On slash fiction and homophobia
Apr. 29th, 2015 08:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meridian_roseThis week I had the misfortune to see someone post about themselves (I won't say where, it's not the issue) and to be not only disparaging about fanfiction but to single out slash fiction as some different, even more disgusting entity. For them to be a fan means they've
read/watched the source material(s) and can talk intelligently about them. It doesn't mean I write or read fanfiction or (gag) slash.
So there's a difference between "intelligently" talking about material and (I can't help but interpret it negatively given the overall tone) unintelligently engaging with the material. The commentator was male, for what that's worth, given the frequent discussions about the femininity around fandom and fanfic in particular, and the fangirl (transformative creator/shallow devotee) vs fanboy (staunch defender of canon "as is"/loyal "true" fan) stereotypes.
Worse than that however- there are plenty of fanfiction detractors in the world after all - is the slash comment. Not just fanfic but a separate category of awfulness: male/male fiction that makes the writer want to vomit.
This is outright homophobia. The writer might claim it's wrong because the authors are "making" characters gay but that's not necessarily true.
It's only our heteronormative society that sees straight as default. There's no reason any character who has not canonically stated they are not bisexual cannot be read as such.
There's no reason to exclude the possibility of fluid sexuality in which one or both characters discover they're not exclusively heterosexual.
Some of the pairings/moresomes I read and/or write include a character who is canonically gay.
Some of the pairings/moresomes I read and/or write include a character who is canonically bisexual/pansexual.
Some pairings are canonically gay couples, lesbian couples, or a couple with a bisexual character and their gay/lesbian partner. Is fanfic around such canon couples just an unintelligent way of being a fan, or is it still gag worthy?
This "ew, gay fanfic" response would be pointed out as homophobic if it were phrased as "LGBT novels *vomit*" or "(retch), gay people". But silly fanfic writers "forcing" a different interpretation onto characters or letting gay/lesbian/bi/pan characters explore intimacy? Fair game, given that no-one challenged it.*
To end on a brighter note. Not too long ago there was a policy of labelling non-hetero pairings as "warnings" on certain sites and communities. After it was repeatedly pointed out that "warning" for healthy consensual relationships of the sort lived by actual people was not acceptable**, things started to change. Now some sites, aware of this history, specifically instruct that same sex pairings are not to be warned for. So things can get better.
*I take some of the blame for not speaking up. This is because last time I tried to stand up for myself it turned into nasty lesson about male atheist douchebags, and I haven't got the energy to engage with someone else who might well find a way to pull out the "what about the menz" argument alongside the mansplaining I'm sure I'd get. That's another rant for another time. Instead I'm writing this in my own space. If you hate fanfiction or hate that slash fiction exists, we can't be friends. And if you need to make vomit references around the existence of slash fiction I reserve the right to label you as homophobic, no matter how many "gay best friends" you have.
** One good example of such an argument:Warning for gay sex (why this is bad and wrong and needs to be stopped)
read/watched the source material(s) and can talk intelligently about them. It doesn't mean I write or read fanfiction or (gag) slash.
So there's a difference between "intelligently" talking about material and (I can't help but interpret it negatively given the overall tone) unintelligently engaging with the material. The commentator was male, for what that's worth, given the frequent discussions about the femininity around fandom and fanfic in particular, and the fangirl (transformative creator/shallow devotee) vs fanboy (staunch defender of canon "as is"/loyal "true" fan) stereotypes.
Worse than that however- there are plenty of fanfiction detractors in the world after all - is the slash comment. Not just fanfic but a separate category of awfulness: male/male fiction that makes the writer want to vomit.
This is outright homophobia. The writer might claim it's wrong because the authors are "making" characters gay but that's not necessarily true.
It's only our heteronormative society that sees straight as default. There's no reason any character who has not canonically stated they are not bisexual cannot be read as such.
There's no reason to exclude the possibility of fluid sexuality in which one or both characters discover they're not exclusively heterosexual.
Some of the pairings/moresomes I read and/or write include a character who is canonically gay.
