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You know, I'm writing this rant because I just read another story where the main character went straight.
Why am I writing this?
Because I'm not attracted to men! Not even a little! Here we are, in the trans society, thinking we're all so liberally oriented. Well if that's the case, then why the hell do I keep reading stories where the main character goes straight? It's a very frequent occurrence in trans stories.
I'm going to go out on a limb here, and say that most of us probably aren't attracted to men. Why am I ranting about this in a blog? GOOD QUESTION!
It's because I just don't understand this phenomena. Most stories are heterosexually oriented on the TG sites (FM, BCTS). Man turns into a woman, and is suddenly heterosexual. You know what I think about that? BS!
Is being gay so bad? Why do I have to read dozens of shallow stories that involve relationships with men? I don't want to read hetero romance. It's so odd. Most stories are heterosexual. I've read VERY FEW where the main character is a lesbian. Sorry, I don't wanna suck dick. Now why do authors keep writing about that in the TG genre? I'm also not interested in how handsome men are.
I also get the feeling that a lot of writers are writing about these things, and they don't actually have any experience with it. Guess what, I'm a passable transsexual. I HAVE dated men. And I didn't like it! And so many stories are completely unrealistic concerning heterosexual romance. I like women, and holy hell batman, I'm not afraid to admit it or write about it!
So far I haven't written any stories for BCTS, but that changes here and now. I have some stories on FM, and I think I'm going to write some wholly new stories for this site. And guess what? They are going to be chalk full of lesbians.
Comments
Exactly my thought, except...
...the other way around! LOL
I usually rant to myself, asking why the main character in all stories turn lesbo.. I guess we only take notice when we think something is "wrong", huh?
But i totally agree that a lot of stories are way to heteronormative. Some more gender-queer stories would be a wonderful change ^^
Which leads me to my other rant: Why must everyone be heterosexual or homosexual? Why can't more be bisexual and proud? =)
I am so tired of everyone constantly segregating people into two groups where some are "men" and some are "women"...
..mumble mumble.. ..rant rant..
...well.. I am done now. You can stop looking at me funny... ><
Scale
Many times, I've made reference to this scale, but here it is in all of it's glory. This is the scale I use to describe how I am attracted to folks. Your comment made me think of this, and I thought I'd share. Enjoy!
And on this scale, I'm sitting at 8.3 to 8.4 or 8.5!
Feel free to share this and use it for your own examples, by the way!
Edeyn Hannah Blackeney
Nice
I like the idea, makes it all a bit more nuanced. I like to think that gender is just an attribute among many of what that makes us attracted (or not) to a person. Things like personality types, attitudes, silly fashion statements (yeah, i know, i am immature), accents/dialects, etc, might be just as important. And there is a lot of ways to express both femininity and masculinity, which makes it even more complicated to define sexuality using just a binary system.
LOL
Are you aware that BigCloset was originally intended as a place to post lesbian fiction?
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
guess what
I'm a passable transsexual and I have been out with a guy, a few times. Does that make me straight? Stuffed if I know or care. As a guy I went out with women, because I wasn't gay and I was trying to be... whatever. I mostly enjoyed it and sex was ok. Now as a sorta woman I have been out with a guy...big deal. That's the only person I've been out with in years other than as a friend. Could I go with a woman? Sure, haven't stumbled on one that's wanting to drag me off to bed, but who knows. Sex? I forget how to spell it and any possibility is just that. Baby steps and feel your way.
You wanna be a lesbian, well hey, whoop de do and good for you. One of my best TG friends is just that. Me. I'll get back to ya when I figure it out. Assuming I need to, I might just play it by ear. Could it be it's the person, not the bits?
So write/post the damn stories and we'll let ya know. Oh; where? Try an appropriate bar. Red or pink neon sign, lots of women, not many men.
Kristina
Haha. Good one. You know
Haha. Good one.
You know what, that was a bit insulting.
