Women in fanfiction (or not)

[auronlu]

Apparently, discussions are happening around fandom about the lack of female characters in fanfiction and a similar problem in original (published) fiction. They're also discussing the problem that one may become hyper-sensitive about making women too strong, too flawed, too anything because one is too self-conscious about perpetrating stereotypes. (Something I am not always careful enough about, la.)

I've only seen a few of these posts. I am flitting at the edges of the discussion, since (a) I use fanfiction and LJ  as a brain break (b) most of the discussion seems to be about lack of women in the m/m slash fanfiction community, where I'm not active. When I do speak up in those discussions, I'm afraid I sound too smug/preachy/insensitive. ("Well, just write them!" or "Hey, read some of ours, then...I know some authors who can show you how it's done!")

So I don't have many insightful things to say on that discussion, other than the fact that I'm very glad that people are having it.

Here's what I want to say.

Dear Flist.

I love you folks. Never do I have to look far to find stories with plausible and interesting women of many kinds. Yuri, het, gen, whatever -- women are an integral part of the stories you tell, and it would never occur to you to excise them. Those folks on my flist who write m/m also have many stories with well-developed female characters.

Because of you, I didn't realize that we might be existing in a somewhat atypical bubble of fandom/fanfiction where *gasp* women exist. (Although I'm not quite sure of that -- a wide-angle view of fandom is very dependent on vantage point).

I just wanna say...thank you for being! Keep writing! 

 

Comments

[gargantua29.livejournal.com]

I must be rather insulated, or else I instinctually gravitate towards anime with strong female characters. I had no idea such a discussion was going on. But now that I think about all the anime on my shelf, there ARE several titles where the women are absent - Saiyuki comes to mind immediately. Very interesting.