: Need advice about changing character's gender I had this idea for a story/novel that I was very excited about, but also very worried about. The idea had a plot where the character development

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Keep the men. You shouldn't just "change the gender" to avoid something. By changing the gender of one, you are going to offend many people, especially queer men. I am a queer man (gay specifically), and I found it a bit offensive when you said that you wanted to change the gender of one of them just so you can avoid looking like your fetishizing them.

If you want to avoid the fetishization of the two men, I would suggest just making them out to be normal and make their relationship understood. Just don't sexualize their relationship for the benefit of turning on some people.

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Give your story the Chekov test: Is this particular gender and sexuality configuration necessary and does it actually drive the plot in a way which isn't possible without it? Or is it a superfluous and distracting detail which doesn't contribute to the core theme or drama.

"If in the first act you have hung a pistol on the wall, then in the following one it should be fired. Otherwise don't put it there." --Anton Chekov

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You know, I'm speaking from personal experience here, and I really hope this helps. The one piece I finished in my writing career was about a 6-year old girl living in a pseudo-fantastical world. As a 16-year old male at the time, I considered that story pretty good. Also, while generating ideas for stories, typically the lead is female. I have an idea I'm working on about a lesbian!

My advice is, if it feels like that's what you want to do, do it. Writing is an art, not a science. There's no formula for emotion, and if you think that writing about two anthropomorphic toasters in a fantasy setting is what you're gonna write, write it. Chances are, someone is looking for a story about toaster knights.

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My advice would be to read lots of books with two male characters falling in love. See what is done well and what isn't. I've read a ton of M/M romance and LGBT YA, and when it's written well, I can't tell whether the author is a man or a woman. I'm a woman and I wrote a YA romance with two gay male characters. I know it will annoy some people, and that bothers me a lot, but it was the only book I wanted to write. I have zero interest in writing about straight couples. My agent is not concerned about it being published for that reason.

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Instead of worrying about it just do your best. Though don't assume you're going to get it right. In fact, you're probably better off assuming you'll get everything wrong. It's always a bunch of confused nonsense when someone who is completely outside of the issue attempts to try and roleplay what it's like to actually have it happen to you. You're an alien, and nothing is gong to line up.

It's the reason male writers are so terrible at writing female characters. It's the reason the reverse is also true. Not telling you what to write, or not write, just pointing out that perhaps it's impossible for a snake to know what it's like to be a bird, and likewise impossible for a monkey to know what it's like to be a fish. It's not that we can't imagine what it's like, it's simply that our imaginings are always like Picasso paintings, a weird ACID trip version of reality that at first glance might look like a person, until you stare at it and realize the nose is on backwards and sideways.

Anyway best of luck, and I'm sorry if I utterly failed to be helpful.

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I'm seeing a lot of encouragement here (which is great) but not a lot of practical advice (which seems weird).

The main issue with people writing characters of historically discriminated minority groups they aren't themselves a part of is that of ending up, in ignorance, perpetuating hurtful stereotypes. This can not only be in how those characters behave and what their motivations are, but in how the world around them treats them. As someone who hasn't lived that experience, there are a lot of everyday things they have to live with that you are likely just blind to. Its not your fault, any more than its a color-blind person's fault they can't tell red from brown.

This should not be pooh-poohed away, and you are quite right to be concerned about it.

However, this differs from the problem of representing any behavior only in degree. As many other answers pointed out, nobody writes exclusively about careers and activities they themselves have engaged in either. Most crime writers were never themselves murderers or FBI Agents. Tom Clancy was never a spy. So it makes sense to handle this problem the same way a responsible writer of any fictional work handles their writing about unfamiliar subjects: research, and experts. Go find yourself some actual bisexual men and pick their brains. Run the drafts by them for sanity checks.

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I agree with others. Don't change your story to remove diversity because you are worried you can't write those characters. Embrace diversity in your writing and your life. The best way to write a character that is different from you is to meet people and research.

