#non binary lesbian author

[natureless-creatures]

Sapphic novel enjoyers!!

My friend is writing a queer sapphic fantasy romance written in the mysterious world of Wistervander, with witches and detectives (and detective witches!) with a hefty side of pining and slow burn.

She's been working very hard on this over the last few months and I have been beta reading for her, so please show her some love because she deserves recognition, and it's hard to get that as a new writer <33 (She's also drawn all the art for it! I personally adore the chapter paragraph icons) You can find her work here: https://tapas.io/series/Creatures-of-Wistervander/info

[manaosdeuwu]

Are you against mspec lesbians

???

[cephalopod-celabrator]

Shoutout to my favorite author Melissa Caruso (as if I'm ever not shouting her out) for having this in the FAQ on her website:

This answer just sort of feels like it's made for queer people more. It doesn't just say "My books feature queer characters", it lists specifically what each series has, down to using abbreviations that are sometimes kind of rare for formal straight people like "bi" and "ace". Also I've read these books, and she fully follows through with these. Melissa Caruso has more balls than J. K. Rowling or Marissa Meyer ever will.

[xindistinctive-purgatoryx]

New review up on my blog!

Tears in the Water by Margherita Scialla

✓ the largest amount of queer rep I've ever seen in a single piece of media ✓ T4T romance amidst a gender crisis ✓ neurodivergent main character

Read the review here

[cloverpseudonym]

OC PRIDE PICNIC 2023! ACCEPTING ART AND WRITING! OPEN TO TAPAS AND AO3 CREATORS

Pride Picnic is an OC creator collab showcasing your OCs celebrating Pride Month at a picnic!

Rules are as follows;

OC's only! This is to showcase your own original characters!

Strictly SFW! This is for people of all ages who want to participate in a fun, all inclusive writing event!

No exclusions! All sexualities and genders are welcome here! Pride Month is about acceptance and we aim to keep that energy going!

No pedophilia or incest! This is to be a safe, family-friendly lgbtqia+ event.

Open to Tapas and ao3 creators, submissions accepted until June 20th, 11:59pm PST

We hope to see you all soon!

[genderqueerdykes]

im not sorry the truth of the transmasculine experience is ugly. i'm not sorry that we have to frequently discuss sexual and physical violence and abuse. i'm not sorry that we have to discuss violent physical abuse and death. i'm not sorry that we have to discuss homelessness, mental illness, addiction, disabilities, and other challenges in life.

we struggle. we do not instantly gain male privilege the second we come out. even if we pass. when someone knows we're trans we're treated like a woman no matter what. we can sometimes get lucky and pass with strangers but eventually people around us find out because people tell each other without our consent.

we face all kinds of abuse due to the fact that people feel entitlement to our bodies, regardless of what our AGAB is. they feel entitled to our faces, our hair, our entire appearance. they focus on the face that we're ruining something "pretty". they threaten corrective sexual violence to remind us that we're "just women". it happens constantly. this is not an isolated incident and virtually nobody wants people to talk about it when it comes to transmasculine people.

trans men often get injured for one reason or another. usually because someone wants to make them "prove" they're a man, to "toughen them up" or to "prove to them that they're a woman". sometimes this results in sexual assault. other times it results in physical assault. and sometimes people just kill trans men. all because they hate that a "woman" can transition into a man.

it's an ugly part of our reality but it needs to be discussed because otherwise people use the lack of that conversation as ammunition to say transmascs don't struggle.

transmasculine people struggle to stay housed. transmasculine people get kicked out of their living situations very often for many reasons. it's hard for transmascs to get jobs because often times people want either a man or a woman for a specific position and fuss over what they think the transmasc's gender is. misgendering is a huge issue at work. going stealth at work can be painful. being in the closet at work can be painful

transmascs are often disabled and struggle to get care due to people not taking AFAB patients' pain and symptoms seriously. this is a huge issue with any kind of AFAB person or any woman. all woman and AFAB people struggle with having their symptoms taken seriously when seeking serious medical attention to the point of possibly being undiagnosed for life, thus being unable to get on disability. trans women face this just as much as AFAB cis women, it's a huge issue in the medical industry

transmasculine people struggle to say on their hormones (or access them at all). testosterone is a controlled substance in many countries which means that you need a prior authorization to get the medication and need to consistently see a provider to get blood tests and check ups. it can be difficult to do so if you are low income and sometimes certain pharmacists will intentionally find ways to withhold hormones due to their own prejudices

transmasculine people struggle to get pregnancy support and care. it is very difficult for transmasculine people to figure out how to navigate their pregnancy, either due to their HRT provider not knowing much about pregnancy, or having a gynecologist who's not familiar with transmasculine health.

transmascs get denied from spaces made for men constantly. even if they pass, if word gets around that they're trans they can easily be kicked out of a space. transmasculine lesbians are often removed from lesbian, transmasc and/or non binary spaces. transmasc butches are often ostracized from all communities their identities correlate to. trans men and transmasc enbies are seen as a threat to women.

there is ugliness in every pocket of the queer community when it comes to how cisheteronormative society treats us. we all face disgusting treatment that needs to be addressed. it's important to consider how this system affects everyone underneath it. we need to talk about the positive things, it's good to help those are questioning, but we also must discuss what struggles we face in order to humanize ourselves and show that we people, too. none of us have it easy.

[feminist-furby-freak]

Could you elaborate on how gender ideology is misogynistic?

Sure. So gender ideology (see previous ask for how I define it) is misogynistic because it denies the present and historical reality of the sex-based oppression of women, reinforces the gender binary through its obsession with gender and gender roles, and jeopardizes women’s safety by privileging AGP men. Here are some examples:

It erases gender non conformity as a normal expression of the self. We see this through the “transing” of gender non conforming children and adults, particularly feminine gay men and masculine lesbian women. TRAs love to scream that we (GCs and TERFs) are obsessed with gender roles and uncomfortable with gender non conformity when they are the ones that promote the idea that men who present feminine and women who present masculine actually need to transition. I know so many detrans butch women who were told as teens and young women that they needed testosterone and surgery to fix them. What is more regressive than telling GNC people they actually need to become the opposite gender?

