> It's a side note, but I also dislike the notion of sensitivity readers and such for new publications too. All it can lead to in my view is a dulling of writing.
As an author, I have used sensitive readers, especially when I wrote a story where one of the main characters was transgendered. I got most of it right, but one detail was wrong and that affected the entire story in a terrible way. I am forever grateful for the person who graciously explained this to me.
The purpose of sensitivity readers is to let you know what you're missing in the details of the story. You can write a total bastard serial killer who goes after gay people, but you should care about getting the gay bar scene correct instead of reinforcing harmful stereotypes.
It should be like fact checking on historical fiction. Most of the time humans don't have a good grasp on how other humans see the world. Plus, getting that perspective right is usually far more interesting. You're capturing culture that your audience may not be aware of.
When it comes to old books, I'd say slap a preface on it rather than rewriting it. A good example is the original Star Trek. The show was really progressive for its time, but a lot of it has not aged well. TV Tropes calls this "Fair for Its Day", a sub trope of "Society Marches On". :)
A censor convinced you that you were wrong. You weren't necessarily wrong at all. You may have been correct the first time. And what is correct when it comes to art? Who is this person to tell you, the artist, that your art is wrong?
Buck Angel and other trans people often disagree completely with the conclusions of these censors, who motivated by exerting power over others. Why listen to them over other trans people? Don't give censors that power over you and your work. You're the artist. Don't let others tell you your art is "wrong". It's not. Stand up for yourself and your art.
I specifically asked for this person’s opinion and checked it against my own sources and knowledge. We talked for several hours about identity. We compared and contrasted each other perspectives. In the end, I realized I didn’t know enough about body-dysphoria.
So I did more research and revised my story.
In the original story, my character decided to not transition and still have sexual relationships in a female body. In the revised story… that didn’t change. What changed was his feelings and reasons for doing so.
My story got better, not worse with my reader’s feedback. The story was more interesting because the was explanation deeper and more accurate.
My character isn’t trans, he’s a character who happens to be trans. But that fact profoundly affects everything about him. And you get to learn what his experience is. And because it’s his experience, I don’t have to get everything “right”. I just needed to not miss a very important aspect of body-dysphoria.
That’s how this is supposed to work. You want to see what you’re missing and make an informed decision.
As an author, I have used sensitive readers, especially when I wrote a story where one of the main characters was transgendered. I got most of it right, but one detail was wrong and that affected the entire story in a terrible way. I am forever grateful for the person who graciously explained this to me.
The purpose of sensitivity readers is to let you know what you're missing in the details of the story. You can write a total bastard serial killer who goes after gay people, but you should care about getting the gay bar scene correct instead of reinforcing harmful stereotypes.
It should be like fact checking on historical fiction. Most of the time humans don't have a good grasp on how other humans see the world. Plus, getting that perspective right is usually far more interesting. You're capturing culture that your audience may not be aware of.
When it comes to old books, I'd say slap a preface on it rather than rewriting it. A good example is the original Star Trek. The show was really progressive for its time, but a lot of it has not aged well. TV Tropes calls this "Fair for Its Day", a sub trope of "Society Marches On". :)