Some of the pairings/moresomes I read and/or write include a character who is canonically bisexual/pansexual.
Some pairings are canonically gay couples, lesbian couples, or a couple with a bisexual character and their gay/lesbian partner. Is fanfic around such canon couples just an unintelligent way of being a fan, or is it still gag worthy?
This "ew, gay fanfic" response would be pointed out as homophobic if it were phrased as "LGBT novels *vomit*" or "(retch), gay people". But silly fanfic writers "forcing" a different interpretation onto characters or letting gay/lesbian/bi/pan characters explore intimacy? Fair game, given that no-one challenged it.*
To end on a brighter note. Not too long ago there was a policy of labelling non-hetero pairings as "warnings" on certain sites and communities. After it was repeatedly pointed out that "warning" for healthy consensual relationships of the sort lived by actual people was not acceptable**, things started to change. Now some sites, aware of this history, specifically instruct that same sex pairings are not to be warned for. So things can get better.
*I take some of the blame for not speaking up. This is because last time I tried to stand up for myself it turned into nasty lesson about male atheist douchebags, and I haven't got the energy to engage with someone else who might well find a way to pull out the "what about the menz" argument alongside the mansplaining I'm sure I'd get. That's another rant for another time. Instead I'm writing this in my own space. If you hate fanfiction or hate that slash fiction exists, we can't be friends. And if you need to make vomit references around the existence of slash fiction I reserve the right to label you as homophobic, no matter how many "gay best friends" you have.
** One good example of such an argument:Warning for gay sex (why this is bad and wrong and needs to be stopped)
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Date: 2015-04-29 09:02 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-04-30 01:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-04-30 06:46 am (UTC)I can only imagine how they'd react to a trans character.
That said, I've yet to read a good one written by a cis person.
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Date: 2015-04-30 01:56 pm (UTC)I'm on the fence about representation; it's harder to write experiences you haven't had, but that's no excuse for only writing people of the exact same gender, sexual orientation, and ethnicity as you. On one hand writers are told "write diverse characters" but when they do there's a lot of "you're doing it wrong!" and worse, "stop doing it!" So then writers stop writing with diversity at all, in an endless loop.
I have sometimes thought about including a trans character - as a minor character rather than the protagonist and even then I'm worried about writing sensitively. I don't think its helpful if writers are so terrified of doing it wrong that don't write characters of certain types at all, be that trans characters or lesbian characters or black characters. On the other hand it is essential that representation is handled sensitively, and only people with that lived experience can say if that has been accomplished. It's a complicated subject.
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Date: 2015-04-30 06:22 am (UTC)I definitely remember when the standard was to warn for gay sex on fics. It bothered me then, and I'm so glad it's changed.
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Date: 2015-04-30 01:30 pm (UTC)I've been turning comments off a lot lately where I don't have the energy to argue and I remember comment were off on the link round up because I didn't want anyone deciding to have a "Nooo historical accuracy is more important than story" /"It's not sexist it's how things are/I choose my choices!" rant at me. I'm often quoting from materials because I'm finding common ground in them. If I was rebutting them, I'd do so instead of merely linking to them!
A while back I did try to reason with one site owner about the gay sex warning and why it was wrong (and linked to the same article I mentioned here) but they were caught up in the idea of preventing people reading gay fic by mistake. I can only assume they were new to the Internet. I also felt strongly that if readers didn't pay attention to the pairings section of the template the site provided they must also be new and sooner or later they would have to learn that slash fic is an important part of fandom!
Thankfully I've not personally seen any instance of warning for gay sex or same sex romance since, which is welcome progress :D
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Date: 2015-05-17 09:44 am (UTC)The bi erasure is an ongoing problem; it's harder to claim Nolan Ross (Revenge) is straight when we've seen him in sexual relationships with men as well as women, but people do default to straight without specific "evidence". Or even with it. Because slash fic is "icky" but "bisexual-but-now-I'm-pratcially-straight" is a-okay apparently. Ugh.