Women Writing Men Doing Men
It’s a cultural staple that straight men dig girl-on-girl, or better yet—the mythological Hot Bi Babe waiting to indulge every het couple’s desire—which a lot of men still reduce to girl-on-girl. A lesser known fact is that women write (and read) the majority of m/m erotica on the market today, and the booming smut industry wants to know why.
First off, let’s distinguish between gay fiction and m/m fiction. Gay fiction generally encompasses the journey of the character, that is, some reality of an LBGTQ life path cloaked in a fictional portrayal. Despite the made up plot and circumstances, the character’s journey is the emphasis, shaped by factors of sexual orientation, possibly gender identity, community acceptance or creation.
M/M fiction is subtly different. It focuses primarily on romance. The romantic engagement of guys is the plot. All circumstances revolve around it, all conflict and resolution, so mote it be. Yes, some women write lauded gay fiction (Brokeback Mountain), though the majority of feminine chromosomes in the homoerotic market write m/m. Why? What’s wrong with writing the good old-fashioned bodice rippers hidden under our matriarchal elders night stands?
Well, nothing, if you like that sort of thing. But what if you don’t? There’s been a lot of speculation on why female authors write M/M romance/erotica, some very good insights included in the resources at the end of this blog.
Basic preference is the simplest factor. Maybe guy-on-guy is a secret treat the author writes because it’s what she wants to read. Maybe it’s something else. For some, sex with a man from the female viewpoint isn’t as literarily titillating as through the masculine perspective, which encompasses different permissions, roles, allowances, desires, sensations, sensitivities, even plot choices.
Along that line, many female purveyors of m/m erotica cite lack of projected gender roles as a factor in their reading selections. In a M/F coupling, roles are automatic. We don’t consciously think about it as readers, and as writers we don’t realize how much we draw on those societal assumptions to fill out character and plot. The woman is the weaker character if not sub, while the man is assumed the hero, until otherwise shown. In m/m, f/f, genderqueer romance, assuming that it’s not a fetish genre, it’s a wide open field. Anyone can hold the power. Anyone can behave as zhe likes. Within that freedom there is greater range to tell a new story, to have a fresh angle, to create brand (spanking) new gender, thus sexual, dynamics.
Some authors write m/m erotica because they feel obligated to. Sensitivity to sexual orientation, gender perception, biogender, and the social voice of those who identify as other than straight calls them to present in fiction what many readers would never pick up to read in nonfiction.
In the end, do we know why women write m/m erotica, or why the audience for it is dominated by women? Who can say? Artistically speaking, authors who don’t think in a box can’t write in one. If an author’s internal landscape doesn’t assume a m/f pairing the author can never convincingly write one. My question is, why shouldn’t women write m/m erotica?
Do you write or read /m erotica? Share your thoughts on the genre and what role it plays in your world view.
Fierce is the gender-lite erotica author of as many pansexual, genderneutral, life-loving configurations as zhe can think of. Latest release to note is Journal of a Lycanthrophile, Book One of The Scattered Dark Series.
Buy link: http://www.amazon.com/Journal-Lycanthrophile-Scattered-Series-ebook/dp/B00AJCBHLU/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
Frolic with Fierce on:
Words Without Limits www.fiercedolan.com.
FB: https://www.facebook.com/fiercedolan
Twitter: www.twitter.com/fiercedolan
Resources
Lambda Literary – http://www.lambdaliterary.org/features/06/08/straight-womengay-romance/
The Marconis – http://historicromance.wordpress.com/2008/08/15/why-do-women-write-mm-romance/
Alex Beecroft – http://alexbeecroftblog.wordpress.com/2009/04/06/why-do-women-write-mm-fiction-answers-for-the-men/
Kergan Edwards – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kergan-edwardsstout/gender-of-novelists-in-gay-fiction-does-it-matter_b_1853314.html
Originally published on 7 Sexy Scribes.