You don't know what you want? Well whoop de do and good for you.
hmmm
A bit insulting? Yes I guess it was, sorry about that. I read this late last night and it struck me as as very 'I'll save the world' , just a bit in ya face. Probably my mood, no one else seemed to see that so, my fault. As for me questioning, well yes I do and will. Glad you have it all figured out.
Kristina
Check your data
Before spewing accusations, please. The percentage of TG population that is gay vs straight is the same as the rest of the population, so there are more of them (Straights) than there are of us (Gay and Lesbian). This means there will be more stories that feature straight characters -- just like in mainstream books, TV, movies, etc. there are a much larger amount of those that are Straight-oriented instead of Gay- and Lesbian-oriented. You figure that the generally accepted number for estimation of the portion of society that is G&L is 10%, and that means that about 10% of TG pop is going to turn out MtL and FtG (Male-to-Lesbian and Female-to-Gay). It's reasonable to logically assume, then, that the population of the authors that write TG fic will fall into this separation, as well. So why would you be surprised that it's not brimming over with lesbian fiction?
However. There are plenty here that have Lesbian (or Gay) heroes!
My top recommendation for this is Camp Kumoni - The hero/heroine, Eric/Erika, is STEADFASTLY only interested in girls -- which I must admit made me cheer (as I'm the same way, steadfastly Lesbian!). Another "big" story in which this is the case is Madeline Bell's Gaby stories (along with related fanfics such as All Things Denied). Drew/Gaby is in love with Maddy -- as both of his/her incarnations -- and Maddy loves Drew, but seems to be more into Gaby.
There are also various and sundry stories and series scattered everywhere. You have to deal with the fact that we are a social minority, and there will be less stuff out there for us than for them.
Do NOT, by the by, take this as an attempt to shout you down and telling you to not write. Please. By all means *winkwinknudgenudge* write all the fiction that focuses on Lesbian outcome that you want. *evil grin* I think the world would be a better place with more gurl-luvvin' going on!
;-)
;-)
Where be the lesbians?
I suspect that, as a percentage of lesbian to straight, there are a quite a few more lesbian TG stories than the national average, and there are certainly a slew of bi-sexual TG stories, but I catch your drift. It may be that only you can write your perfect story -- still, there are some TG lesbian tales that might fit what you're looking for. Have you read Sappho by *ahem* little old termite eater, moi?
Aardvark
"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
Mahatma Gandhi
"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
Mahatma Gandhi
Yes I have. And I loved
Yes I have. And I loved it!
I mean it was a little over the top at times, but when u have a rabid lez society what can you expect? lol.
Anyways, I've been wondering why you haven't written anything lately.
It's a matter of perception
The lack of, or surplus of, lesbian stories on this site is more to do with perceptions. As a lesbian myself I feel we are under represented, but when I really stop and look we don't do too bad or at least not as bad as first impressions would seem to suggest.
Now I will say that I can enjoy a story that has a male who becomes a woman and falls in love with a man. Easy as Falling off a Bike is one such story. I accepted Cathy's love of Simon even though I was hoping for it to be Cathy and Stella at the beginning. Why did I accept that given my preferences, because Charles/Cathy had no attraction to men or women to begin with. It was only after she was helped into her transition that her sexuality formed or was let out.
One story I couldn't read any more because the transition from man to woman completely didn't work for me and the sudden switch from a man who had no interest in men or being a woman to suddenly enjoying being a woman and then suddenly abandoning his attraction to women was Being Christina Chase. Christopher Chase had no interest in being a woman and no interest in men. Yet found that life was suddenly easier and he had friends/family as a woman, so suddenly he accepts being female. Doesn't work for me. There has to be something in his past, that indicates unhappiness with his birth gender. But it was never part of the story. Then this heterosexual man who is through circumstances forced to be a woman suddenly becomes attracted to men when there was no attraction or bi nature before hand. Again I just can't buy it.
