Taboo question LGBTQ erotica - kind of...

deathstar008 said:

I've got an idea about a book that I'm thinking of writing about a guy that discovers a formula that can change him from a man into a woman (Jekyll & Hyde-esque). It would be about his sexuality and how he experiences sex as a man and as a woman. My question is whether this would be considered taboo or offensive to the transgender community. I'm not looking for permission per se, but more of a question of how many people would find the book as going too far.

It's definitely got some sci-fi or fantasy parts to it, but only with the formula and going back and forth (not sure at this point if the change would be instantaneous or would take a day or something like that.)

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I'm cisgender, so I'm not going to be able to address the particulars, but my hunch is that how well it works or not, and whether it is potentially offensive, will likely depend on how you handle it, especially re the avoidance of cliches or stereotypes about men and women and how they perceive things or behave, and re any treatment of gender switching as pathological or worthy of ridicule. There have certainly been SFF (and probably erotic as well) stories where characters change gender, and so so easily and often, that haven't drawn widespread ire (though no group is a hivemind, and what some find troubling others might not). People being as varied as they are regarding gender identity and flexibility within such, I'm guessing that some would find the experience of being able to morph genders at will exhilarating and freeing (and possibly very, very sexy), while others would find it distinctly uncomfortable.

Just wanted to get feelers out. I don't want to write a whole book and try to publish it only to have the LGBTQ community stake me to a tree and burn me while yelling witch... I'm not trying to hurt anyone, just wanted to get that out there. Thoughts?

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I know you're engaging in hyperbolic humor, but this characterization of the LGBTQ community as quick to take offense and prone to mobbing hapless writers who step over some invisible line is in of itself problematic.

I see nothing inherently offensive about the premise so its down to the execution, but painting the LGBTQ community as witch hunting tree vandals might raise an eyebrow.

I'll be back to give my 2c later, but apparently I have to go find a tree, get my rope, and buy some gasoline first.

But anyway. Offence will be taken where its least expected.

It's not an original idea at all - in Greek mythology, Tiresias was turned into a woman:

"Tiresias came upon a pair of copulating snakes, he hit the pair with his stick. Hera was displeased, and she punished Tiresias by transforming him into a woman. As a woman, Tiresias became a priestess of Hera, married and had children, including Manto, who also possessed the gift of prophecy. According to some versions of the tale, Lady Tiresias was a prostitute of great renown. After seven years as a woman, Tiresias again found mating snakes; depending on the myth, either she made sure to leave the snakes alone this time, or, according to Hyginus, trampled on them.[SUP][4][/SUP] As a result, Tiresias was released from his sentence and permitted to regain his masculinity. "

For an example from more recent literature, read The Passion of New Eve by Angela Carter - might be a good place to start your research into what's gone before you on this topic.

There is plenty of erotica that has a "simple sex change" premise, the Sex Gates series being a prominent example but I have seen others in my new release emails just this week. The concept is not innately offensive.

(Sex changes in Greek myth also happened in the other direction such as Caeneus whom Poseidon changed into a man).

I absolutely believe that you only have good intentions. But if someone said to you they were 'trying to tolerate you', would you be a little insulted? (But then I've never like the whole 'tolerance' concept. I don't think it's a very helpful word.)

I think tolerance implies internal non-acceptance or disapproval--so it has a very different tone to acceptance, positivity etc.

deathstar008 said:

Why not teach me instead of just attack me?

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That's what I was trying to do.
I don't think anything about my post was attacking. I know it's easy to feel attacked and defensive, but I think that can get in the way of hearing what people are saying.

"Be respectful of" might be what you wanted?

Viridian said:

The word tolerance has multiple definitions. For example,

"Willingness to accept feelings, habits, or beliefs that are different from your own."

It's a really common way to use the word.

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I would argue that that still implies that a straight/cis person can't really understand where LGBTQ people are coming from and can't really accept the LGBTQ community beyond an "agree to disagree" sort of way, which I think is unfair to a lot of straight/cis people.

Anyway, to answer the OP's question, I don't see anything inherently problematic with this concept. The idea of being able to change my sex magically is a fun fantasy, so I can get behind that.

I do think you need to be careful about conflating sex, gender, and gender expression. Having his sex changed to female isn't going to automatically change this character's gender, so if you want his gender to change, too, I think you need to work that into the worldbuilding rather than taking it for granted. And having his sex change won't automatically make him start acting, dressing, or grooming differently. Again, that's something I would like to see addressed. There are a lot of things women do primarily because they're taught to from a young age, like shaving their legs. Maybe this guy doesn't follow these norms and doesn't care. Maybe he enjoys having an opportunity to play around with a gender expression that's new to him. Maybe he wants to play with gender expression or feels like he needs to fit female gender roles, but has no idea what he's doing.

Basically, there are a lot of ways you can take this if you think outside the box and think about how your character would react.

deathstar008, you might want to check out how LA Witt handled a similar premise:



https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HXQQ8UK/?tag=absowrit-20

This thread calls to mind the film Zerophilia.

In this provocative teen comedy, Luke, a young man insecure about his masculinity discovers he's a Zerophiliac, with the ability to change sex at will. Join Luke as he journeys into the extraordinary world of Zerophilia where so many crazy questions arise, only one question matters: "Whom do you love?"

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The novel Orlando, by Virginia Woolf, is about a person who changes genders through the ages. (It was also a 1992 movie starring Tilda Swinton.) Based on your stated premise for the novel, I don't see a reason why a transgender person would automatically take offence.

You post this in Erotica, which suggests that sex will be the dominant theme, but there's a lot of fodder there for explorations of how society views gender, and how your mc views him/herself as he/she navigates that society and its accepted mores.

This is a specialty of mine, that is, the same person experiencing sex as a man and as a woman. First, I hardly think it would be often considered offensive. You can find a number of discussions on YouTube about that very thing, from post op transgendered women (M2F). Some of their observations are surprising. One actually prefers anal sex even though she now has a fully functional, orgasmic vagina. Anyway, it's good research. And it is a subject often broached in trans literature, certainly mine. Ultimately, women's orgasms tend to last a lot longer. That by itself is a writer's paradise. And the women characters rather like it too. So, write all of that you like, I'd say. It also helps if you can experience it yourself.

kuwisdelu said:

I'll be back to give my 2c later, but apparently I have to go find a tree, get my rope, and buy some gasoline first.

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Okay, I'm back. Instead of getting a tree, rope, and gasoline, I got a girlfriend and did some, uhhh, research. Well, okay, there may have been rope involved, too.

Anyway, I think one key question is whether character's gender identity changes with their body. Because if not, then they're not really having sex as a woman, but as a man who has a vagina. I've been privy to some discussions on that topic, but I have no personal experience there. If their gender changes, too, then maybe I can help more.