How do you transition (a followup)
Edit, 3/28/09 – I’m attempting to organize my thoughts on trans fiction here. That page contains links to all of the blog posts I’ve written on the subject, as well as a (growing) collection of links to sites focusing on trans fiction, and particular trans-themed authors/stories I like.
EDIT 9/8/2007 – I’ve responded to this post here, where I basically retract much of what I say below…so read everything here with a grain of salt, please.
This post is a followup to a previous post, How do you transition, which was sort of a followup to Trans Fiction.
So G said (in a reply to How do you transition) that I should find some good trans fiction, and go cold-turkey on the bad stuff (not necessarily in that order). As a means toward that end, I decided to go through stuff I’ve bookmarked and try to figure out what the hell I’m reading… The list continues below
- Bek D. Corbin’s fiction – Dammit, this is already harder than I thought it would be. Most of it is along the same forced-feminization line (or, at least, unwilling feminization) that I’m coming to acknowledge is unhealthy, but it’s actually well written. I particularly like the Jordan Winter stories and the Whateley Academy stories, among some others…I think I’m gonna keep this, for now…KEEP, BUT I FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT
- Noel – Bah. Another ‘unwilling feminization’ story, though it’s also a nice little piece about redemption. KEEP, BUT I FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT
(the list continues below…)
- E.E. Nalley’s fiction – Similar to Bek D. Corbin’s stuff. But not quite as good. TOSS
- Maggie Finson’s fiction – More of the same. TOSS
- Whateley Academy stories – Stories by multiple authors, all set in the same universe. Specifically, at Whateley Academy, as school for mutants (sort of like in the X-Men, but much less organizaed and benevolent), and more specifically in a dorm at Whateley for kids with ‘trans issues’ (willing or unwillingly having gender problems, often as a result of their mutations). A lot of it is kind of trashy but I’m gonna say the stories following Jade, one of the few characters in all these stories who actually identifies as trans, are legitimately good sci-fi. Not mind-blowingly fantastic, but good. KEEP
- Babs Yerunkle’s fiction – The author of Jade’s Whateley stories, but also has some other fiction. The Jade stuff is on Whateley, though, so TOSS.
- Rebekkah deMere’s fiction – Another author whose writing features a character who is legitimately trans, but not as good a writer as Babs…oh well. TOSS.
- Joan Bank’s fiction – More of the same. TOSS
- Brandy’s Fiction – More of the same. TOSS
- Randalynn’s fiction – The No Obligation series has a character who is actually trans. Not too poorly written, to boot. KEEP
- Harry Potter and the Key of Dagon – Oh gods. This isn’t actually trans-related, it’s just also in my ‘fiction’ bookmark folder. This…wow. This is Harry Potter/Buffy crossover fanfic, primarily following Dawn. And, though I kind of hate myself for saying this, it’s pretty damn well written. The author also has a nice Buffy/Stargate crossover that I also enjoyed more than I’d like to admit…KEEP, BUT I FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT (but not for gender related issues, just becuase it’s trashy fanfic)
- Seasons of Change – I really hate to love this serries. It’s only slightly redeeming features are that the goal isn’t to perminantely feminize the main characters (‘only’ temporarily) and one of the characters ends of being trans. But damn if I haven’t reread ‘em over the years…KEEP, BUT I FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT
- Heather O’Malley’s fiction -More trash, though the premise barely eeks out “creative” (a man wants to join a sorority because he thinks they won’t let him, to prove a point about acceptance). TOSS
- The Saga of Tuck – An epic serial fiction with lots of trans themes. Perhaps the first trans-related fiction I ever read…gods, I remember corresponding with the author when I was in highschool. KEEP
- Strange Noises – Mostly fan-fiction of the Saga of Tuck, but well-written. KEEP
Well, I think that’s it for today. I don’t have the energy to go through printed books (fiction and non) or non-fiction websites, but most of those are worth keeping.
-R
P.S. – Ellen Hayes, the author of the Saga of Tuck, has a page of her selected fiction listed here. I think Noel and Jordan Winters are the only one which slipped into my list, but most of her picks are really good. These Lives We Seek is, perhaps, the most well-written trans fiction I’ve ever read that’s from the perspective of a non-trans character.
