Things to Avoid When Crafting Trans & Non-Binary Characters

No matter what genre you're writing in, stories can tackle the topic of gender. Gender comes up in all writing because we all write “he,” “she,” “they,” etc. There is an increasing amount of literature touching on these topics thanks to the growing openness of our world. However, there is the concern of tackling trans and non-binary individuals through story. So, as writers, how can we create such characters?

Today's writer warnings is going to cover what to stay away from when writing trans and non-binary characters.

What to Avoid When Crafting Trans & Non-Binary Characters:

• Do NOT conflate gender, sexuality, or sex.

• Do NOT stick to the “this LGBTQ+ character is sad” because people are people, and as such, there is a lot that goes into a well-rounded human being. People are happy, people are sad, people are emotional beings. We’re human beings. Thus, treat members/characters of the LGBTQ+ community the same way.

• People within the LGBTQ+ community are more than their gender, sexuality, or sex. That means, human beings are complicated, which means characters should be complicated, too. There’s not one issue with one individual. There’s not one characteristic about one individual. Write well-rounded characters. A lot of aspects contribute to a well-rounded human being. All of this will still apply to an LGBTQ+ individual character. As a writer, you wouldn’t focus on one aspect of a character’s life, so don’t do this with LGBTQ+ characters.

Hope this helps some of you moving forward in your writing journey! 🤎

Xo,

Ashley