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rainwatersparkIt's...interesting to me that there is such a huge emphasis on having #ownvoices queer stories (especially #ownvoices trans stories), but there's nowhere near the same level of attention to the idea that stories about QPOC should be #ownvoices instead of written by white queer authors.
(By "interesting," I mean "I'm ready to flip a table about this.")
And now I want to talk about the #ownvoices idea generally.
#ownvoices means a very different thing when applied to race as applied to queerness. Race is a binary: either you are a person of color or you aren't. And although there are white-passing POC, it often can be fairly obvious whether someone is or isn't a POC.
Queerness, on the other hand, is not nearly as obvious. Both because there are definite pressures for people not to be open about their queerness, as well as because sexuality and gender can be nebulous.
For example, I don't know whether I am cis or nonbinary. Either way, I cannot afford to openly declare myself as trans/nonbinary. But then do I dare to write stories about trans characters, possibly as a way to explore my own gender, when I know people will assume I am cis and therefore not writing an #ownvoices trans story?
Honestly, I'm against how nebulous #ownvoices has become in regard to queer stories. For example, I don't think bisexual women should say that stories about bisexual men are #ownvoices. I don't think aroace male writers should say M/M stories are #ownvoices.
I definitely don't think white queer writers should ever, ever say stories about QPOC are #ownvoices.
This is NOT to say I don't think bisexual women should ever be able to write bisexual men, etc. This is simply to say that I believe simply being any kind of queer does not excuse any writer from self-reflecting about why they're writing a story not about their own specific identity.
(With the exception of white authors writing QPOC.)
(By "interesting," I mean "I'm ready to flip a table about this.")
And now I want to talk about the #ownvoices idea generally.
#ownvoices means a very different thing when applied to race as applied to queerness. Race is a binary: either you are a person of color or you aren't. And although there are white-passing POC, it often can be fairly obvious whether someone is or isn't a POC.
Queerness, on the other hand, is not nearly as obvious. Both because there are definite pressures for people not to be open about their queerness, as well as because sexuality and gender can be nebulous.
For example, I don't know whether I am cis or nonbinary. Either way, I cannot afford to openly declare myself as trans/nonbinary. But then do I dare to write stories about trans characters, possibly as a way to explore my own gender, when I know people will assume I am cis and therefore not writing an #ownvoices trans story?
Honestly, I'm against how nebulous #ownvoices has become in regard to queer stories. For example, I don't think bisexual women should say that stories about bisexual men are #ownvoices. I don't think aroace male writers should say M/M stories are #ownvoices.
I definitely don't think white queer writers should ever, ever say stories about QPOC are #ownvoices.
This is NOT to say I don't think bisexual women should ever be able to write bisexual men, etc. This is simply to say that I believe simply being any kind of queer does not excuse any writer from self-reflecting about why they're writing a story not about their own specific identity.
(With the exception of white authors writing QPOC.)