Themocracy
[...] saw a few people were viewing this blog via searching for Whately Academy fiction and reading the post I wrote about what trans-related fiction I was going to keep and what I was going to toss. Looking [...]
[...] How do you transition (a followup) I talked about removing some authors and sites from my bookmark folder of trans-related fiction [...]
Neat blog! I stumbled upon it after realizing that there were a growing number of mentions of “Whateley Academy,” and tracing through them on Google. (What can I say? Anything to avoid work.) And yeah, I read your follow-up article FIRST, before tracing back to the original.
About my own fiction? (Shrug) Hard to disagree. Sturgeon’s Law, you know. I’ve discovered that even writing stuff that’s crap and mediocre is better than not writing at all. I feel I am improving. Although it comes and goes. I personally can barely stay awake while re-reading “Jade 3” but I think “Jade 4” holds up really well. Like I said, you have to keep writing, and keep looking back at your work to figure out what’s good and what’s bad, and why.
I personally like Rebecca deMere a lot – the style reminds me heavily of an old science fiction writer, M.A. Foster.
I’m also surprised by the number of TG authors that write forced feminization, or forced transitions, or transformations performed as a punishment, or any of a whole slew of similar ideas. I think it combines elements of “my secret fantasy is coming true, but it’s not MY fault! Don’t blame ME!” with a complete lack of guilt or shame — the transformee is the VICTIM, not someone who willingly chose this perversion!
If there’s any truth to my pop-psychology musings, even inside the TG community we’ve got a lot of problems and a long way to go.
And, okay, I’ve done my share of accidental-transformation stories.
As for Jade, my character in the Whateley Universe, she remains fun, and has taught me a lot of different things about both TG and writing.
First, I have to admit, she’s rather cartoony. That’s saying a lot, considering that she lives in a comic-book universe. But her over-the-top attempts at transforming/transitioning are usually astonishingly quick (showing results in days or minutes) and would be hard to believe in any genre other than our TG area, where magic spells, mind swap machines, and strange medallions can alter your body instantaneously. Jade’s reactions and emotions are likewise exaggerated. (End thought: “So sue me.”)
In Whateley and elsewhere, it seems to me that many author’s main interest is in the transition itself. Once the character has become female, once they’ve arrived, interest in writing more about the character or story plummets to zero. Jade keeps attempting various goofball transition ideas, and keeps failing, leading to a longer storyline.
Obviously, I’m rather conflicted as an author, writing a young and naïve character who can’t stop going into gruesome detail about private parts. (I’m not sure what to say about this.)
Above all, Jade has taught me a universal lesson about writing characters who are DRIVEN. Some of the finest characters in literature struggle under a monumental burden of grief, or guilt, or some goal that they are compelled to pursue. I hadn’t understood the power of such characters until I started writing Jade. Now that I have, looking back on my past writing, and characters that stumble through their lives, I realize that I’ve learned at least a small bit about writing.
Hi Babs, et al, Jade is my favorite character and the opinion of the owner of this blog just proves that everyone likes different stuff. I love the Whately Acadamy stories, at least 99%. I’m really looking foward to Jade’s continuing development. Maybe a story about the Christmas adventure from her point of view would be cool??? I found this story because I was looking for new stuff to read. I really don’t care for most of the “forced” types of stories. Ayla is a case in point though where even though I don’t like what happened I really enjoy reading about her overcoming her problems. A thought, What if Jade, being a regen and also stuck, isn’t really stuck, just aging very very slowly?
Thanks for the comment, Chris. I’ve kind of backed away from my position in this post – I am still trying hard to stay away from forced feminization stories (with, as you say, exceptions like Ayla where that emotional journey is the whole point) but am now quite a bit kinder to trans fiction in general. PS – More of my thoughts, and other stories I’ve liked, are at http://fridaythang.com/blog/trans-fiction/
[...] I’ve mentioned once or twice, I have a tendency to read trans fiction when I’m feeling down. (And, [...]