I guess to me it is the character's journey. If I can believe the journey then I can accept the a character becoming het at the end of it. Suddenly changing a character's view of themselves or suddenly changing their sexuality just because they popped a few female hormones doesn't work for me because that is not what happens in real life. Hormones can only enhance or help what is already there, they can't change someone from A to B in terms of sexual preference or gender identity.
So if the story is believable, the character's journey is believable, the story has a good engaging plot and well written, then enjoy a good story. Even I can't enjoy a lesbian story if there is nothing to engage me in the characters or events.
While I share your impressions of the stories here I want to be as open as possible to alternate views of the world around me in these stories, provided they are believable within the context that they are set.
hugs,
Arwen
There is also
Those that vehemently deny their attraction (one way or the other) until transitioning. Personally, I think Christina Chase was a lot femme and enjoyed it and just refused to admit it to herself -- but the suddenly being attracted to guys (especially that dick of a lawyer) put me off. Yes, the lawyer dude did something nifty for her Uncle. Yes, he made a habit of being a nice guy for the town. That doesn't make him any less of an asshole. Or any less... male.
Chris took the easy path
Edeyn,
While I do agree that Christopher/Christine was probably destined to be female I felt the story just had Chris being female for convenience and acceptance. A no hoper het guy with no real future suddenly having a bright future as a woman. But a no hoper het guy that had no issues with being a guy or het, with no indication of being interested in men. That is what he was and he was not unhappy being a guy and het. It was just the rest of his life that sucked.
There was no real heart searching and examination of self to say hey is this right for me? Is this who I am? The reasons for becoming female were external not internal.
I did not go through this process of changing my sex to be accepted by others. I did it to be accepted by me. To end the painful lie. Being Christina Chase just did not go through the necessary soul searching to get to the logical end result as far as Chris being a woman. This is not something that one just wakes up and does one morning. It is something that one has to build to. Even those who are vehemently in denial and eventually see the light had a journey of internal self discovery to get to that conclusion.
Arwen
As a card-carrying bisexual
I read Christina's situation differently. Chris is naturally bi, seems obvious to me. When she was a guy, she felt it appropriate to be attracted to women. Now that she's living as female, she can discover her attraction to men. She's a bi who wants to be het.
As for the heart searching and examination, um, that's what the story IS, isn't it? :)
Now, cards. Gin or cribbage? :)
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
what the story is...
...is sadly incomplete. We don't know how the story turns out, although we may guess, because it seems to be abandoned for whatever reason...
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
Chris...
Actually, Chris has a crush on Steph, an inhabitant of the town Christina lives in, from the start, and it's his simulataneous desire for Steph and the attentions of two of the men in town that create tension for him. Steph is desireable but forbidden by context, his cousin Andrei seems atracted to him but is also forbidden for several reasons, although there seems to be at least some attraction on Christina's part, which leaves Richard, who takes an immediate interest but whom Christina detests. How many women's romance novels start out with exactly the same premise?
People are flexible, and "When in Rome" was old long before St. Ambrose said it in St. Ambrose said it in the year 387 of the common era.
Chris finds himself in Rome, where he is both expected to be a young woman and is naturally suited to the role. Points at least for not beating his head against the wall, as he long had been in the big city, and going with the flow.
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
46 Tears by ?
You got me thinking. Of the forty-six stories I've posted here, eighteen involve a m2f hero who loves a girl in the end. Thirteen contain a m2f who eventually loves a boy.
Fifteen of my stories feature a hero who has no love interest.
I suppose that qualifies me as something of an equal opportunity writer -- or someone who's confused.
By the way, the vast majority of my heros are right-handed and have brown eyes.
Angela Rasch (Jill M I)
Angela Rasch (Jill M I)
Vaginatarian
Vaginatarian... it was a bumper sticker on a car with rainbows and other indications of this womans preferences.
I guess that would make me omnivorous?