It denies the reality of sex and sex-based oppression. There are two camps for gender ideologists: gender identity is more important to one’s lived experience than their biological sex and gender is real but biological sex is not. Both of these ideas are misogynistic and false. Women’s subjugation for millennia across the world is not due to their “gender identity.” To say that femaleness isn’t real or that it is something an individual chooses to be is to say that women opt/opted into their oppression, or worse, that sex-based oppression never existed at all. How does the taliban chose which children can go to school? Do you think they go up to every child and ask them their gender identity? Of course not. It is unbelievable how TRAs have brainwashed so many people into denying the existence oldest and most universal form of oppression. This falsehood is so prevalent in academic spaces it has created a revisionist history and permeated science and medical research. Periods, pregnancy, and women’s health issues are now considered TERFy and we have to do this linguistic dance with dehumanizing terminology to discuss our own bodies. Ideology is more important than reality and medical authorities are parroting lies (TIMs can safely breastfeed, puberty is reversible, testerone does not have dangerous side effects) with no scientific basis without repercussion.

It privileges trans identified men over women. Gender ideology is not more scientifically or psychologically sound than gender critical ideology. Gender ideology has been arbitrarily accepted as The Truth by the left. TRAs will say that it is the compassionate or moral opinion and thus correct but this privileges the interests of trans identifying men over the interests of women. After all, morality is subjective. Take sports for example, women want a fair chance to participate in athletics and trans identifying males want to be validated by playing in female sports. The two interests conflict but the left has decided that the wants of the male athletes are more important than the wants of the female athletes, and this is treated as the obvious morally correct stance. But is it so obvious? I don’t think so. Nobody can answer why trans identifying males (because let’s be real trans identifying females never get special privileges) are prioritized over everyone else.

Feel free to send another ask if you have more questions.

[olderthannetfic]

Most of my fandoms are books and my personal peeve is when people interpret a POV character as gay/lesbian based on their lack of attraction to the opposite gender and not on the presence of their attraction to the same gender (I should probably phrase this in a way that's more inclusive to non-binary people but let's not be kidding ourselves, that's not how the people I'm talking about think about it).

There's a character in one of my main fandoms who's frequently interpreted as a lesbian because she has a lot of guys interested in her and she sees them all as dear friends and is dreading marriage (it's a historical setting). The thing is, we have lengthy passages from her POV and she spends 80% of them surrounded by really attractive women and she sees all of THEM as dear friends too.

The book has other POVs where you can tell when the character is horny for someone, and it also has a couple of canonically wlw women whose POVs and reactions make it obvious that they're attracted to other women.

I don't know, obviously everyone can have all the headcanons they like but there's something that annoys me about the presumption that being gay/lesbian is the "absence of 'normal' (heteronormative) attraction" and not the presence of attraction to your own gender. I would personally headcanon the character I described as ace or demi or something like that - she just seems entirely disinterested in sex or romance and doesn't seem to "get" it.

A fun corollary to this is that men written by mediocre female authors and women written by mediocre male authors often come off as queer to me because the author didn't bother to imagine how a het person of that gender would see others. E.g. Harry Potter often coming off as really gay because JKR puts her entire pussy into telling us when a male side character is hot whereas she couldn't write someone being attracted to a woman to save her life.

There's also a bunch of old school fantasy authors who have their female characters describing other female characters' bodies because that's what the male authors are into, and rightly there's been feminist pushback against it, but every time I see a complaint along the lines of "Why is this woman noticing other women's boobs and curves no woman thinks that way" my brain goes "It's because she wants to fuck the women, like me, I'm a woman and I think that way, don't take away the tiddies from me thank you <3"

--

[hauntingofhouses]

Thinking about the crazy love triangle situation in Blue Eye Samurai and debating heavily with myself on how I'd like to see it conclude. And yeah this discussion can be thought of purely as shipping, headcanons, and fandom fun. But when analysing the show and engaging with it in a more in-depth, almost-literary level, it's impossible to dismiss who Mizu's potential love interests are and how different endgame romances would affect her character arc and the overall story and themes.

So in this post I'd like to look at the love triangle a bit more closely, and speculate on where the story will take this.

DISCLAIMER: It is my personal interpretation of the text that Mizu is non-binary—I use this as an umbrella term denoting any gender that does not adhere to the binary restrictions, norms, and expectations of what it means to be either a man or woman in a particular society; it's not just an androgynous "third gender" that exclusively uses they/them pronouns. Thus, while I personally believe Mizu is not strictly a cis woman, she does still identify with womanhood, despite definitely feeling a level of detachment from it due to living as a man for so long. With that being said, I will be using she/her pronouns for Mizu in this post, but please note that this is purely personal preference. Everyone is free to interpret the text the way they like. That's the fun of fiction. Now, without further ado, let's proceed.

Okay so, thinking about the pairings on a purely surface level, and even before i got into the show, I was pinning my hopes on some lesbianism going on between Mizu and Akemi, and the show does hint at this; in Ep1, during their first encounter in Kyoto, there is the famous slow-mo shot of their eyes meeting, Mizu's lips slightly parted as she is unable to tear her gaze away from Akemi, while sweet string music plays in the background. This is clear romantic framing, and a marker of attraction. If Mizu was a cishet man, there would be no question that this is a potential love interest.

But then, in the same episode, we meet Taigen, who is introduced to us firstly from hearing Akemi's father describe him as "a fierce and undefeated young samurai", the "best swordsman in the best school" and "a fisherman's son from Kohama [...] whose rise reminds [him] of [his] own."

