🌈 LGBT+ OCs discussion thread

Posted 5 years, 4 months ago (Edited 3 years, 11 months ago) by fuelli

Hi! Following some discussion in the "TH pet peeves" thread, I've decided to create a discussion thread specifically dedicated to discussion around LGBT+ OCs. This is not a "show me..." thread (I'm sure there's plenty of these in Character Discussion already), it's a thread where you can share your thoughts or ask for advice!

Share your thoughts: Ramble about your experience with LGBT+ OCs and give ideas and tips to other OCs creators! Venting about negative experiences or tropes is allowed, but try to be constructive! Talk about things you want someone with an LGBT+ character to explore, how this character could be more relatable or realistic, or how a character that fits a caricature or stereotype could be given more depth.

Ask for advice: Share your character ideas or profiles and ask for feedback, or ask a more specific question about something you're unsure about! However, please try to make research before posting, as there are lots of resources and tips available already. LeoLeonis has created a Google Doc masterlist listing all topics that have already been mentioned and info that has been given on here; give it a look if you have doubts! I'll try to keep it as up-to-date as possible.

Feel free to ping me if things heat up or if anything needs to be added in the OP. Have fun, and please keep things civil ♥


Similar threads on different themes:

GalacticNebula

Hey there! Trans guy here, going to have my surgery in a month!


I have a character who I love to bits, and I have put a lot of thought into, but he gets misgendered a lot because he has... long hair. It's rather annoying. Also; people don't understand he is not a buff male. He sort of is like me in that aspect, I am a soft boy; regardless of what T has done to me, I still take it but.. Aaah, I wanted some thoughts on my boyo Gervasii? I know my boyfriend loves him to bits, and I just.. HNNN, I want to make sure I am doing things right. I used my own experiences with family and stuff.

https://toyhou.se/2867959.-gervasii-zima-

ONE THING THAT ANNOYS ME, when people draw LGBT characters and they use slurs??? D-on't do that. I have had to avoid a lot of artists bc of that. Vasii, has not gotten the bottom stuff done, and neither have I. The dangers of it keep me from doing it, and honestly that... part doesn't make me feel dysphoric so I add it to my characters who are trans, (A lot of them are.) And I am just wondering, am I wrong for doing that? I feel like, he is just a walking fetish because of.. like.. that. //motions which he's not?? I don't know, I saw LGBT+ Oc thread and kinda jumped in.


Angry-Moth-Noises

SqueakyBats

I don't get how people could misgender him. Profile says he is male, looks like a male. 

As for having trans characters that are only that way? I would say no, your not. Sense your projecting onto your OCs. But at the same times I think if people are going to have many OCs of one minority its important to have diversity in that minority. As not everyone is the same. So in my personal opinion you should diverse your trans characters more, I don't think your fetishizing them. I feel if you were fetishzing them then all your trans characters would be made for porn or over exaggerated.

zinnia

k so like im gonna go on an unintelligible tangent because its vaguely related and its smthng that makes me really mad ! and i gotta rant. idk if this is really the appropriate place so lmk if im like too angry sounding ;w;

all under spoiler for transphobia / mentions of nsfw stuff its me ranting about fetishization, anything semi-explicit is blacked.

so like, ive only seen it like twice here thank GOD but you know what really really pisses me off!!!! how commonplace fetishization of trans women/intersex people is!!!! like, it god so bad on dA to a point where i had to remove any trace of one of my trans gal ocs (i got watched by some gross people, and had some rando literally go up to me and be like 'so i heard you're not afraid of drawing futa... draw my futa please?' LIKE????? WHAT THE HELL BRO???? funny thing was in the description of things i said 'no transphobic bullshit' AND YET,

the trend of futa/futanari is gross and i really shouldnt have to explain why? it's like "oh see how WIERD and DIRTY a girl with a penis is? *proceeds to dehumanize the character and compare them to a sex toy*" and the fact that a mindset like that is so widespread is really disgusting! not to mention that they just fetishize the concept of that,ssentially photo-shopping a dick onto generic anime girl, but when met with like, actual trans people they show disgust. like..... im not sure if im getting my mind across right but the whole trend is essentially about fetishizing the idea of trans women but hating actual trans women, and is one of the many reasons i hate sweaty anime nerds. same goes for calling them 'traps' which is a literal real idea that gets real trans women killed, and the fact that this is all a fetish for them? its disgusting! 

