The opposite sex...

[DomLuka]

Gay website. Gay stories. I get it. But, I have a dilemma, and I

[blackbird]

I think that straight relationships or hints of straight attraction or even a straight female friend here and there can be beneficial, even in a story with gay main characters, possibly especially in that sort of story.

 

Too many stories with gay main characters seem to imply that we live on a planet where no one's straight and that sort of thing can be a bit...odd. Even in stories where the main character knows a whole slew of gay people and no straight folk, or even bisexuals in a male/female relationship. I mean, birds of a feather and all, but I keep thinking "where's this GayPlanet and where is the spaceship I can get on and go there?"

 

Maybe if you wrote a series of scenes with gay characters interacting (or borrowed them from your other stories), and then made one of the characters female, it'd be easier? It'd be good practice anyway.

 

I don't know about anyone else being interested in the addition of that kind of thing, but it adds to the realism of the story, I think.

 

Also, lesbian relationships are teh love and might be easier to write cuz it's same sex stuff, just not male same sex stuff.

 

(and if I completely missed the point of the question, forgive me, I'm operating on no sleep)

[Graeme]

All three of my novels have what I consider strong female, straight characters. No one has ever expressed an opinion that the stories would be better without them. In my humble opinion, the stories would be weaker without them.

 

Females DO have differences from males (apart from the physical). There are psychological differences that need to be allowed for BUT there are psychological differences between any individual. I think you'll find that it won't be hard to develop a character who comes over as female without going for excessive stereotypes.

 

I think if you write them as their own person (which I have absolutely no doubt you are capable of doing), then you'll find that they WON'T be two-dimensional adjuncts to their boyfriends.

 

As for whether or not to include them -- they are part of the human race and my view is that it will be only rare situations where you won't have female characters in a story if it is trying to be realistic. Similarly for straight characters. What part they play is up to you as the author, but to exclude them is as unrealistic as to have everyone in the street turning out to be gay....

 

In my humble opinion, I think that even if people say they don't want to see female characters in a story, if you write them in, the readers will want them to stay. Characters have a way of growing on people and you'll find that your readers will consider them to be a natural part of the story.

 

My first story had a homophobic narrator. You can imagine my shock when I had a gay reader saying they were supporting the homophobe over the gay guy.... If I can get that sort of reaction, you won't have a problem

 

On the subject of whether to include straight sex, I'll have to pass. I don't write sex scenes, straight or gay, and I tend to skip over them when I'm reading.

[C James]

Also on this topic, I

[blackbird]

You might find it easier to make up a genderqueer character too, you can make a more masculine character then, which might help you get over the awkwardness.

[Jack Scribe]

Here

[ACFan]

Hi Dom;

 

You actually have touched on an area I agree on -- I have *serious* trouble with writing females! (I also have trouble keeping my straight characters straight, but thats a whole 'nother thread ..... )

 

I do have one straight couple in Memories (besides a few supplementary adults) that I ended up making "expecting" so that I had an excuse to keep in the storyline (sooner or later .... )

 

What works best for me when writing any female parts is to use my Mom as an example of the personality differences between men and women. I won't guarentee it'll work for everyone, but it does give you a basis that will give quite a bit of realism.

[shadowgod]

Just a curious question. How intimate is the scene your portraying? Form the girls point of view? Her boyfriends? Have you tried writing it outside of the two characters involoved?

 

try writing it from the vantage point of someone else other then those involved. Perhaps one of the other characters watching and wishing they could have that.

 

If getting wrapped up in the emotion is what is making it awkward remove the emotion or wash it down through a different perspective.

 

Just a thought

 

Steve

[DomLuka]

Wow, there

[adblue]

Hey Dom, you've already gotten some good advice. Here's some more free advice.

 

As a writer, you're worrying over writing about a kind of character you don't feel confident that you know too well. Yet no writer is going to be familiar with every type of character. Instead of looking at what you're not as fully aware of, how about turning it on its ear and realizing that you know a lot about human nature in general. "People are people," to borrow an old D

[C James]

But, I might just try it, anyway and simply not care if some readers get bored with those parts.

 

Readers can always skip parts if they wish, but IMHO the best thing to do is whatever you want to do; its your story, and the most important person to keep happy is you.

[Ieshwar]

Readers can always skip parts if they wish, but IMHO the best thing to do is whatever you want to do; its your story, and the most important person to keep happy is you.

 

 

I completely agree with CJames. You must do what you like! I'm sure that we will like it. I have read most of your stories and they were excellent!

 

Even, in my story, Standing at crossroads, Major female characters exist. They are very important to the plot. I'm sure there are many other examples out there.

 

Hope that I have helped you.

 

Ieshwar

[Dio]

Gay website. Gay stories. I get it.

No, I don't think you do.

 

Here's the situation: You've got a female character, and she's part of your story, one of the more prominent characters, and you want to put her in a relationship within the story as more than someone's bubbly girlfriend who's always holding the straight guy's hand.

Someone hand this man a medal. Now!

 

Does writing this type of thing feel awkward to anyone else? Is it one of those things that's unnecessary because you're writing for a website featuring gay stories? I know that there are a lot of straight female readers here, and I always wonder if adding an element like that would be of interest to them, as much as I wonder if it would bore/push other readers away.

