bisexual slash

[cmshaw]

so, here's a question that executrix raised in the comments on my last post -- how often in the course of a slash story does a character realize that he or she is bisexual?

off the top of my head, the only one i can think of is resonant8's teeth of the hydra -- i mean, there's always jacquez's un-american, but i'm specifically looking for stories where the character comes

Comments

[darthfox]

One (well; at least one) of cesperanza's Sentinel stories has that. The one where Jim gives Blair a bunch of books and they go to San Francisco. (In which Blair comes out to himself, and it turns out Jim has been quietly bisexual all along.) There's also the one, now that I think about it, where Blair is screwing his friend in the stacks at the library and Jim stalks him and then they both realize Jim is insanely jealous and he comes to terms with his own bisexuality and so on. But I immediately thought of the San Francisco one because as I recall it includes a line of dialogue that goes something like (or this might be an exact quote) "Jim, I think I'm bisexual". Can't get more on point than that. :-)

[darthfox]

A lot of Cesca's Sentinel stuff, now that I think about it. Maybe even most of it. (I can't remember her whole catalogue with perfect recall, but it sure seems like an awful lot of the time A is into guys, with varying degrees of overtness about it, and at least one plot of the story is how B comes to realize that he is, too. Interestingly, I think fandom-wide A would probably be Blair and B would be Jim, but in Francesca-world it's usually, but not always, the other way around.)

[cmshaw]

hah! found it -- reality check, right?

[darthfox]

If that's the one with books and San Francisco. I don't remember titles so well. :-)

[cmshaw]

I don't know that I would call it bisexual because I know of some women who think it is more about the person than the gender...

that's exactly the difference i'm looking for, though -- stories where the question of identification comes up. or, hmm. even stories where it comes up and is rejected would be interesting!

[cmshaw]

interesting stories! yours in particular seems to suggest that your fandom's still finding it surprising to see discussions of sexuality; what sort of reactions do you get for things like this?

The people most likely to write that sort of thing seem to be Sara fans first who are GSR fans but who lean more towards being attracted to women than men. (There is a weird underlying vibe of homophobia in parts of my current fandom which is coupled with OTP canon shipping which rejects all ships besides their own. Toss in an actress who plays their straight character where the actress might be a lesbian... I boggle.)i suppose that makes sense, that it'd be the fans of a particular character who'd be exploring more possibilities for her.... i didn't know that the actress is, what, rumored to be gay? the "might be" sounds like the kind of thing that would throw a fandom into confusion! and that's a shame about the homophobia, especially if people are using otp-shipping to justify it. :( i'm glad to hear that there seems to be a

[executrix]

Even though *I'm the person who made the comment* I usually write about characters who have known they were bisexual or homosexual for about ten to twenty years, although they don't necessarily make it a topic of discussion. (Boy, did I open up a hornet's nest with a B7 story where Avon wore a pink triangle badge on his leather jacket, but he's the kind of person who always thinks he invented sex anyway.)

[cmshaw]

characters who have known they were bisexual or homosexual for about ten to twenty years, although they don't necessarily make it a topic of discussion

yeah, and that's definitely the way i lean myself, which is probably why i'm having a harder time finding coming out stories -- given how fond slash fandom is of first-time stories there really ought to be more out there, though, right?

[executrix]

In RL, coming-out stories are kind of like qualifications in AA: it's easy to get really sick and tired of listening to them, but you can't very well tell people to shut up, you've heard it all before. So in fiction, I kind of carry over my own immersion in coming-out stories by just putting it (a) decade(s) in the past.

(PS--in your journal format, how the !@#@#$% can I track a whole discussion instead of just one comment in it?)

[cmshaw]

(PS--in your journal format, how the !@#@#$% can I track a whole discussion instead of just one comment in it?)

...wow, that's really annoying, isn't it?

*fixes journal style*

how's that?

[kattahj]

*cough selfpimping cough* Gunn does it in my Birthdayverse series. Kind of. He doesn't say the word, but that's what it comes down to.

I can think of a lot of stories (both my own and other people's) where people are bisexual, but not so much with the realizing. I'm not that into first time anyway.

[cmshaw]

cool! i will have to bookmark that one for my next foray into buffyverse stuff -- thanks!

I can think of a lot of stories (both my own and other people's) where people are bisexual, but not so much with the realizing. I'm not that into first time anyway.

yeah, that's what executrix was saying. combined with what partly_bouncy was saying about csi fandom, i'm starting to wonder: is most of the bi fic being written right now being written by queer authors? is the reason we're not seeing so many first time stories that the people writing are past that stage personally? hmm....

[kattahj]

is most of the bi fic being written right now being written by queer authors? is the reason we're not seeing so many first time stories that the people writing are past that stage personally? hmm....

I think it's possible. For me, my tendency to write chars with more "floaty" sexuality certainly has to do with my own floatiness. It feels kind of off to imagine someone who could always only fancy one gender, amen. (Which isn't to say I don't think such people exist, because clearly they do.) The traditional realisation and coming out stories don't do much for me, because realizing that I was bisexual (which still strikes me as such a blunt word), and telling people I was bisexual, mostly came in itty bitty stages through years and years long before I actually did anything at all with a woman.

So I'm quite happy writing chars who're already quite comfortable with what they are (whatever that is) when they get together. Gunn became an exception because I saw him as someone who wouldn't be comfortable with it, and who'd have to through

[executrix]

While I certainly consider it a feature rather than a bug, I think there are a lot more bisexual fanwriters than bisexual [most other nouns] so we certainly don't find it shocking, or even worth more than a passing mention, if a character is bisexual.

And, quite apart from the author's sexual preferences or history, I think if ze is an experienced *writer* then ze may want to write some stories that are a little more ambitious than "ZOMG the aliens made John and Rodney do it!"

[_resuscitation]

I know under glitter_traces I wrote quite a few Franz Ferdinand RPS where characters identified as being bisexual. However, I think bisexuality tends to surface more in RPS because often the people we're writing about have significant others of the opposite sex, so it is more of a plot device to get the slash flowing...

[cmshaw]

I know under glitter_traces I wrote quite a few Franz Ferdinand RPS where characters identified as being bisexual.

ooh -- i may have to go look for that. we haven't shared a fandom in far too long and i miss your writing! :)

However, I think bisexuality tends to surface more in RPS because often the people we're writing about have significant others of the opposite sex, so it is more of a plot device to get the slash flowing...

interesting! do you think that the significant others in rps are treated with more weight than the ones in television/movie/book fandoms? i can see where that whole "getting rid of the girlfriend so the boyfriend can move in" slash convention might take on different overtones in rps!

[_resuscitation]

ooh -- i may have to go look for that. we haven't shared a fandom in far too long and i miss your writing! :)

I haven't written any fan fiction for ages as I've been concentrating on my own writing...it's nice to know you miss my writing :)

interesting! do you think that the significant others in rps are treated with more weight than the ones in television/movie/book fandoms? i can see where that whole "getting rid of the girlfriend so the boyfriend can move in" slash convention might take on different overtones in rps!

I do think in RPS significant others are given more weight - I think in RPS there is a distinct feeling that they cannot be as easily 'written out' as fictional characters. I think this is because reverence is given to the relationships.

P.S. I have found some stories in The Professionals fandom which heavily rely on the fact that either Bodie or Doyle indentify as being bisexual. They are mainly stories by M. Fae Glasgow.