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Beyond the Binary

4/5/2016

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I’m in the midst of reading an interesting article looking magic and gender in the Poetic Edda*, because I am that nerd who reads academic papers on my downtime when I get a chance. I’m not going to discuss the article itself so much, since I’m taking a break from reading it to write this blog post, but one of the points it brings up is fascinating:
"Binarist analysis of gender and Norse magic doesn’t hold up to scrutiny because 'multiple gender conceptions and same-sex relations... are cross-culturally consistent [which defies and] deconstructs the simplistic Western conflation of gender and sex' as simply male/man and female/woman the binary being forced onto the data is a construct that did not exist in the society being analyzed.” ​
In other words, we as modern readers of the Norse myths often impose a strict binary system onto the stories and the society they came from. But the myths aren’t black and white like that, and we have no real reason to believe (extrapolating from the mythology into how the Norse cultures might have worked) that gender roles/presentations and sexualities were simple or binary, either. 

I could get into a fanatical gush about how neat it is that someone’s actually written an academic paper looking at these areas of the mythology that have always fascinated me, but I won’t. Because I could literally talk about this stuff for hours. 

I’ll just leave this with a quick reminder to think about things beyond the binary of male/female (or black/white or straight/gay, or, you know, any other binary system you can think of) when you’re writing. We have a tendency to take the lazy way out and utilize the binary systems we grew up with, partially because they’re easier and partially because we just don’t think about this stuff. But if we as creators want to make things that truly resonate with our audience and represent the world in a realistic way (yes, even if you’re writing fantasy), we need to remember that nothing fits into the nice little binary boxes. 

Let’s build more fictional societies where gender identification and presentation isn’t confined to just ‘male’ or ‘female.’ Let’s create more characters that refuse to stay on a spectrum with only two points. Most of all, let’s stretch ourselves as both creators and human beings, and try to look beyond the false binaries all around us. 
*The Poetic Edda is the main source that has survived for pre-Christan (debatably) Norse mythology. Often paired with the Prose Edda, which was written to discuss the myths in terms of writing Skaldic poetry. 
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Comic Gush: Monstress #1

11/24/2015

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I've decided to do "Comic Gushes" instead of series reviews, because it's way more fun to recommend things I'm totally in love with.

Let me start out by saying I adore a lot of things Image Comics is doing. Saga, Rat Queens, and now Monstress are among my all-time top favorite comics (the other one being The Sandman, from Vertigo).

From the Image website: "In Monstress, steampunk meets Kaiju in an alternate 1900s Asia, where a teenage girl named Maika begins to unravel her mysterious past, and in the process discovers a psychic connection to a powerful otherworldly creature, one of many that roam the earth—a connection that will transform them both, and make them the target of both human and otherworldly powers..."

If that doesn't at least sound intriguing to you, I don't know what to tell you!

Sana Takeda's artwork is breathtakingly beautiful, from the raw emotion on Maika's face to the rich backgrounds. Majorie Liu's writing builds this magical world with just the right blend of overt worldbuilding and continuing mystery to make me crave more. Together, I'm pretty sure these two are going to be unstoppable.

The pros:
  • Gorgeous artwork and intriguing writing
  • A WoC amputee protagonist and mainly PoC cast
  • A triple-sized first issue!
  • Characters I'm already seriously invested in
  • Unique, beautiful character designs


The cons:
  • I need more right now
  • A little NSFW--tasteful nudity, blood/violence, mention of cannibalism, etc. (aka, it might be trigger-heavy for some)

Monstress #1 is now available from Image Comics. Pick up your copy today!

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Why I Write Queer Characters

2/9/2015

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A few weeks ago, I had a conversation with my mother about why I write queer characters. It’s been kind of bugging me over the last few days that I felt so caught off-guard by the question. Why do I write queer characters? 

The simple answer is that representation is important. I believe this very strongly, and I will argue it with anyone who says it isn’t. Representation for any minority group is important.

My friend and Beyond the Trope co-host, Michelle, talked about it today on the podcast blog, with an emphasis on racebent Hermione Granger and this incredible quote about how harmful it can be to deny people mirrors and representations of themselves. She sums it up much better than I can here.

And I feel the same way. How many kids grew up not seeing themselves in books or movies or television? How many of those kids are still struggling with that in adulthood? Isn’t it time we stepped up to the plate and gave them characters who look or think or feel the same ways? 

I think it is. I think it’s time we move toward making the diverse book conversation no longer necessary, because white, straight, middle-class male is no longer the absolute default. We’ve made a lot of progress in bringing more female voices into fiction (though we still have a long way to go, especially in comics and video games), but those voices still tend to be filtered through specific racial, religious, and sexuality lenses. 

They say that every story has been told before. But wouldn’t bringing in more voices and viewpoints help recreate those stories in new, unique ways--and possibly even bring in brand new narratives? 

So, I guess, that’s why I write GLBTQ characters in my fiction as often as I possibly can. It’s why I’m doing my best to include more racial diversity, as well, and exploring religious diversity and mental or physical disabilities for certain characters and stories. I feel like I owe it to the future audience of my books to stretch myself and challenge my own unconscious biases (because everyone has them). 

It’s not easy, having this conversation and intentionally setting out to write diverse characters in a world still filled with homophobia, transphobia, biphobia, racism, ableism, and more. I’ll admit I’ve had moments of crippling terror that I’m not doing it right, or that writing queer characters will only paint me into a niche that no one wants to read. 

But that’s not a reason not to try. The fact that I--and probably other authors--can feel self-conscious about writing diverse characters is a sign in itself that we need more stories about marginalized groups. And I, for one, am going to try and get over that fear of telling people what I write to help get these narratives out in the world. 

For those interested, I’m co-presenting an entire workshop on writing queer characters on February 21st, through the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers! 
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    Emily K. Singer

    Author of speculative fiction featuring GLBTQ characters. Co-host of the Beyond the Trope podcast and co-writer of the Parmeshen webcomic. Unapologetic comic, mythology, and word nerd.

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