You know, there are just as many gay guys out there I'm sure that wouldn't mind seeing some quality female characterization. I'm one of them.

 

Don't get me wrong. Here in reality, this doesn't make me feel like an idiot at all. I have sisters that tell me all sorts of things that no brother actually WANTS to know, but when I'm writing it, it seems like the chemistry is all wrong (and I'm not talking about sex, just mostly interaction. Maybe a kiss here or there) So if anyone's written something similar, I guess I want to know if you just treat it as any other scene, or do you try to really get into the characters and the moment? (Which, I usually like to do, which could be where the awkwardness comes from)

Characters talk in my head all the time. When something feels awkward, I write it anyways and show it to someone straight, and ask them if I just vomited on the page, or if I've made an ounce of sense.

 

I don't want to be the guy in the back of the room that everyone points at and says :Dom thinks girls have cooties!!! But really, any advice would be appreciated.

Don't worry, I mean, I'm sure you're not alone. *pats Dom's head*

 

Also on this topic, I've asked a few other people I correspond with, including other authors, the same thing and the general consensus is basically to leave all out of the story. They don't care what happens in the girl's relationship, and if there was even a hint that this part of a story would lead up to sex (whether or not it ultimately will), they'd give up and move on. Some of the people who've said this prefer quick-fix stories, but the rest of them.... huh. Does anyone here feel the same way? Feel differently?

While I'm not one of them, I get the impression that if a gay author starts writing about straight relationships, they're breaking some form of contract. Whatever. I'm sueing to change my name from gay author, to just author--so this won't hinder any future works.

 

-db-

[Dusk]

Like others here, I think the issue of straight sex needs to be kept separate from the issue of straight relationships. If you're writing a story that's at least partly aimed at getting gay readers turned on, straight sex will only turn on your bisexual or heterosexual readers. (I know that you have some of the latter, from seeing your name mentioned on slash forums.) But you're not writing about straight sex. So there's really no reason why nonsexual references to women should make any sensible gay male reader say, "Ew! Girl cooties!"

 

As for the subplot issue, just ask yourself, "If I'm writing a story with a non-gay-romance subplot, how big a role do I want it to play?" You'd ask yourself the same question if the subplot involved, say, football.

 

"I wasn't sure how people would react to it, and sometimes writing romance, even for fictional characters, can feel a little bit like imposing on moments that are supposed to be private. I don't seem to have trouble 'imposing' when it comes to two males together, but when a girl's involved... yeah."

 

Keep in mind all those female readers you have. Are they "imposing" by reading about gay men's romance? Then you aren't imposing by writing about a straight woman's romance.

[Lucy Kemnitzer]

You're talking about Lacy, right? I love the way you've been writing her. She is sort of like a certain kind of stock character in gay fiction, but she has more going on. (Naturally). Since she's important to these people that you've been writing about, yeah, it would be nice to see her have some of her own life on-camera. This is kind of an ensemble story, anyway, with so many points of view.

 

As for the "imposing" thing -- as Dusk says, think of the other side of it. How many authors do you know who write about the points of view of people different from themselves -- sex, orientation, age, class, ethnicity, and even species! Some people prefer to write character who are clearly close to themselves, others want to find the bits of themselves that are in people who are different. You've been doing both, and you've been going more afield as you get more certain, and that's a good thing.

[DomLuka]

Yes, it

[Razor]

Okay, maybe it's because I connect better with girls in general, but I love it when a female character is given depth in any story, be it with a gay protagonist or not. Straight guys? I don't write straight guys well... they're just so strange that it takes me a bit of thought before I can really write anything convincing to do with them.

 

I'm with Dio on this one. Just because a lot of us write for a site called Gay Authors doesn't mean all our characters have to be queer...

 

As far as sex goes, I think blatant sex is very tasteless. Eroticism is quite lovely, but some people's definition of eroticism conflicts with mine. I think of the way a necklace clings to a guy's neck, or a shirt unbuttoned enough to see collarbones, or maybe a flash of skin as someone stretches... get my drift? I don't wanna read about people doing the nasty, it makes me view the story in a totally different light after that. Maybe that's just me, but that's my own opinion of what's tasteful and what's not.

[AFriendlyFace]

Hi all!

 

Well this is certainly a topic which I have some strong opinions about.

 

"People are people," to borrow an old D

[x Trevor x]

This is My oppinion...You say You dont want a girl character that is going to be some bubbly girlfriend. I have noticed in alot of stories the main characters are gay and that it goes deep into their pasts sometimes but we are never told about any of the side characters pasts. Perhaps You want to make a bit more to this female character. If You dont want Her to be some guys bubbly girlfriend then perhaps You could say She was raped and isnt looking for a guy but decides she wants to be strong and independant or maybe you could say her ex boyfriend left her and again she remains a strong independant that would get rid of the whole "bubbly girlfriend" theme and perhaps You might want to try a "No Main Character story" like a soap opera theres no main character theres different storylines going on with everyone. In an easier way to say this while You are writing the romance of the two gay characters You should give equal attention to this female character and maybe give her a story away from the gay characters. Write a chapter only on the gay characters then the next make the whole chapter about the female character.