Women of Authors' Hangout... And men...

[Voboy]

I'm curious... Those that write multiple characters in multiple genders, especially first person... Do the voices in your head change when you shift POV? And if you're switching from male to female, does the way you feel internally when presenting the characters change.

Interesting question; I hadn't thought about it much.

My internal monologue is the same either way. I don't think I really "hear it" in a gendered voice; the words just sorta rise up, and there's no differentiation whether I'm writing male or female POV in FP. In TP, the "voice" is, if anything, even more disembodied. I do sometimes "hear" dialogue in my mind's ear, but not too often.

I'll listen more closely next time.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

I'm curious... Those that write multiple characters in multiple genders, especially first person... Do the voices in your head change when you shift POV? And if you're switching from male to female, does the way you feel internally when presenting the characters change.

It does for me, but that may be do to where and how I do or don't fit on the gender spectrum. just curious if other 'binary' writers experience the same things...

I feel less difference switching from male to female than from, say, kinky to vanilla, or Brit to Irish to American. But then I've never identified as having any gender and can imagine myself in any sex body equally easily. Until I work out what makes a character different from any of my others (most difficult with Rachel and Laura, both tall, dark-haired, intelligent, went to the same school) I can't write them in detail.

So yes, the voices in my head change. Some of them are more chatty than others - it took forever for Laura to spit a story out, while Adrian won't bloody shut up (my Valentine's story was meant to be short but ended up at 20k...)

How much I feel they've taken me over varies, usually by how much codeine or tramadol I've taken recently, as either and other drugs can give very vivid dreams. It's distinctly weird having a sex dream where you're male and then wake up suddenly and can't find your penis. One time I was quite seriously worried for nearly half an hour. Not nearly as disturbing as waking from the dreams when I had a baby and can't find it, or worse, though.

I'd best go to bed before I need more drugs...

 

[yowser]

The variance is extensive dependent on the character. Most, both male and female, tend to think too much, but the inner monologues differ, with different worries, hopes, desires. And word choices (and accents) vary.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Interesting question; I hadn't thought about it much.

My internal monologue is the same either way. I don't think I really "hear it" in a gendered voice; the words just sorta rise up, and there's no differentiation whether I'm writing male or female POV in FP. In TP, the "voice" is, if anything, even more disembodied. I do sometimes "hear" dialogue in my mind's ear, but not too often.

I'll listen more closely next time.

It's when you answer the voices, that's when you worry.

 

[ElectricBlue]

How much I feel they've taken me over varies, usually by how much codeine or tramadol I've taken recently, as either and other drugs can give very vivid dreams. It's distinctly weird having a sex dream where you're male and then wake up suddenly and can't find your penis. One time I was quite seriously worried for nearly half an hour. Not nearly as disturbing as waking from the dreams when I had a baby and can't find it, or worse, though.

Bloody hell! And I thought the spiders were bad, that time...

 

[MillieDynamite]

I write from a woman's point of view only slightly different than how I write from a man's point of view.

It was a question I asked. I'm just curious as I feel an almost visceral shift when I go from a male POV to a female one.

Being trans, I've kind of been doing that my entire life depending on the situation. Coping, trying to fit in. I just wondered if, 'binary' is the word I chose, writers felt the same thing or if it was just a mechanic they used.

 

[CatGirl69]

Being trans, I've kind of been doing that my entire life depending on the situation. Coping, trying to fit in. I just wondered if, 'binary' is the word I chose, writers felt the same thing or if it was just a mechanic they used.

Most of the smut I've ever written, pre- and post-transition, is from the lady's POV (3rd or 1st). When I would regularly frequent adult chat rooms, long before my trans "egg" cracked, I'd sometimes go girl-mode, sometimes boy-mode. For some reason it was easier in girl-mode (gee I wonder why!), but I still enjoyed myself chatting in boy-mode. Whenever I'd write from the male POV, it never felt completely natural (gee, I wonder why!).

But that's just my experience as a MtF trans woman fairly who's still early-ish in her transition. I'm revisiting this part of myself (writing smut) specifically to engage my "horny girl" self, and engaging with my "old, boy" self is ... not something I wanna do at this time. Maybe some point in the future I'll dust off some old boy thoughts for a good story.