better art (who'd have thought, right?).
At the moment I'm working on a new project that really excites me, currently known as Codename: DtH. It's a retelling of Mulan, set in a fairytale version of Imperial China, in which I imagine Mulan as a transgender man.
Now here's the thing. I'm cis. And I know that for every great portrayal of a trans character out there, there are also probably five which make trans* people feel vaguely ill, and that without exception the sick-making ones were written or produced by cis people because, frankly, we just don't get it - and probably never can. And also that because there is so little representation of trans and genderqueer/fluid folks out there, messing it up is far more hurtful and irresponsible than if I messed up a portrayal of almost any other group of people.
I've written a transgender character before, in Shadows on the Moon, and she is probably my favourite character I've ever written. But although she is a main character in the story, the story does not belong to her - she's not the protagonist. And what's more, I feel as if I have marginally more in common with her because she's a woman. I've never written a book from the PoV of a male character before, which is already leading this new book into slightly scary territory.
I want everyone to enjoy reading this book, but my absolute number one concern is that trans* peeps of all kinds can pick it up and read it without cringing. If you guys throw this novel across the room I want it to be because you hate the twist in chapter twelve or are sick of fight scenes or just don't like my writing, NOT because I have hurt and offended you for the six millionth time with a disrespectful, privileged portrayal of a trans character.
So this is where I humbly beg for your help and input. Tell me what would bring you joy. Tell me what things you've always wanted to see explored in a book about a transgender character, what thoughts or feelings you've always wished you could read a trans character express, would make you smile or laugh or just feel a little better respected. And just in case this isn't clear, also tell me what will make you want to barf. Tell me about the over-used tropes, misconceptions, and same-old-inaccurate-privileged-crap that you never want to have to read or hear about ever, ever again.
Any way you want to get in touch with me is fine. Leave me comments here. Tweet me at @ZMarriott on Twitter. Email me at z d marriott (at) gmail (dot) com. If you email me then everything you say to me, including your identity, will be kept completely confidential. If you're not comfortable talking to me yourself - for whatever reason - you can totally ask a friend or someone you trust to do it. We live in a cr*ppy world, so above all, keep yourself safe. Everyone who helps me with this will be mentioned by name in the acknowledgements of the book, unless you ask me not to do so.
If you're not trans* but you have friends, family or significant others who are, please pass this on. Spread it like wildfire. I honestly and genuinely want as many people as possible to have a say in this.
A little bit more detail to pick apart: this is going to be a fantasy novel, and as such our hero has magical abilities and will meet other magical people and magical beings on his journey to becoming a legendary warrior. He's going to be a soldier, and will spend much of the story among soldiers (who will be cis males) but I'm looking for ways to include nuanced, interesting female characters too.
At the moment I'm going backward and forward between making him straight (in which case his love interest would be a female or female presenting person) or bi or pansexual (which would probably involve him having two potential love interests of different genders, one of which might be a fellow soldier) although I don't intend to write any kind of a classic love triangle.
It's a given that Mulan will always be a heroic character who has tremendous courage and resolve, but he will of course suffer doubts, fear, and crises both about what he's doing - fighting, killing, leaving his old life further and further behind - and what his deepening awareness of his own gender identity means for him as a person and for his future.
As I said above, the story is set in a fantasy version of China and most of my research is focusing on the Tang Dynasty because that is the era when Chinese women enjoyed (in general) the most liberty and freedom, as well as being the only Dynasty during which a woman ruled as Emperor. The story won't be anything like historically accurate (for one thing: MAGIC!) but I would love, love, love it if anyone has any information they can share with me on trans* people living during that period, especially FTM trans people, because I'm up to my knees in reference books and websites right now and I cannot find anything.
Thank you for your attention - and thanks in advance to anyone who gets in touch. I'm hoping and praying that with your help I can make this book something really special.
Read you later, my darlings!
Today I am calling out to trans* readers. I need your help and I want your input.
Let me back up a little bit and explain. No there is too much - let me sum up. (Sorry. Sorry! I can't help it).