Maybe your character works in a factory. Have you ever worked in a factory? If not, you need to learn more about it. Taking a temp job would be great, though hard. Reading accounts of factory workers is important. And making friends who are factory workers or at least meeting people is second best to you doing it yourself.

The next step is a Sensitivity Reader. Find someone to read your work and flag anything you messed up. For example, I'm Jewish and am writing a book about Jews and Jewish themes. But one of my characters is a Baptist (who married a Jew). I wrote a scene with her talking about faith with a couple Jewish characters. I thought it was fine. My Jewish spouse thought it was fine. I mean I've done interfaith work, I should know this, right? My writer's group went, uhhh, that's a bit off. I also took it to an Christian Evangelical friend of mine who helped me fix it.

You're gonna mess up. You're gonna be tone-deaf about things sometimes. People will correct you (if you're lucky). Keep the diversity and be open to learning more and meeting more people and owning up to mistakes. That's all any of us can do. Each and every one of us is not a member of various (and numerous) diverse communities.

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The reasoning behind why some minority group people have an issue with people outside of their minority group telling stories about them is that in a lot of cases, the majority gains recognition that the minority cannot. Especially given the fact that the minority telling their own story will be more authentic, the majority voice is still often the only one heard. This can make us feel like our voices are being stolen. They are our stories, dammit! Let us tell them! And listen to us, while you’re at it!

I’m not entirely in agreement of this, but this is how I understand the sentiment and I think it is important to recognise. Am I also a little tired of stories about female homosexuality written by straight men? Sure. Do I wish I could see more of my favourite LGBT fiction by LGBT folk gaining recognition in the mainstream? Absolutely. But I am not angered by it, unless I think the particular representation is directly harmful. I am happy with all representation that is thoughtful, realistic, and fair.

Also, it’s important to note that many of the same people who ARE angered by it are often perfectly happy for you to write minority characters. It is just minority stories they’d prefer you didn’t tell. Stories entirely about the issue that this group is facing first hand. For example, if you’re writing a story entirely about male bisexuality and the struggle of these two characters, it is much more compelling if you have some experience in the matter. It’s not impossible for you to tell an authentic story like that, but it takes a lot more research and care. However if you are simply writing some secondary characters who are bisexual and the issue is not the main focus of the plot, it is usually well received once you give them a fair representation.

So do your research. Know the negative stereotypes to avoid. Be mindful to the communities and individuals you are representing. And go for it!

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I know that lots of people are angry about women writing those types of characters. I'm not trying to appropriate or fetishize anyone

There is no clear line here, but you can always "test" your characters and scenes in the same way male authors are encouraged to "test" their female characters – ie: do they have agency, is their sexuality in service of plot/character or just titillation, are they stereotypes/monotypes, is one "good" (rewarded for conforming to society's standards) and the other "bad" (punished for non-conformity), do they talk about anything outside of who they are dating or in love with (Bechdel Test), etc.

I could change one of the character's to female and make it work though I would have to change the plot quite a bit, and both characters are based on 4 guys I know, but maybe I should just to avoid pissing people off.

I understand these are not the main character, but supporting characters, so...

How much would it change the plot to keep them bisexual and change both to women?
What if they are bisexual male and female, but their "normal" is
homosexual (a sub-culture or neighborhood which existed in the late
1960s in many cities)?
What if one is homosexual, the other bisexual, and this causes
ideological problems within their relationship?
What if they both start as bisexual, then drift towards homosexual
and heterosexual respectively?
What if one is radical, the other conservative? What if one is out and the other doesn't care to be?
What if they are different races, religions, or economic class?

I think you get the idea. There are endless ways you could alter them. Each would require a little re-tooling, but does it make any difference to their actual character – what they think and how they approach problems?