its also the case for intersex people, people fetishize the concept of it but think actual intersex people/characters are gross. not 2 mention these people's idea of what intersex people look like is grossly inaccurate (i.e. woman with huge boobs and a dong copy and pasted on or something. like they didnt even google it and use the word instersex as a scapegoat)

like, you can make trans and intersex characters and you can have them be in nsfw situations! but you also need to treat them like you'd treat the rest of your characters and not like a sex object!.

and like, im really relieved that most of the trans ladies and intersex characters ive seen here are good and respectfully written!! it's such a problem in other areas of the internet that it's a breath of fresh air honestly

tldr fetishization makes me very mad and that turned out longer than i intended LOL

tdlr tdlr: transphobia bad

dont worry @ ppl here im not talking about any of yall, more just a whole issue/trope/whatever that i really, really hate

mmechanicat

SqueakyBats zinnia BIG AGREE WITH BOTH OF YOU re: people using fetishistic slurs abt trans/intersex characters. it's the worst to browse through characters and see them tagged with super gross slurs :/ it makes me instantly uncomfortable and suspicious around the creator

i've done webcomics for a long time and one of the most frustrating thing is how much misgendering you get when you're putting characters out in such a public forum. like the two cis female main characters in my last comic would get misgendered, so it makes me really really nervous when i'm putting out new projects that have main trans characters(like half of the characters in my upcoming project are trans/nb). i'm trying to combat that by establishing pronouns very visibly asap so there's no ambiguity. i'm prob going to have name+pronoun tags every time a new character is introduced. one of the main characters is nonbinary and uses he/him pronouns so i'm still working on a good way to communicate that early on so readers will know clearly. i'm queer and 95% of my characters are too, and even tho their stories are very much genre fiction, it's important to me that readers know going in that the cast is lgbt+

heshestar

Well, the truth is that I don't have problems with my characters, only sometimes I do not know if I can do the reaction of others knowing that they are part of LGBTQ+ since there are many opinions ... the good thing is that it is like being a heterosexual couple (?) That is, there is nothing out of the ordinary and that makes it very simple. In addition, they are the most loved from my followers even though many do not even know they are LGBTQ+

Memesogic

I have been very hesistant to write a post here, since I am not exactly trans nor consider myself in the LGBT community ( I am very..bi-curious ) but I am supportive of the community. I’ve been trying to write LGBT characters, especially ones whose stories aren’t focused on their sexuality or gender identity, but I’m struggling to have more ideas for them.

I have to admit that most of my characters are heterosexual or bisexual. Bisexual, due to my anger on the biphobia around real, canon bisexual females and calling them lesbian and as mention, I’m still thinking whenever I’m straight or bisexual.

I want to write some “bad” ones, more specifically villains. Problem is, I’m scared that people will label me as homophobic or transphobic because the certain character is a bad guy rather than personality.

I understand this isn’t a huge problem, but I need some advice on topics like this.

FrankensteinLabs

Memesogic I had a similar issue, but the solution is simple; have BOTH kinds of rep. By this, I mean have an LGBTQAP+ character whos a villain by all means; but also have a queer good guy!! 

A lot of us actually identify with more evil, monstorous characters because of how society paints us. (for me personally, its like.... most pokemon villains I relate to and stuff)

But with villains, also think how their identity would shape their actions. perhaps they view themselves as the bad guy because of socital standards and use it as a way to hate themselves, being a supervillain because of that. or maybe theyre just actually a bad person, unrelated to their identity. 

I would just include positive rep as well!