In the next scene, we meet him in person as Akemi's fiance, and he seems sweet enough. He even gives her sweets! In exchange, Akemi gives him gold, and he feels a bit ashamed that he doesn't have anything better to offer her. But Akemi accepts him and his gift wholeheartedly and flirts with him a little, which makes him smile kinda shyly.

When Akemi confirms their engagement, Taigen is in disbelief because he has no status or noble background, but Akemi reassures him.

So from these first few scenes, we're introduced to Taigen as an honourable and strong samurai, but also as a man who is sweet and gentle with the woman he is about to marry, as well as aware of his own inferiority when compared to Akemi's high station.

Our view of him then changes as his true self is revealed: he is an arrogant and smug bastard among his peers, but more importantly, he is the terrible bully from Mizu's childhood.

And it is this side of Taigen--pompous jerk and unrepentant xenophobic bully--that we continue to see as the show goes on, and it's safe to say that this is his real self, sans any pretense of humility and modesty. Around anyone who isn't an outright superior in terms of class and power (ie. Akemi's father, the shogun), Taigen never hesitates to assert his own authority and "greatness."

But as the show goes on, he gets caught by Heiji Shindo's men, and then tortured. And that's when we see, okay, turns out he's not that bad. He's honourable; "honour" is not just meaningless and superficial pedantry for him, but an internalised, guiding principle.

He was a cruel asshat throughout Mizu's childhood, but in a prejudiced and xenophobic society, he was just playing by the rules. As a child, he knew he was at the bottom of society, but when met with someone even lower ranked than him (Mizu), he can project all those prejudices and insecurities onto someone else. This way of thinking--"if you can't beat 'em, join em"--is what allowed him to climb up the ranks despite being some dirt poor kid from an abusive household*.

*Well, that combined with his cismale privilege of course, because this would not be an option for a woman in similar circumstances.

Thus, his upholding of honour also exemplifies how Taigen embodies the ideals and rules of his society. His insistence on duelling Mizu is another more blatant example of this. He doesn't want revenge like Mizu does. He wants to be accepted by society, within the bounds that society has placed, and that means that his only two options following his defeat at the Shindo dojo were to either chase Mizu down and get his damn duel, or kill himself for his humiliating defeat.

Now! Moving on from Taigen, let's go back to the other end of this little love triangle: Akemi.

Mizu and Akemi only properly meet in Ep4. During their first meeting, when Akemi tries to poison Mizu in Madame Kaji's brothel, she compliments Mizu's eyes, calling them "beautiful."

This seems to genuinely take mizu off-guard for a second before she coolly plays along. We know that Mizu recognises Akemi from the get-go, and thus sees through Akemi's ploy from a mile away. It's also safe to assume she'd expected false flattery, because Mizu understands full well that this tactic is how women get what they want: by using their 'feminine wiles' and playing up their naivety and innocence. But even so, it's interesting that Mizu actually seems surprised by Akemi's compliment.

Then, after Mizu subtly taunts Akemi by lying about Taigen's death, she and Akemi have a bit of a scuffle, and then we get to Mizu saying this:

"Women in our world don't have a single good option. Except you, like some magical forest creature. You could have anything you want, but then you beg to eat trash."

(no screenshot because it's quite a long line but you get it)

Here we see Mizu's opinions on the marginalisation of (mostly poor and under-privileged) women stated outright, and underlying her words is also resentment. Because even though she and Akemi have shared experiences of female oppression, Mizu, unlike Akemi, was also poor, from a rural village, and is a racial minority. Mizu is triply oppressed, while Akemi only faces one primary form of oppression, and to someone as embittered by the world as Mizu is, to see Akemi "beg to eat trash" is a slap in the face, practically tone-deaf to the other injustices around her--injustices which Akemi has not shown much, or any, acknowledgement for at this point.

Then, after this scene, Mizu kills Kinuyo, and this unsettles her to a degree we've never seen from her before. She is visibly distraught, and the entire sequence hammers the theme of this episode (and arguably, a large portion of the show) into our heads: women in this world suffer. And even though Mizu is well aware of this fact, to commit this act is so visceral that is shakes her to her core, and it's what ultimately leads to the ambush of the Thousand Fangs.

But before the ambush, Mizu and Akemi talk a little again, and during this time Akemi taunts Mizu some more.

Right now, Mizu is exhausted to the point where (I believe) she even downs some sake, despite not usually drinking. Thus, worn down, she cuts Akemi's ropes and tells her, "Just go." Akemi recovers from her initial fear of Mizu's blade and taunts her some more, accurately seeing through Mizu's facade of coldness, recognising the raw anger there, and says this:

"I thought you had to be something special. Your face isn't even so scary. You're just... angry."

At this, Mizu is amused and compares Akemi to Taigen ("I see why he likes you. You're just like Taigen when we were children. A fucking brat.")

The reveal that Mizu and Taigen knew each other in childhood surprises Akemi, but before either of them can say more, everything goes to shit.

That's when we get to Ep5. This episode focuses primarily on Mizu, the central piece of this love triangle, and does the most out of all the episodes to shed some light on her character and goals, fleshing her out to be more than just the vengeful, highly proficient samurai we've seen thus far (symbolised by The Ronin), but also a person who is capable of love, domesticity and gentleness (symbolised by The Bride). But in the end, Mizu rejects both these ideals, instead becoming an Onryo, who is neither guided by pride/honour, nor love.

By 'reincarnating' into an Onryo, Mizu is able to win the day and save the women in the brothel. However, as she has now fully embraced her status as an Onryo, and is exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally, she lets the Tokunobu clansmen take Akemi away while Akemi's screams echo in her ear.

