Writerly Non-Sex Kinks M-Type Thing

[dawn_felagund]

Taken from Oshun ...

Name five ‘non-sexual kinks’ you have as a reader/writer: that is, five writing techniques, themes, settings, or character types that really draw you into a story. (If they are different for you as a reader than as a writer, please name both!)

Comments

[ladyelleth]

Women without swords is such a good trope, and definitely wins in terms of the realism department. This is one of the things I enjoyed very much about Game of Thrones, and just tonight I read a quote by Sophie Turner describing Sansa as quietly learning from her ordeals and outmatching her tormentors in the game, which is just as good an example as The Work of Small Hands is (still one of the fics that I keep aspiring to match in my own way someday).

I like women with swords as well - but when I write them, I try to make very sure that they face realistic consequences for their actions, too (especially talking Tolkien) - probably even harsher ones than if they'd assume power/influence through more supposedly non-threatening and female-coded roles (my Maitimë has very non-flattering things to say right now - not fit for print). Without a struggle for the right to wield a sword in the first place, that story is wishful thinking... which can be wonderful in the right mood, but not ultimately very satisfying, so your point still stands, in a way.

[dawn_felagund]

Yes, I too like women with and without swords ... I just protest that the "with" version seems (in pop culture anyway) to be the default to satisfying the demand for stronger female characters. Speaking of GRRM, I just mentioned to Oshun up-thread that Brienne is an excellent example of a woman-with-sword that really works for me. (GRRM's writing generally makes me grit my teeth, but I look forward to Brienne's chapter and also love how she's been handled on the show.) She doesn't simply pick up a sword and own the world. That decision has consequences for her in a society with traditional female gender roles, and Brienne often feels to me like a character who just can't win. As a woman-with-sword, she is comfortable in her own skin ... and mocked. As a woman-trying-to-be-a-lady, she is uncomfortable ... and still mocked.

I like your example of Sansa. I see so much Sansa hate out there, but she is a young girl (despite the actress being much older than the character) in a dangerous place and utterly without friends. That she has survived as long as she has when much of her family has not speaks to a resourcefulness and strength that also makes her a character I find so interesting. (Actually, for all my griping about GRRM's books, I do love his woman characters and generally suffer through the chapters from a male PoV while generally enjoying those from a female PoV. I had never realized that before ...)