Could it be
There all to busy to write fiction? I identify as straight and I think a lot of why you think there is more lesbian and Bi T's is they don't move on and that can be a good thing for all T's.Almost everyplace I've gone looking for info on hormones or whatever relating to being Ts was ran by lesbian or bi identifying T's.Get them to spend more time writing fiction and we may all lose a valuable resource.Amy---"May your pen never run out of ink and your brain out of ideas"
Thank You G.K.S! ^^
We certainly can use more stories in areas that are underused on out site. I should actually begin writing too, myself. And I do agree with what you say. I look forward to seeing your writings as I am a lesbian myself.
Sephrena Lynn Miller
BigCloset TopShelf
Where are the lesbians?
I am a memeber of a TS forum with over 1,000 members. An informal survey, just a poll really, with 120+ respondents out of the over 1,000 registered members, indicated these interesting but hardly conclusive numbers: 28% claimed to be lesbian in a relationship with a cisgendered woman (about 5% with their wife from their lives as sociological males), 52% claimed to be heterosexual (a small number of these were in a marriage with a F2M), 13% claimed to be lesbian in a relationship with another M2F ts, 4% said they were Asexual, 2.9% Bisexual, and .1% gay (F2M). The sample is heavily weighted toward M2F TS who were later transitioners. Those that claimed heterosexuality said their sexual orientation changed during transition. Most of the TS partners said they had dated men, dated women, and preferred another TS because of shared understanding. Those who said they were asexual considered themselves as such before transition.
For what it is worth.
CaroL
CaroL
That would be consistent
That would be consistent with how few stories involve female+female romances. I know on fictionmania hetero stories outnumber lesbian stories by about 5 to 1.
It takes all kinds...
Some transsexuals like boys, and others like girls. I recall reading an article that distinguished between 'autogynophelia' and 'homosexual' GID. (For the record, I don't really consider 'homosexual trannsexual' to be a good description.)
If you're talking about a magical or technological transformastion, having the new girl suddenly like guys adds angst to the story. I have no real preference one way or the otherr, though the stories I write tend to have the protagonist going straight without any particular angst. Of course, in one case, a married couple both became fully functional hermaphrodites with feline traits and a very female appearance.
Anyhow, I don't think there's a conspiracy to brainwash us by only writing stories where straight guys turn into straight girls. I see plenty of straight guys becoming lesbians, and I enjoy reading a good lesbian romance.
Ray Drouillard
Yeah Ray
I've read your stories.
lol.
:-p
-Gabi
You know...
You know that I would never oppose you, oh Nefarious Mistress Gabrielle.
- the Evil Doctor Ray
Here Is Where I Stand
When I was growing up, I had no desire whatsoever to be in a relationship with a boy as a boy. I was attracted to other boys the same way other girls are. I have always seen myself as a girl. As I have gotten older, I see myself as bisexual. I have heterosexual attraction toward men, but a lesbian orientation to women. Given what I know about men, my preferred life partners are other women, because I have grown weary of the macho B.S that men use to try to control and dominate women. I know there are sensitive guys out there, but I have found that more often the majority of the men I have known, can't get past their over inflated egos and can't treat women as equals. They tend to think that our desire to be rid of our male anatomy is somehow an affront to their own masculinity and they tend to have more of a problem with us than most GG's do. The stories on here tend to express the freedom that some transpeople have in being able to express their true orientation without having to hide behind the facade that the majority of society expects. As most of you know, there are vast differences in the attitudes that exist toward LGBT people depending on where you live in the country. It is just a sad reality. There is nothing wrong with being Gay if that is how you really feel. Most of our feelings on who we are really attracted to can be ruled by fear of what others may think. Some are brave enough to say and be who they are, but others are caught in circumstances that prevent them from being true to themselves.