The truth is, we don't have any information about these 2 other than they fall in love, and eventually have a coming out scene to their mothers. Needless to say you are going to have to give them more substance than just those clichés, which are modern interpretations of "normal" for homosexuality-only. Why would bisexual men tell their families in the 1960s, when homosexuality could get you arrested, fired, and even force-medicated? Would they even identify with "out" homosexuals, or would they consider themselves a kind of "free love" that doesn't need to be defined?

On a side note, plenty of witch cults and pagan temples were de facto bisexual, at least ceremoniously. Sex magic was just as big in the '60s as any other decade.

I think your heart is in the right place, but based on the brief description I can see where some gay and especially bisexual men would feel you are not representing them as real people, certainly not behaving realistically for the time period.

Create the characters first. Understand who they are and what motivates them as people – especially what makes them different from one other – and then build the relationship between them.

If your characters' arcs can survive gender/race/sexuality/class changes (with minor adjustments) and their motives/actions still make sense, you have nothing to worry about because they are real people first, whatever the gender or sexuality.

But if the character arcs fall apart by changing their gender/race/sexuality/class then you might have shallow stereotypes who are dependent on racist/sexist tropes.

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So, you are concerned about representing a minority in your story, because you do not belong to that minority. Following the same logic, men shouldn't write about women, WASP Americans shouldn't write about anyone of different religion or skin colour, and only people with disabilities should write about people with disabilities, preferably with their particular disability. That's not right, is it? We want diversity. If we follow the above logic, we appear to be getting the opposite.

Do not be afraid to give people representation. Indeed, consider the example of Les Misérables: Victor Hugo was neither an illiterate worker condemned to hard labour for stealing a loaf of bread, nor an ex-convict whom society wouldn't let rebuild his life, nor a young woman with an illegitimate child. He was a rich and famous, privileged, white male writer. But his book made a real difference, in public awareness and in legislature.

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Each writer is of one gender, and one sexual orientation, and in order for their stories to reflect real life, they have to learn to write from the POV of other genders and other sexual orientations.

Don't be sexist on yourself, male heterosexual writers have written about homosexual males and homosexual females. Heck, people write convincingly about prostitutes, hit men, rape victims and serial killers and master thieves that they have never actually been. And medieval wizards, extra-terrestrials, kings and warriors.

Don't be afraid of writing what you want and what you think makes your story the strongest. Changing one of your characters might make your story feel unrealistic, because other characters in your book would not react the same to a female, and the character in question might react differently as a female, and these disparities can make the plot feel forced or unnatural.

My advice is leave it alone, and don't worry about selling to an audience that judges you on anything other than the quality of your writing and the quality of the story.

You might lose some sales to the judgy, but you would likely lose MORE sales by straining to fit a woman into the role of a bisexual male, and forcing the partner as a heterosexual male instead of a bisexual male. I believe the necessary changes in mindset and attitude (and presumably the loss of social tensions) would make this "not their story" anymore. The story was written for and belongs to two bisexual men in love, not a heterosexual couple in love.

EDIT: I see many suggestions about getting bisexual men to read your book and tell you what they think. That can be difficult, if you don't already know any! For most of us it is hard enough to get family to read our books and provide feedback, much less strangers we also want to qualify by gender and sexual orientation. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe Facebook has a group.

As an alternative, I would suggest reading bisexual authors that perhaps have written about bisexual relationships; that is much easier to search for on the web. Here is a list of about 200 Bisexual Writers, not all of them recent. But you could check out their pages and see what they've written, and perhaps learn from it. If they have any bisexual characters, their first-hand experience would help you understand what they felt was important to portray and write about. Not to copy them, but to get an idea of how a bisexual character thinks.

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Why worry about what some might think if changing the gender of a character damages your story. Write it as you want it and, provided you don’t hit people over the head with a 2x4 when it comes to gender and orientation, most should be fine with it.

You are writing the story you are writing, so write it.

I remember reading a book where the characters were homosexual and, until the author hit me over the head with it, I was enjoying the read. Make it part of who they are, but not who they are and you will be fine.

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