Mizu says this choice is for Akemi's own good, that Akemi's better off; because Mizu is jaded and weary, and cannot afford the luxury of idealism, and thus must always be strictly practical and realistic. So of course that's why, in her view, yes, Akemi should not be wasting her time in a brothel where women are exploited and abused, nor should Akemi be so naive to think that her marriage with Taigen is even still possible. However, regardless of Mizu's views, it is not for her to decide, because though Akemi is privileged in some sense, she is still trapped and voiceless, and deserves the right to choose her own destiny.

But as it happens, in the end, though Akemi did not choose who she gets to marry, she DOES get to choose her next move when Edo burns down.

"I want to be great."

This one line is the key to her entire arc, which is only just beginning. We see she quickly has acquired the affection and good graces of the shogun's son after their wedding night and consummation, and with Madame Kaji and the girls now serving her, Akemi will only grow to become a prominent political player.

NOW, only after analysing the characters as they are within this season, only can we speculate how their arcs will continue as the show progresses.

First and foremost, I will reassert the popular opinion that Mizu and Akemi are foils. The climax (pun intended) of Ep7 illustrates this as it parallels the turning points in both Mizu's and Akemi's arcs:

Mizu melts the steel of all her loves and shames, the people she's collected: the broken blade wielded by both Chiaki and Taigen, Akemi's knife, Ringo's bell, Master Eiji's tongs - this symbolises her beginning to accept herself, and in doing so, also accepting the help of others;

Akemi consummates her marriage with Takayoshi Itoh, gains his affection, and cements her position as a woman in the shogun's palace - this symbolises her taking charge of her situation, no longer playing the damsel, but using her position to her advantage, empowering both herself and the underprivileged women around her.

These are thus two directly contrasting, diverging journeys:

Mizu's arc moves inward (yin). It is an internal path of self-love and self-discovery, focused on finding peace and tranquility inside herself, and this involves allowing herself to let others into her life, opening herself up to friendship and empathy once more.

Akemi's arc moves outward (yang), it is an external path of growth, transforming from a naive, caged princess to a powerful woman and a force to be reckoned with.

Akemi is always dressed in red, even her eyes are a bit of a reddish-brown rather than brown-black like most other characters, and in her penultimate scene she stands against a backdrop of flames. She is fire: quick-tempered, passionate, full of energy. Red is powerful, authoritative, and in eastern cultures, it is associated with prosperity.

Mizu is blue: her eyes, her sword, her clothes. She is also named after water; it's where she goes to recover, reflect and meditate. Water is fluid like a brook weaving around a stone in its path, always changing and adapting, it is graceful, it is beautiful and ruthless, tranquil yet swift.

Thus, in the future, I expect we will see plenty of political manoeuvring and intrigue in Akemi's plotline, where she fully embraces control of her life, and begins to take action to help others as well, realising that her own oppression is just one piece in a much larger picture. Her main conflict is with society.

In direct contrast, Mizu's main conflict is with herself. She must realise that her desire for vengeance is a projection of her own deep-rooted self-hatred. Her arc must move towards unpacking her feelings and trauma so she can be at peace with herself and allow space for love in her heart. Because as we saw in Ep5, Mizu had come extremely close to achieving peace and joy, as she had not only loved Mikio, but also had briefly believed that Mikio had loved her (and accepted her for who she is) as well.

Thus, assuming the story is not planned as a tragedy, Mizu will likely end up getting her vengeance, but it will not satisfy her, because it is not what she needs. What she needs is to let go of the Onryo within her and to reconcile both The Ronin and The Bride within herself, as she is both a fighter and a lover, but not a monster.

(Edit: I recommend checking out this post by @stylographic-blue-rhapsody for a much clearer analysis about Mizu'a symbolism as Ronin, Bride and Onryo!)

And now that we've mostly covered each of the characters individually, we can finally get to the main point of this post: the love triangle.

--

Let's talk about Option A: Akemi.

As I covered extensively earlier, Mizu and Akemi are foils, a yin-yang pair. But while they play off each other very well in a thematic sense, I personally believe that a serious romance between them will be more complicated if they become endgame. This is because Akemi's natural resolution is to embrace a position of power and influence, where she has both freedom and control over herself and to make much-needed changes in a prejudiced society. Meanwhile, Mizu's natural resolution is the opposite; her happy ending would to find a peaceful life where she is safe and free from prying eyes, and able to be her true self.

Thus, it would make very little sense for Akemi to forfeit power and run away with Mizu and start a humble life together. Akemi wants to be great, and that is absolutely what she deserves. On the other end of the spectrum, it would also make little sense for Mizu to dedicate her life in service of Akemi, such as acting as a bodyguard or something similar, because a life in a palace full of court intrigue and conspiracies is far from what Mizu needs to be happy.

With that being said, if Mizu/Akemi is endgame, and assuming their overarching character arcs do not shift directions, their love story would likely be either tragic, doomed, or bittersweet. I do absolutely love this type of story because personally I'm a sucker for catharsis, so it would be very interesting if the writers do decide to take this route.

Also, as a note, please do not take this as me dunking on this pairing. This is just my personal opinion and analysis and I completely understand if you disagree!

--

Then, of course, we have Option B: Taigen.

Between Akemi and Mizu, Taigen is a bit of a free-floater here, because Season 1 leaves off at a point where his arc is very ambiguous as to where it's headed. While Akemi climbs for greatness and Mizu goes on a journey across the ocean to (presumably) discover more about her heritage, we have little clues about where Taigen is headed. And if I'm being honest, I'm sure he has no idea either! He still hasn't reclaimed his honour, so he would be unable to rejoin the Shindo Dojo; he's been rejected by Akemi; and while he showed loyalty to the shogun, the shogun is now dead, and all the shogun's men who had witnessed his "humiliating" death were left to die by Lady Itoh, who is now pulling the strings within the palace.

Therefore, Taigen has very few options here.