Hugs,
Jen
Amusing
This blog gave me a bit of a snicker. Awhile back I received a PM from a person who had read my K&K stories, in which the protagonist is intersexed and becomes a lesbian female. The PM thanked me and praised the stories, then went on to ask if I couldn't write some heterosexual TG stories, as there weren't enough of them. :-)
I do have a hetero post-op TS girl, and have a sequel in the works. But ya know, I find it easier to write what I know, and that is a lesbian relationship. I don't know which group is better represented here on BC, and don't really care. The more stories the better, IMHO. That gives me a statistically greater chance of finding something to read that I'll enjoy.
BTW Erin, they give out cards for that???? ;-)
Karen J.
"Being a girl is wonderful and to torture someone into that would be like the exact opposite of what it's like. I don’t know how anyone could act that way." College Girl - poetheather
"Life is not measured by the breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away.”
George Carlin
As a fan of many styles of story here ...
-- except forced stuff, much of the time, hate to see people being manipulated -- I agree with Erin about Admiral Krunch and Being Christina.
He/she is a mix of male and female. He loved a woman at the start but she betrayed him as she, so her excuse went, saw too much of the woman in the man. He was accidentally mistaken for a woman and found the love and acceptance of the distant relatives so compelling, compared to the dismal support form his mom and step dad, he kept acting and dressing as a woman so long he began to identify as one much of the time. He hoped to win the lovely local woman but gave that up in favor of the man she prefered, his/her cousin.
It is not so much a man becoming a woman and lusting over men so much as an androgynous person, or just a person if you will, wanting love and taking it anyway, he or she can get it. It is a search for love at any and all cost though he/she has misgivings at times. I agree there is probably more hetro stuff here than lesbian but I think there is a low percentage of gay as well with bi coming in a bit above both.
Karen_J’s eventually to be completed Kari saga is a great lesbian romance and I love it
Mind you I am a guy so I have my biases, I must assume. But thanks for waking us up. I love romance and true love triumphing though a dark story here and there is good for the soul. I very nearly had my Joanie heroine in Timeout in a permanent lesbian relationship – it likely was to be the character Big Red -- but she changed her mind as characters and muses will do.
I’ve a question. What if there is a gender swap as I have done I at least one of my stories. Is that then a gay/lesbian relationship as the former guy loves the guy who was a girl and so on. Oh , Glacier Girl has a female life partner, or soon to be one if I ever finish that story. And I have at least one contest entry story I may revisit, How to Edit Yourself, that is clearly lesbian.
Diversity is what will keep BC healthy.
John in wauwatosa
John in Wauwatosa
Hi GKS,
I pretty much agree with you, orientation wise. I guess it's cool to rant if you're really upset, but I wouldn't about BCTS. Let's say there are les Tgals, het Tgals, Bi Tgals and celibate or not interested Tgals. I'm TS, 16 years since grs, but some of our members might be CDs or non-ops because they are apparently living with their wives. I don't know, but there might be some GGs (do I have to say cisgendered wimyn ?). Some members/writers use male names. Some of these write great stories and make excellent comments. I'm glad they're here. I can't say anything about their gender ID or orientation.
Since we have this diversity, protagonists in stories would necessarily have diverse orientations.
Edeyn, you could have used the Kinsey scale; it's been around for a while, but yours is fine. Could you give me a link to data that says the orientation percentages of TS and cisgendered people are similar? I remember reading somewhere, I think linked off of Lynn Conway's site, that about a third of mtfs are het, a third are bi or gay and a third are celibate or non-participating.
On switching orientation in mid transition, it more or less happened to me. 3 or 4 months after starting HRT, while living full time, I started getting crushes on a few guys at work. It felt really strange. I'd never even wondered about guys. I'd have a few guy friends, who were usually non aggressive and non macho. I was always somewhat afraid of aggressive, bully types and the rest of guys were just people. Some months after this I was seduced by a friend, a not yet transitioning mtf. No penetration, but I had my first female orgasms. After I healed from grs my friend fucked me once, it was pretty good, but the second time she couldn't, it made her feel too male. She soon started transitioning and is het.
