: Re: Can a male writer write from a female perspective? The question is pretty straightforward. Can a male writer write a first person story of a female protagonist? What limitations might he face

@Annie587

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There's no inherent reason why an author can't write from a perspective that does not exactly match every characteristic of him- or herself.

Yes, trying to write from the point of view of a member of the opposite sex creates challenges. But so does writing from the POV of someone of a different nationality, or religion, or political persuasion, or occupation, or age, etc.

Presumably almost all fiction stories include characters who are not exactly like the author, so a decent writer has to have some ability to depict people different from himself.

In some ways I think it would be easier to write from the POV of the opposite sex than some of the other things that make people different. Personally, I know plenty of women. I talk to women every day. I have lots of opportunities to hear things from a female perspective. I know a lot more women than, say, black people. (I'm white.) I very rarely talk to people from other countries. I've only known one Hindu in my life that I recall. Etc.

I think I'd have a much harder time writing a believable male atheist farmer than I would a female Christian software developer.

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