Today’s topic comes from QSFer John Allenson – “How to write gay/trans/bi/gender-queer/male/female experience better.”
I’ll redirect this one a bit. We all write characters that are like us in various ways, but inevitably we also have to write characters who are different. Sometimes it’s the little things – where they live, how they talk, their personal style – and sometimes it’s the bigger ones, like gender or sexual orientation.
So my question for you today, and it’s a simple one – how do you research a character who is unlike you, especially in gender or orientation, so you get the details and the experience “right”?