And when considering his role in the story is as Mizu's begrudging ally, his arc will undoubtedly be focused on unlearning his xenophobia and misogyny, the latter of which we have not seen yet, but is surely present. Now, whether he will do this in Mizu's presence or absence will be unknown until we see Season 2. Following the Season 1 finale, he might return to Kohama and wait for Mizu there as he learns humility and remorse over his past cruelty; or maybe he will follow Mizu to London, and the two of them will continue to butt heads until he finally admits to himself that he cares for Mizu more than he would like to admit. There is no room for doubt that his growing feelings for Mizu are more-than-platonic, because we all saw him get turned on by sparring with her in Ep7 lol. Thus, regardless of the exact choice he makes, I am sure that his overall arc will be focused on redeeming his character.

Now, when it comes go redeeming him, I know there are many who simply don't want him redeemed because he was such a jerk to Mizu, and while yes I agree he was awful, I do believe there is also nuance to his character.

Previously I've discussed in great detail the colour and elemental symbolism with Mizu and Akemi, but have yet to touch on how they relate to Taigen. So, let's talk about that for a second.

While Akemi is red and Mizu is blue, Taigen is green.

Green is a complementary colour to Akemi's red. Complementary colours are directly opposite each other in the colour wheel; when mixed, they neutralise each other, but when put side-by-side, they form a pleasing and impactful contrast that boosts the brightness and prominence of both colours. This mirrors Taigen and Akemi's relationship. They are an "ideal" pair because they complement each other very well, and bring out each other's most prominent traits. Mizu's comment about their similar "brattiness" comes to mind here.

Green is also an analogous colour with Mizu's blue. These colours are sitting right next to each other on the colour wheel; their natural similarity makes it easy for them to form a cohesive overall appearance, but using both in equal amounts will make a design overwhelming and too busy. Thus, the best way to use analogous colours is to make one the dominant colour, while the other will serve as an accent. I feel this also speaks to the dynamic in Taigen and Mizu's relationship. They came from the space place, both from nothing; they're both strong fighters who love the sport, and work well together when fighting side-by-side; however, they butt heads too easily, mirroring how analogous colours can be too overwhelming when used in equal amounts. Thus, to work together in harmony, one has to be the dominant colour, while the other serves as the accent. In this case, the dominant force would be Mizu, as she is the protagonist of the story, while the accent would be Taigen.

By fulfilling this role as an "accent" to Mizu, Taigen's character would easily be slotted in as a the love interest. This is in contrast with a Mizu/Akemi relationship, whereby Akemi is Mizu's foil before she is Mizu's love interest. This is because, by being a love interest, a character usually takes a backseat in the story, serving the plot and the themes by playing a purely supportive role, and this is not possible in Akemi's case because her character exists to parallel and contrast Mizu (red and blue), and not to support her.

It is possible to serve as a supporting love interest in Taigen's case however. And this is because he, unlike the other characters, does not currently have a definitive place within the story. He initially served the plot as an antagonistic force, but now as he is slowly unlearning his prejudices and becoming a better person, he can no longer serve the story by acting purely as a rival.

Instead, he will serve the story by literally supporting Mizu. And this relates to Taigen being earth, which is steady, firm and reliable, unwavering in loyalty and principles, hardworking and rooted in stability, which is seen in Taigen's staunch and inflexible obedience to the traditions and rules of society. These traits are what make him a perfect samurai, but not a good man. However, unlike most people in their world, Taigen is still capable of change and redemption, which is why Mizu says that he has the potential to be great. Not great by way of power or glory, but great in character. Already, he is honourable to a fault, and does not betray Mizu even after she technically robbed him of everything he was striving towards. And when he was shot by an arrow in the chasm, he did not hesitate a second to tell Mizu to use him as a human shield and save herself.

The trigger for his redemption is Mizu. If she had never beat him in that duel, Taigen would live on to become a man like Akemi's father. Cruel, power-hungry, controlling, conservative. But through Mizu, Taigen's sharp edges are ground down, much like water that wears down the stones in a river.

Where Mizu and Akemi's possible love story would be a clash of wills, full of passion and even heartbreak, a possible love story between Mizu and Taigen would be the wearing down of souls. Mizu would make Taigen a better person, and in turn Taigen would dedicate his full respect and support to Mizu as his equal, thus getting her to slowly open up and love herself. Already, Taigen has grown enough to admit (begrudgingly, and in his own Taigen way) that Mizu is better than him; though, clearly, he still has a long way to go, as he still calls Mizu a demon shortly after that.

But basically, Taigen is a very simple man (his main goal now is "to be happy"), and Mizu has great depths that he cannot yet fathom. For this love story to work, it has to begin with Taigen changing for the better. If he succeeds in that, and is able to accept Mizu for all her complexities, I believe that they will make a formidable pair. And though he'd likely still throw a jab or snarky remark at Mizu every now and then, I think he'd come tl wholeheartedly admire Mizu as a brilliant swordsman and a kind soul. Thus, should things work out and this be endgame, Taigen would be able to provide Mizu with what Mikio could not: an idyllic life that is not built on a lie, but mutual trust, respect, admiration, and equality.

Or hey, maybe they could both make their own dojo together! I don't know.

(Edit: This post by @rinandsketches does a great job at delving into Taigen's character and a potential Mizu/Taigen relationship if you'd like to read more about this angle!)

--

Now, as I move on from Taigen, there are a couple more options on how to resolve this love triangle and that includes Option C: Ringo.

In this option, Mizu does not have an endgame romance with either Akemi or Taigen. In this route, she finds peace and love through friendship, solidarity, and a found family between herself, Ringo and Master Eiji—a bunch of outcasts in society who make a strong trifecta of sword-makers.