As longtime blog followers and readers know, I'm very much into diverse representation, because diversity is reality, and representation can change lives. Writing truthful and fully realised portrayals of people, instead of homogenous, white and straight-washed versions which reflect the warped ideals of an oppressive Kyriarchy not only makes the world a better place, but leads to much, much better art (who'd have thought, right?).
At the moment I'm working on a new project that really excites me, currently known as Codename: DtH. It's a retelling of Mulan, set in a fairytale version of Imperial China, in which I imagine Mulan as a transgender man.
Now here's the thing. I'm cis. And I know that for every great portrayal of a trans character out there, there are also probably five which make trans* people feel vaguely ill, and that without exception the sick-making ones were written or produced by cis people because, frankly, we just don't get it - and probably never can. And also that because there is so little representation of trans and genderqueer/fluid folks out there, messing it up is far more hurtful and irresponsible than if I messed up a portrayal of almost any other group of people.
I've written a transgender character before, in Shadows on the Moon, and she is probably my favourite character I've ever written. But although she is a main character in the story, the story does not belong to her - she's not the protagonist. And what's more, I feel as if I have marginally more in common with her because she's a woman. I've never written a book from the PoV of a male character before, which is already leading this new book into slightly scary territory.
I want everyone to enjoy reading this book, but my absolute number one concern is that trans* peeps of all kinds can pick it up and read it without cringing. If you guys throw this novel across the room I want it to be because you hate the twist in chapter twelve or are sick of fight scenes or just don't like my writing, NOT because I have hurt and offended you for the six millionth time with a disrespectful, privileged portrayal of a trans character.
So this is where I humbly beg for your help and input. Tell me what would bring you joy. Tell me what things you've always wanted to see explored in a book about a transgender character, what thoughts or feelings you've always wished you could read a trans character express, would make you smile or laugh or just feel a little better respected. And just in case this isn't clear, also tell me what will make you want to barf. Tell me about the over-used tropes, misconceptions, and same-old-inaccurate-privileged-crap that you never want to have to read or hear about ever, ever again.
Any way you want to get in touch with me is fine. Leave me comments here. Tweet me at @ZMarriott on Twitter. Email me at z d marriott (at) gmail (dot) com. If you email me then everything you say to me, including your identity, will be kept completely confidential. If you're not comfortable talking to me yourself - for whatever reason - you can totally ask a friend or someone you trust to do it. We live in a cr*ppy world, so above all, keep yourself safe. Everyone who helps me with this will be mentioned by name in the acknowledgements of the book, unless you ask me not to do so.
If you're not trans* but you have friends, family or significant others who are, please pass this on. Spread it like wildfire. I honestly and genuinely want as many people as possible to have a say in this.
A little bit more detail to pick apart: this is going to be a fantasy novel, and as such our hero has magical abilities and will meet other magical people and magical beings on his journey to becoming a legendary warrior. He's going to be a soldier, and will spend much of the story among soldiers (who will be cis males) but I'm looking for ways to include nuanced, interesting female characters too.
At the moment I'm going backward and forward between making him straight (in which case his love interest would be a female or female presenting person) or bi or pansexual (which would probably involve him having two potential love interests of different genders, one of which might be a fellow soldier) although I don't intend to write any kind of a classic love triangle.
It's a given that Mulan will always be a heroic character who has tremendous courage and resolve, but he will of course suffer doubts, fear, and crises both about what he's doing - fighting, killing, leaving his old life further and further behind - and what his deepening awareness of his own gender identity means for him as a person and for his future.
As I said above, the story is set in a fantasy version of China and most of my research is focusing on the Tang Dynasty because that is the era when Chinese women enjoyed (in general) the most liberty and freedom, as well as being the only Dynasty during which a woman ruled as Emperor. The story won't be anything like historically accurate (for one thing: MAGIC!) but I would love, love, love it if anyone has any information they can share with me on trans* people living during that period, especially FTM trans people, because I'm up to my knees in reference books and websites right now and I cannot find anything.
Thank you for your attention - and thanks in advance to anyone who gets in touch. I'm hoping and praying that with your help I can make this book something really special.
Read you later, my darlings!
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