Transgender OR Crossdressing

[filthytrancendence]

 

[TheRedChamber]

This thread is a great example why splitting the category was a bad idea. Not only it has deprived the body swap, forced feminization/masculinization and futanari stories of their natural home; but also introduced new dilemmas for authors of other previously fitting stories that didn’t exist before.

CD should really have been just merged into Fetish, and TG shouldn’t have lost the “gender bending fun” from its description. Alas, the milk is spilled.

It'll be interesting to see how things shake out. While they dropped a message saying it had happened, Manu and Laurel haven't given any deeper indication of how they see the stories. I originally thought that Crossdressing might be a bit of a dead category, but it seems like a whole bunch of sissy stories are still going up there daily. Forced feminization would belong there, I presume (don't think I've ever even seen a forced masculization story.)

I'm guessing that futanari will go in transgender and so will body swap - although there might be slight migration to fantasy or even erotic horror.

I also suspect that there will soon be a lot of heated discussion about whether stories are getting the 'transgender' category 'correct.' As a bisexual guy who likes ciswomen, transwomen, cross-dressing cismen and non-cross-dressing cismen the split doesn't mean much to me, but I can understand why it is important to other people.

 

[Britva415]

"Mark it 8, Dude!"
https://i.imgflip.com/9z05jv.jpg

 

[filthytrancendence]

I also suspect that there will soon be a lot of heated discussion about whether stories are getting the 'transgender' category 'correct.'

I think I get why none of the actual trans people here responded directly to lobster's whinging. Probably some of them have him blocked anyway.

I'll follow their lead on the matter, and simply say that it isn't a particularly fun time to be a trans person in the world right now, so if ever there was a time to separate the fetishized elements from the category that best fits their stories, it was exactly right now. Trans isn't a fetish. It's an identity. Kudos to Laurel and Manu for making that stance explicit at this particular moment.

 

[AlexBailey]

Non-binary category?

Transgender isn’t necessarily queer. Trans folks can be binary in identity or sexuality. Trans can be an identity that is opposite of the gender at birth.

Genderqueer/fluid can present in any configuration or representation of gender. To each their own. “Cross dressing” doesn’t really cover it.

Queer can be outrageous in celebration or subtle in daily life. The outrageous side attracts attention that many trans people don’t want to be identified with it.


Categories are just the main tags that must be selected when you submit a story. Add as many tags as possible so readers a make use of the existing tag search system. It would be nice to be able to exclude tags you don’t want.

Please use tags!

 

[stickygirl]

There have a been a couple of knowledgeable posts but quite a few surprising ones.
One nit-pick - being transgender is NOT a lifestyle choice. Sorry but that expression is a real wet finger in the ear.
Gotta dash

 

[TheRedChamber]

I think I get why none of the actual trans people here responded directly to lobster's whinging. Probably some of them have him blocked anyway.

I'll follow their lead on the matter, and simply say that it isn't a particularly fun time to be a trans person in the world right now, so if ever there was a time to separate the fetishized elements from the category that best fits their stories, it was exactly right now. Trans isn't a fetish. It's an identity. Kudos to Laurel and Manu for making that stance explicit at this particular moment.

As set up, the categories still lump 'Trans as identity' and 'Trans as fetish' together and if you look at what is actually being posted in Trans at the moment, there are quite a lot of stories that raise my natural obsessive 'sorting everything into the right category' personality trait. There are a whole ton of stories with sissy either in the title or in the description, so much so that I'm now questioning my earlier assumption that sissy should generally go in the CD section. One that references being a 'trap' (from an author I like and who may be reclaiming the word). There are two that include dystopian mass-feminization futures (including one with BNWO elements). Category overlap and uncertainty is a recurring feature on Lit and I'm not the category police. But I don't think the fetishization is going anywhere. (And as an erotic website maybe it shouldn't be going anywhere.) It's a nice gesture by Laurel but it is going to take some time to shake out, if it ever does.

 

[OddLove]

I see this discussion has been had, but I'm throwing my tiny hat in the ring.

The way you described Sol (especially with the he/him pronouns), to me, sounds like a sexual orientation, not a fetish. Thus, tran would be the most accurate, lesbian would be the less accurate, and crossdressing would be the least accurate.

It seems to me that the people who would enjoy that kind of story the most would probably be people browsing the transgender category.

 

[stickygirl]

trans medicalism??
never heard of it
Some folks love made up terms, like transgenderism - wtf is that?

To clarify, because we're authors and should acknowledge the power of words...
'lifestyle' is taking yoga classes, avoiding red meat, listening to rap
'choice' implies options.

Being transgender is not an option - we have no choice. No, not every trans person will commit suicide if they can't transition because their lives have become so miserable, but quite a few do. Most have contemplated it; 40% attempt it at least once. But until you transition you're life will be a lie and miserable ( and we know it won't be roses after but at least we can live an authentic life ).

As previous posters have explained, surgery is not necessary, nor are hormones... doesn't mean they aren't on the wish list, but some can get by without, some can't afford it or might not be medically suitable.

Yes NBs and others are transgender because they are not cis gender. Simple huh? Cis gender is a narrow band, trans is broad.

I feel like I'm in a echo chamber here when I repeat, CDs dress up for fun and kinks, then take off the frilly pants and ugly-sister make up when they go back to work on Monday. Does that make it a Fetish?.... I guess, maybe, but wearing gingham frocks is quite different to drinking piss.

Enough definitions!!

@TheRedChamber makes a good point about Trans stories and what readers might anticipate they'll find in each category.
Trans fetish is what most folks come looking for ( they gave me a strange drink and I woke up with huge tits and a vagina ) or ( the shemale's dick was so big the elephants blushed ) or ( The truck driver had tattoos and a beard, but down there, he was a she and plugged me good with a 12" dildo ).
Trans identity? Pretty thin on the ground at Lit. I'll take a guess and say only 10% are about identity.

@THBGato
You have another option and one I've used several times for my transgender MC characters. If it's a romance, put it in Romance, or Mature... Readers are unlikely to suffer TransPanic if you warn them in the Foreword. A couple of my stories are in Romance because I make readers cry buckets before I'm done with them.

 

[THBGato]

@THBGato
You have another option and one I've used several times for my transgender MC characters. If it's a romance, put it in Romance, or Mature... Readers are unlikely to suffer TransPanic if you warn them in the Foreword. A couple of my stories are in Romance because I make readers cry buckets before I'm done with them.

Yes, Romance does strike me as an option (frankly, pretty much all of my stories could have gone there) though I think I would need to change the current draft quite considerably. I'll see what the beta-reader thinks.

 

[THBGato]

If anyone is interested, Clara and the solar system was published this morning. (12,000 words/4 lit pages)

Thanks again for all your advice. x