Also, as an aside while I'm talking about Ringo, I'd like to point out that I believe his element is air and his colour is a neutral grey; he is talkative, easy-going, wise, curious, light on his feet (stealthy) and free-spirited, which are all traits linked to air, and traits that complement Mizu nicely, as he is capable of getting Mizu to open up and trust others again, while Mizu helps him reach his true potential for greatness.

--

And finally, there's Option D: Polyamory.

This is basically an "all of the above" option, in which everyone wins and it's a super duper happy ending. It would also be awesome to get some polyamorous representation, and seeing the dynamic between Akemi/Mizu/Taigen play out would be very entertaining and refreshing. So, you never know, this just might be the true endgame!

--

AAAAND with that, I close my extremely long analysis of what is essentially Mizu's love life. Whatever the final outcome of this love triangle though, I just hope it will be well-written and satisfying to all the characters' respective arcs. (Also I just want Mizu to be HAPPY goddamn it because she deserves the world and her coochie eaten out)

Now, I highly doubt anyone will read any of this (especially not until the end!) but that's fine. I just have so many thoughts and feelings about this show and I just needed to get this out of my system lol! But if by some miracle you did read this far, I wholeheartedly welcome any sharing of thoughts and ideas because man am I obsessed with this show! But of course, if we have an opposing opinions, please be respectful when letting me know; I am very open to friendly discussions.

[disappointmentthemusical]

"Mainstream gender" as a system of oppression.

Imagine mainstream gender as a line. On one end of the line is "man," and on the other end is "woman" – this is the gender binary. The connecting line itself is representative, loosely, of "non-binary" gender. (I think this image is suitable, and if others disagree, I think that's more representative of how arbitrarily the binary is defined, rather than this image of it.)

This gender spectrum, dubbed "mainstream gender" because it's what the institutions of society use, only applies to certain groups – the group that controls it, really. White people.

Black people cannot access mainstream gender because they are barred from it via hyper-masculinization that borders on animalization. Black men are viewed as hyper-aggressive and predatory. To the white masses, the concept of "soft" Black masculinity is as real as the transatlantic slave trade (i.e., vague notions of it existing, but no personal experience with the implications, so it floats in the periphery until it's brought up again by a Black person). Black women, regardless of how much they lean into "traditional" femininity, will never be viewed as feminine. Black women will always be viewed as loud, aggressive and "man-ish," the latter contributing to transphobia that impacts both black trans women and black cis women.

By contrast, East Asians are hyper-feminized. East Asian men are stereotyped as soft and small and are portrayed as having little sexual appeal (and those who are viewed as sexually desirable are seen as exceptions to the mainstream; sexy despite their femininity). East Asian women are equally unable to escape femininity and are hyper-feminized to the point of infantilisation, both of which contribute to hyper-sexualization and fetishization. The hyper-femininization of East Asian people also lends itself to transphobia targeted at East Asian trans men (recall: the 2016/17 obsession with smol bois).

But not only is mainstream gender a tool of white supremacy, it also (obviously) is inherent to patriarchy (or, patriarchy is inherent to mainstream gender).

The binary is defined and propagated by men. So while all gender rules are arbitrary and constantly changing, "man" is always strictly defined, and the relief of "man" becomes "woman." This is evident both in masculinity being viewed as "gender neutral," as well as the sense of authority men feel over women's gender, commenting on makeup, how women dress, etc. As a result, the gender "woman" is inherently centered around "man."

In de-centering men, lesbians lack the rules to adhere to mainstream gender. That is why lesbianism is often described as a gender experience because lesbians operate on a new gender spectrum, specific to lesbians.

However, different from race, sexuality is not a visible barrier, and it can take work to exit from mainstream gender. Terf "lesbians" are not lesbians because they cling to the relief of "man" to define their gender; they're gay women. Similarly, white lesbians who prioritize their whiteness will continue to exist within mainstream gender. This also explains why white non-binary people are "like that." While they do not adhere to the binary of "man" and "woman," in participating in the system of whiteness, they remain within the confines of mainstream gender.

[girldirectionfest]

For the first time since winter 2020, Girl Direction fest is BACK!!

Prompt submission form

Submitted prompt list

Author sign-up form

Rules:

►Participants must be 18+

►Any and all pairings are allowed, so long as at least one person in the pairing is a One Direction member

►This is a girl!Direction fic fest, so the pairings must be f/f (or f/f/f/f/f!). We feel we shouldn’t have to mention this, but just in case there is any confusion, trans women characters are more than welcome, as are non-binary and he/him lesbian characters. 

►Prompts will be assigned as they are claimed

►Authors do not have to choose a prompt and may write a fic of their own

►There are no word count requirements

►This is NOT an anonymous fest, please feel free to share snippets and tag @girldirectionfest in your posts

►Fics will not be moderated for content, but authors are expected to tag appropriately

►While I prefer authors don't use AI art, I won't be policing fic posts. Please do NOT put any AI generated work onto ao3.

►Completed fics are due Friday November 22nd by midnight PST **note new deadline**

►Posting will begin Monday, December 2nd

[dalekowrites]

How can anyone live like this? It’s a question you ask yourself often—and for good reason. In this interactive fiction, you play as a character navigating a dystopian world where gender is binary, assigned at birth, and non-negotiable, and where only heterosexual marriage is allowed.

Over the course of six decades, you’ll have to survive in a society determined to break your spirit and force you to conform—something you refuse to do. Instead, your mission is to fight for the rights of marginalized communities, as well as your own.

Notes & Mechanics:

An LGBTQIA+ themed interactive fiction written by an LGBTQIA+ author! ♥

Play as male, female, nonbinary, or anything else; intersex or not; gay, lesbian, bi, straight, aro, or ace!

Find love and take things to a super steamy level... or don't! Surround yourself with friends if you want to. Or do both—find your tribe and thrive!

In the beginning, everything is terrible. Society is hostile, oppressive, and downright terrifying. But this is where YOU step in—your goal is to change the world and strive for utopia!

