Discussion: Pronouns and Gender (Or Lack of Therefore)
Hi everyone! goodbye_sun asked me if I wanted to start posting regular writing discussions here, so this is the first in the series. Discussions will be posted on the first of each month (in theory, anyway--I flip-flop between Pacific and Mountain time, so they might end up being posted on the second for some of you) and will tie into the current challenge theme whenever possible.
This month's topic was a bit tricky, but goodbye_sun came up with an idea while we were working out the details--namely, gender-neutral pronouns. What pronoun do/would you use for a character, such as a robot or android or supernatural being, that has no conventional or preferential gender? Do you prefer "it" or the singular "they" or something else, and why? Are they interchangeable, or is each appropriate in different situations? Or do you just use the character's name or a descriptive noun whenever possible?
This discussion is a free speech zone. Feel free to express any and all opinions, just be nice about it and respectful about what everyone else has to say--not that that will be a problem for anyone here.
I hope you enjoy this new feature. Best of luck with this month's challenge and any other projects :)
*Tagged under "writing" and "creative process" for now--g_s, I'll leave it to your discretion as to whether or not a new tag is needed.
This month's topic was a bit tricky, but goodbye_sun came up with an idea while we were working out the details--namely, gender-neutral pronouns. What pronoun do/would you use for a character, such as a robot or android or supernatural being, that has no conventional or preferential gender? Do you prefer "it" or the singular "they" or something else, and why? Are they interchangeable, or is each appropriate in different situations? Or do you just use the character's name or a descriptive noun whenever possible?
This discussion is a free speech zone. Feel free to express any and all opinions, just be nice about it and respectful about what everyone else has to say--not that that will be a problem for anyone here.
I hope you enjoy this new feature. Best of luck with this month's challenge and any other projects :)
*Tagged under "writing" and "creative process" for now--g_s, I'll leave it to your discretion as to whether or not a new tag is needed.