Hello
I haven't really posted on AW yet, but have been lurking for a bit, trying to learn as much as I can from the wisdom here. I was hoping someone in this forum could help me with a small concern I have with the MS I am revising.
This is a rom-com, and while both main characters are straight, there are a few LGBTQ characters in it. In the scene I am worried about, the main character is talking with her grandmother, and her grandmother repeats a rumor she heard that a certain group of men in the story are all gay. It's important to note, this is an immigrant family. The grandmother is a Muslim Indian, and she is quite conservative, religious, and English is not her first language. I struggled to find the right word for grandma to call the gay men: something old-fashioned, and moderately but not jarringly offensive. It needs to be funny, too (the book is a comedy). I settled on the grandma calling them fruit at first, then when the MC doesn't understand, she says poofs.
As these terms aren't really used mainstream anymore, I am concerned that they are actually more offensive then I think they are. (and if they are harming someone, I am so sorry for using them). Is there a better funny and outdated term I can use here that wouldn't cause harm? Important to note: the MC does n't really call her grandmother out at that point, but does later in the book when her grandmother's intolerance plays a bigger role in the plot. Maybe the words are okay if the MC vehemently calls grandma out right away?
Thank you for your assistance!
I haven't really posted on AW yet, but have been lurking for a bit, trying to learn as much as I can from the wisdom here. I was hoping someone in this forum could help me with a small concern I have with the MS I am revising.
This is a rom-com, and while both main characters are straight, there are a few LGBTQ characters in it. In the scene I am worried about, the main character is talking with her grandmother, and her grandmother repeats a rumor she heard that a certain group of men in the story are all gay. It's important to note, this is an immigrant family. The grandmother is a Muslim Indian, and she is quite conservative, religious, and English is not her first language. I struggled to find the right word for grandma to call the gay men: something old-fashioned, and moderately but not jarringly offensive. It needs to be funny, too (the book is a comedy). I settled on the grandma calling them fruit at first, then when the MC doesn't understand, she says poofs.
As these terms aren't really used mainstream anymore, I am concerned that they are actually more offensive then I think they are. (and if they are harming someone, I am so sorry for using them). Is there a better funny and outdated term I can use here that wouldn't cause harm? Important to note: the MC does n't really call her grandmother out at that point, but does later in the book when her grandmother's intolerance plays a bigger role in the plot. Maybe the words are okay if the MC vehemently calls grandma out right away?
Thank you for your assistance!