Features nearly 30 different stats tracking a broad spectrum of rights, from marriage equality and healthcare access to anti-amatonormativity laws!

Over 240 planned scenes for maximum replayability (yes, it’s going to be massive!)

Seven distinct endings—can you achieve the best one? ;-)

Hope Abides is a Patreon Exclusive and launches on September 19th!

[alinahdee]

I saw this making the rounds on Twitter and decided to make it a proper challenge:

Since it's the end of October, I'm going to begin this year with November. So here is the challenge:

NOVEMBER - INDIGENOUS LITERATURE

DECEMBER - LESBIAN / WLW AUTHORS

JANUARY - BIRACIAL / MULTIRACIAL AUTHORS

FEBRUARY - BLACK LITERATURE

MARCH - LATINX LITERATURE

APRIL - GAY / MLM AUTHORS

MAY - ASIAN LITERATURE

JUNE - TRANS AUTHORS

JULY - ARAB / MUSLIM LITERATURE

AUGUST - INDIAN / HINDU LITERATURE

SEPTEMBER - NON-BINARY AUTHORS

OCTOBER - JEWISH /HEBREW LITERATURE

This can be novels, entire series, poems, essays, etc, just as long as it fits the criteria.

Share what you are reading, share what authors you've fallen in love with, tell us all about something new you've learned, etc.

[clowncaraz]

transandrophobia draws blood.

Azriel Pierce is a afro-latino transmascfem kafin who goes by they/them. Kafin is a gender label that does not fit into the binary, nonbinary, abinary or others and therefore can only be described by one’s self or personality.

the label of transandrophobia.

transandrophobia, the result of trans + androphobia, is broadly known as the fear of masculinity and manhood present in genderqueer people (masculine nbys, masculine intersex people, butches/studs/dykes/masculine women, trans men, transmascs). it was first described by a trans man of color named Saint in 2017.

i tend to include masc women/butches/dykes/studs in this because transandrophobia is known to not be used as an opposite to transmisogyny or a gender specific term for just men. it is quite literally a form of oppression against masculinity and manhood that is not cis, het or non-queer, and inherently includes masculine women because TERFism often uses radical feminism to attack queerness— often denying masc women their womanhood and trying to separate it from their identity and presentation to imply they’re “secretly men”.

we have now established that these identities are inherently affected by transandrophobia:

masculine nbys

masculine women

butches/studs/dykes

transmascs

trans men

masculine intersex people

so transandrophobia can be experienced based on the culutral views of masculinity or suppression of trans manhood for the recreation of cis womanhood in men. this can include corrective rape and sexual assault, transandrophobic medical abuse and mistreatment of transmasc bodies, the refusal to provide life-saving testosterone when eligible, social settings being hostile to queermasculine people, butches of any kind being refused lesbianism or harassment in bathrooms for appearance, and so on.

this statistic from The Trevor Project’s 2023 U.S. National Survey on the Mental Health of LGBTQ Young People, revealing that transmascs/trans men and nonbinary people (followed by those gender questioning) are more likely to suffer from forced sexual contact.

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/research-briefs/sexual-violence-and-suicide-risk-among-lgbtq-young-people/

what comprises transandrophobia is androphobia and sexism.

all these people will experience sexism in unique ways that cannot be called transmisogyny due to the nature of attacking their masculinity first and foremost, then their assigned sex next. when said masculinity is attacked, TERFs will use that to deny them the right to it on the basis of their sex traits. an intersex man can’t be a man because they happen to have a body that is not perisex, therefore, the limits to their manhood is applied by reducing them to an object or a “disorder”. alongside intersexism, that is transandrophobia.

androphobia is the fear of manhood and the patriarchy, and when transmasculine individuals experience this, it becomes the fear of queerness that develops into “freeform masculinity”, bridging away from the commonly seen toxic and patriarchal masculinity and into it’s own category — something of a “cenntriarchal” form (cenn- from “cennend”, meaning parent).

the cenntriarchy does not refer to a specific gender or group as the head of a family, nor does it imply that those in the authority are all of one gender. instead, it is used to describe when those of any authority are of any gender and therefore would create societies that are diverse enough to allow men, women, nbys, thirds, and others to be centered at the foundation rather than behind women/men. this would challenge the ideas of what masculinity, femininity, and androgyny are supposed to look like or how they act in society because it features different cultures and religions.there is the belief that trans men and transmascs have the ability to uphold patriarchal forms of masculinity the moment they are men, which is a false statement created to “pin the patriarchy on the mule”. in this world, a hybrid is not considered to be as good as a horse — even if that horse is not purebred. cis masculinity will always be more valuable than trans masculinity and trans men cannot benefit from a concept that believes them to only be their sex traits and never their self. there is only one way masculinity can survive in queer spaces without the dominance of manhood, and that is the cenntriarchy allowing the possibility for everyone to contribute as the authority over their own rights regardless of gender.

standing by transmasculinity.

a common pushback against transandrophobia seems to be the idea that trans men are just transitioning towards cis manhood, as if they’re not men yet. they aren’t women, but they aren’t men either, so they stay in the gray zone of being defined by their agab or their sex traits.

the isolation of manhood from transness is a tactic used to correctly gender trans men without having to acknowledge their gender as being related to trans manhood, even if that fear is towards those who uphold the patriarchy — which trans men, by identity, do not fit in the patriarchy. when trans men and cis men are perceived as the same type of manhood, the assumption becomes that trans men are of the patriarchal system instead of being completely outside of it.