Bunny_Side_Up

tbh just all my characters are some way of Lgbt+, there is not a single completely straight character in my life at the moment.. and i just like it that way. 

every one of my characters is pretty much an extended part of myself in one way or another, so all of them are just bisexual on default, some are Ace aswell a few are gay and i do have atleast one character that is vaguely non-binary but not really.. he just flies around somewhere in the middle. (mostly because he can just change his sex when ever he so damn pleases, he is a fae so i thought it would just fit)

for me it's literally just about having my own representation the way i like it!

 

now one thing that does frustrate me tho.. people missgendering my characters even thought they have their pronounces pretty clear for everyone to see on their profile.. like it doesn't take a lot to look at that

Yeri Angry-Moth-Noises

Lately, I seem to be having a hard time picking my character's sexuality. Before it would come to me and it was so easy for me to pick. Now, half the time it feels like my characters don't have a sexuality. Or like... They come off straight, but I want them to by gay. But the character doesn't seem Bisexual or Pansexual. I have a character who is questioning, but characters like Yeri.. Even though I know he has a preference, the character just feels like I can't put a label on them?

As a gay man with most male characters, only one character I made this year I went into making him all ready with the idea that he was a closet gay. Most my other characters I just cant find a label to put on them and its a bit frustrating because then if I want to ship them I don't know what to do. Don't mind my rambling.

RU-HX

I'm pan/NB and for me having LGBT+ OC's is a representation thing. Around the time I came out it seemed really important to find representation in stuff I liked and I just never found any LGBT+ rep in media genres I enjoyed. I mean good luck finding LGBT+ characters in sci-fi let alone in war drama. I could only find LGBT+ leads in romances and 15 year old me stubbornly didn't see why I should have to watch a genre of film/TV I found boring just to get LGBT+ rep so I started making my own LGBT+ sci-fi and war drama characters and I never stopped. 

I do handle LGBT+ somewhat idealistically because I really don't wanna deal with homophobia in something that's supposed to be escapism. Whilst I have touched on period-typical homophobia and internalized homophobia, dealing with it in my own work is generally a bit too much and it's something I've really gotta be in the right mood to deal with. Especially after the bi-phobia/bi-erasure I've had to deal with a lot lately.

xminheehee

Can a polysexual OC/person in general, be attracted to males, females and nonbinary people only? 

Bunny_Side_Up

aquaticlava

if i understood the concept of polysexual correctly i'd say it is the same as pan or bisexual. you are just attracted to people and don't care what kind of gender they have, it's just another way of saying that

dogstarlite

Most of my OCs are LGBT in some way, although I do have a few token cishets because it amuses me. I also have a large preference for making my OCs bi/pan because I myself am bisexual, lmao.

Let's see, uuuuh. I'm a trans man with little top dysphoria. I usually like my chest, boobs are nice. So I'm gently exploring having some trans male OCs who are also fine with their chests; I just hope people don't get the wrong idea and think it's some fetishy thing. :')

Waltz

(Good thread! My OCs are all very very queer these days, which is probably no surprise because I am too, haha)

I guess this is a good spot to get a second opinion on something I was mulling over. So to preface this I am very close to a lot of trans people, both friends and family. I don't consider myself to be trans because, while I feel a pretty strong disconnect from my assigned gender, my dysphoria is minimal at best (physically anyway, socially is a different matter; but that's beside the point).

I have a favourite character who is a trans guy, who transitioned in his late teens, though ID'd as male since a few years before. Recently however, I wrote a story excerpt about him and his family from when he was very young, before he even realized he was trans. In this particular story I ended up referencing him by his deadname and former pronouns in the narration, because that was how he was known to everyone (including himself) at the time.

I did include a disclaimer in the story to make it clear that this was a unique case and what pronouns he should be properly referred to by, but for folks who experience more dysphoria than I do, I wonder if something like this would still be uncomfortable to read? In the context of the story it made sense, but I would never think to refer to an irl trans person in this way, even in the past tense, so I'm a bit unsure.

Milkweed

Waltz

What is the POV? Is it first person, close third person or distant third person? And is it situated in the past, or is it in the present looking back on the past?