I had some real guys after that. One was very good, but he just sorta wanted a fuck buddy. I just got tired of guys some months after that. Sex with them was fine if they were good performers, but I didn't like their attitudes and the way they acted. I met an experienced lesbian (just a little bi I guess) preop, she seduced me very well and we've mostly been together since then.
Well, sorry for the excess verbiage (as usual). I hope it informs a little.
Hugs,
Renee
Hugs and Bright Blessings,
Renee
Lesbians?
Well, they're all over the place.
I didn't understand the criticism of Being Christina Chase, though, as the character is depicted from the start as a sort of nebbish as a man, still obsessing over his high school sweetheart, who was evidently stepping out on him while she was living with him, a man so unlike a "man" that he's accused of being out past his bedtime, much less being old enough to buy alcoholic beverages. In that sense, he fits the classic transgendered model, a "man" who can easily pass as female, who's had few, if any, real attachments to women or anyone else, aside from his mother. At nineteen, how many are sure of their adult choices? Chris seems to be drifting, again a classic situation, but is he not allowed therefore to "come out" as *anything*? Did he wait too long?
As the story progresses, we discover that Christina's stepfather is a vicious, abusive, and violent man who beat her savagely, and her mother takes his side, as abused women often do.
It seems to me that Chris stumbled into default heterosexuality and default masculinity in high school, but doesn't seem to have much investment in it, but rather drifts, going whichever way the wind is blowing.
And then he drifts into the household of his cousins, who have the strong and loving family that Chris deeply craves, in which gender roles are well-defined and which he couldn't hope to measure up to as a man, even discounting his "accident," and where he finally finds the real father he's been longing for.
His drift into what's first a female "role" becomes more engrained throughout the story, as he (or she) interacts with the people around her, strong characters all, amongst whom Chirstina fits quite naturally, despite his or her misgivings and self-recrmination.
The story itself is evocative of particular places, contrasting the sordid, desperate life Chis lives as a man (or perhaps more like a boy) and the Norman Rockwell surroundings of his country home as Christina, rich not only in beautiful surroundings, but filled with warm and loving people.
We note that his several attempts to escape back into his male pantomime are as dismal as his life before Christina, and he only slowly comes to terms with the fact that he's happier, more self-assured, and more of a "man" (or at least a mensch) as Christina than he ever was as Chris. What's not to like?
Puddin'
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
My first experience
was with another woman. Shortly after that I went into deep denial for fifteen years. When I came out for the second time, in 1998, I was attracted to men. I had a few lesbian experiences but mainly went with men.
After surgery I consider myself bisexual but with a preference for females.
Two of my best friends are a pre-op TS and TV couple. Now are they Het, Hom, Les, Bi or what?
You can't say that everyone fits into a fixed gender or sexuality box; there are as many permutations as there are people. Let's just celebrate the diversity of the human race. If our God had intended us to have fixed and uniform binary gender and sexuality he, she, it or they would have arranged it.
And there's no reason why our writing shouldn't reflect this diversity - and it does.
Susie
Well umm...
For myself I didn't figure out my sexual orientation till I was 24, yeah I knew I was a girl since I was born, but my sexual orientation took forever to figure out. I dated girls, I dated guys, and I even dated other, both, and neither and I've discovered, I'm straight. I agree with you, I think too many stories involve the guy just like losing his brain and being someone else and that just kinda puts me off sometimes. I'm just looking for a TG story that the guy gets magically changed into a girl, or a girl gets magically changed to a guy, and they try to change back instead of just becoming a frilly feminine girl, or a masculine football player guy. I mean why can't the girl be a football player, they have a woman's football league ^^ And why can't the guy like feminine things too? Or why can't they just be themselves, but meh that's a different rant for another day. Sometimes though maybe the characters thought they were straight till they realized they were, just as girls or boys xD I'm just happy I finally figured out for me xD Guys are soooo hot ^^
I know who I am, I am me, and I like me ^^
Transgender, Gamer, Little, Princess, Therian and proud :D
Being a bi who's primaly
Being a bi who's primaly attracted to woman, I couldn't agree more. It's one of the criteria I look at in the keywords of a story when it's I haven't been here in a while.
btw happy 2009 to everyone
Lyn(x)ne
Where are they?