Saint has stated that “transandrophobia is the way that the fear of men impacts the material reality and mental/physical health of transgender men.” he has said that transandrophobia is not simply when a transmasculine person experiences misogyny or sexism, given that everyone experiences it, but that it is when the queermasculine identity is faced with trouble, hardship, oppression, or hatred because of said relation of manhood.

to put it simply, the irrational fear and subsequent hatred of transmasculinity and trans manhood. that is a broad definition of transandrophobia amongst all others.no one hates cis men for being men, it is hate of their ability to use their cis status and patriarchal power. cis manhood is preferred, actually, it is widely accepted, it is “natural”.. trans men on the other hand don’t have those privleges, and are hated for being failed cis men and confused women, who are then hated for being related to cis men by being men incorrectly.

even being in proximity to transmasculinity has comments like “kill all men”, and “why would you want to be a man?” thrown your way or in the direction you walk towards.

those who are interested in separating the transmasc community into halves of cliques and discrediting POC in the creation of transandrophobia terminology and discussion will also forget that many of the ones speaking about transmasc oppression are of color. they whitewash our terms, then our community.

https://www.tumblr.com/killjoycatlady/726305694582751232/doberbutts-is-a-black-trans-man-who-has-spoken?source=share

most known critics of transandrophobia are the most exclusionary radical-leaning trans queers who have fallen to TIRFism and Baeddelism.

those who engage in Baeddelism/TIRFism also have a habit of ignoring transmasc struggles, or claiming that our invisibility is easier to handle. this is not the case, given that transmascs have the highest suicide rates since last year.

to me, Baeddelism/TIRFism isn’t protecting trans women, trans men, nonbinary, and other queers from harm but actively allowing it to fester through discourse and strife. there is no protection for us and there is no language for us to use in order to convey our pain that isn’t refused or called a “copy” of transmisogyny to indicate that men are oppressed.

the denial of transandrophobia does not directly cause these deaths, this suffering, but it restricts the way we can communicate how transmascs are dealing with this pain of being left out of our own communities, our identities, our literature, our ability to be seen.

we do not want hypervisibility, we want help surviving.

[sapphicbookclub]

Author Spotlight: Talia Bhatt

We're excited to highlight Talia Bhatt, author of the current club read Dulhaniyaa. Read on to hear how her identity and experiences informed her writing, and how queer love is a jailbreak.

“Desi trans lesbian” feels, sometimes, like an ephemeral identity.

I am situated nowhere transhistorically and barely transculturally, having to borrow the language, social trappings, and forms of identification of the nation(s) that colonized and impoverished mine to even express my embodiment and positionality coherently. In a world where Afsaneh Najmabadi can pose the question “Is any one of you a lesbian?” to a room full of Iranian transsexual women and get blank stares, as she relates in Professing Selves, or where Deepa Mehta notes in her groundbreaking lesbian romance Fire that Hindi lacks even a word to express the concept of a woman loving another intimately, romantically, carnally, I am unmoored and unfixed, an anomaly because I dare to imagine my transsexuality independent from men.

“Woman are for men”, assumes every culture with harsh patriarchal contradictions—which does not entirely exclude the West—and trans women doubly so, since the abhorrence of non-heterosexual modes of living and social organization leads many from cultures like mine to presume that a woman would only transition to be with a man. A profound loneliness dogs my very existence, alerting me to the wispy shadows of a shrouded past that barely had a record of women like me prior to the midpoint of the 20th Century, only whispers and rumors and sensationalist gossip scrawled in academic journal by Esther Newton, alluding to the idea of a “man” that, having availed of hormones and surgical interventions, now sleeps with lesbians—the scandal. 

No ancestors that are mine to claim.

Dulhaniyaa is not a particularly melancholy book, though a certain pensiveness pervades the opening chapters. There a story within the story written in subtext, in allusions and word choices and snippets of dialogue, that Esha and Billu and Dolly and others are aware of: my homeland, my motherland, my culture and my nation and my state—it is not a place for queer women. It is certainly, emphatically, not a place for a trans woman who fancies herself still attracted to other women, or even indelibly non-binary in a way. Women like us have no names, no pasts, and almost certainly no futures within the narrow confines of the constructed and stifling heterosexual hegemony.

A reviewer was kind enough to sum up Dulhaniyaa for me better than I ever could, stating triumphantly that “Queer love is a jailbreak.” It’s a quote that has stuck with me both for how simply it states a core theme that I certainly labored to convey without necessarily consciously meaning to, as well as for how profoundly vast and unencompassable the prison I find myself in is. My shackles are Time and Language itself, my cell the land I was born in, my wardens its people. I am a refugee in a sense that many, many queer and especially trans people tend to be, evicted and disowned and erased from hearth and homeland.

I wrote Dulhaniyaa because someone broke me out of that cell. She saw the woman I was as well as the woman I could be, and helped me bridge the gap between the two. She is now my wife.

Queer love is a jailbreak. Get your pickaxes ready.

[littlegrrl7]

Click here for more details!

Cover art by @madbrake

Please share to your favorite writers and authors!

Submission Guidelines

 What we want: Bring us your pirates, mermaids, sea witches, selkies, sea nymphs, cecaelias, and krakens. We’re looking for Sapphic* fantasy tales that explore love on the high seas. If it’s Sapphic fantasy and aquatic, we want to see it!

 All levels of fantasy are fine, low (magical realism) to high (epic fantasy).

 Happily Ever After or Happy For Now ending required. No cliffhangers, please.

 Co-authors are welcome.

 *We define sapphic as an umbrella term that encompasses lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, and queer women, and is inclusive of trans women, non-binary people, and cis women. 

 Heat levels: No erotica, but we are open to all heat levels (from sweet to spicy)

 What we DON’T want: No triggering subjects such as on-page non-consensual sex, incest, and excessive gore. Subjects like racism, homophobia, transphobia, religion, discrimination of any kind, and anything else otherwise triggering or hurtful must be challenged on-page in a conscientious way. 

 Submissions Open: June 1, 2023 – November 30, 2023

 Title: The Pull of the Tide

 Type: Anthology of short stories

 Length: 4k – 20k words

 Publication: e-book and print