So, I don't see any listing for G.K.S. in the author list. "Here and now" doesn't seem to have happened yet. ;-)
KJT
Sir Charles Panther
"Life is not measured by the breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away.”
George Carlin
Subtlety...
I don't understand, quite frankly, why stories have to be clearly labeled as heterosexual or homosexual or bisexual or whatever, since real life is rarely quite so clearcut.
Depending on one's viewpoint, exactly what is what now is called Wuthering Dormice to be labeled as? Simon falls in love with with our protagonist whilst he is fully male in his appurtenances, Simon's mother seems inclined to fancy a shag no matter which gender he or she is, and Stella is surely bisexual at very least, possibly a lesbian in self-denial. She certainly doesn't have all that much luck with men, and has never formed a long-term or stable relationship with anyone. Wuthering indeed.
All the relationships depicted in the story are stormy, but none-the-less subtle. Des, now deceased, introduced conflict and at least a partial resolution (difficult to achieve a final dénouement in a serial), which fits into the theory of the novel quite nicely.
There are no extraneous characters, and each have a rôle in illuminating the overall arc of the story, yet there is little banging the interior life of the various characters over the head of the reader; we're allowed to discover what they might be like from guesswork, for the most part, just as in real life.
Christina Chase is also subtle, although I've touched on this before. Chris (or Chris' author) refuses to be pinned down, just as many of us are not content to be one thing or t'other in our real lives, maintaining a dramatic tension between our ability to view the protagonist as purely male or female, and his or her actions as purely heterosexual, purely homosexual, or somewhere in between. It's the ambiguity that drives the story, and makes us desire resolution.
The stories on Fictionmania tend toward the unsubtle, although of course there are exceptions, and many of them use a heavy stick to thrash a particular point of view into the reader's head, which seems assumed to be thick and sturdy.
Moreover, many overtly "lesbian" or "bisexual" stories appear to have been designed as heterosexual male "stroke" pieces, or are male voyeurism, so a rather creepy heterosexuality shows up as the camera operator, at least, or lurks just offstage. Is a "lesbian" story written for a male audience womancentric in reality, or only faux-dykish mugging for the camera, the "pornography" of the Peeping Tom?
Many stories follow such a predictable arc that one can predict the ending from the first paragraph, and might conveniently lay it aside and save quite a bit of time, but where's the fun in that?
It's not knowing that lures the literate reader on, and keeps us anxious for the characters in the heat of the storytelling, which may extend over more than a year of episodes, so by all means let Stella, Mima, and Simon vie for Cathy's bed, and perhaps a dozen surrogates; let Cathy be as mutable as a summer's breeze; "La donna è mobile;" "Varium et mutabile semper femina;" "mulier est hominis confusio."
That way lies happiness.
Cheers,
Puddin'
-------------------
An housbonde shal nat been inquisityf
Of Goddes pryvetee, nor of his wyf.
--- Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
RE: Subtlety...
Well, maybe the real life is not clear cut, but I think many people do have preference for some type of story. I have first encountered fiction with transformation motiff in Stargate SG-1 fanfiction as way to pair up the male leads - and I still carry terrible scars. So labels would sometimes be nice.
I originally wanted to write a large post with numbered reason why my prefernces in reading material are more rational and more ethical, but they really are not- I may be foreign barbarian, but I hope to get some manners.
Sometimes though, I want to scream, because another story which I have invested myself so dearly has turned against me.