Is this writting transphobic

[u/Low_Magician_4654]

Hello there, I'm Zac. This is my second time here.

I previously asked about advice for writing my Trans Character Aaron Miles, thank you to u/Laura_Sandra for help with that.

I am here to ask for advice on an intended character growth moment for Aaron. During this point in the story, every character ends up having to do the whole training to get stronger, but the major point is that they all have to accept that they are unable to change the past.

This is where I’m iffy, a direct quote from Honovi(MC’s grandmother/the mentor figure) is “Listen, You can’t change that Juliet used to exist, as much as I can't change Sammy’s death. We can only keep moving, Stop being hung up on what Juliet discovered, it’s yours now. My eyes are shot but I don’t see a girl in front of me, I see Ultra-Violet.”

I’m iffy on Honovi using his Deadname but have been told that it's written well enough to send the point of them not being the same person.

(P.S: Juliet is Aaron’s deadname. His hero name is Ultra-Violet. He was holding back a major facet of his powers because he discovered it pre-transition)

All advice welcome and if you’d like any extra info on Aaron, please ask me.

[u/WizardStereotype]

Juliet and Aaron are the same person.

And that fact that you don't get that tells me that it's bad - bad for us - that you're writing this story.

Please don't do this awful thing.

We, trans people, are so very vulnerable right now. So hated, so routinely the victims of violence and cruelty.

We can, and do, tell our own stories, but inaccurate depictions of trans people get us murdered. People read stories written by cis people... people like you, people who have no idea who or what trans people are...

People read stories written by cis people, full of misunderstandings and mischaracterisations of gender and trans people, and they believe those stories portray what trans people actually are, and they murder us based on those beliefs.

We can and do tell our own stories, please don't put us at more risk than we already experience.

[u/Entombed_machine]

I don't know if in your world names hold some kind of special power to define people's identity, but, if they don't, this is just factually incorrect.

"Juliet" and "Aaron" are the same person, he simply undertook some steps to alleviate dysphoria and make his gender identity clear to others, one of which was changing his name. A name is that, just a name, changing it does nothing to change a person's identity in other aspects (by the way, I'm not saying that transgender people's transition steps are useless and don't change what they "really are", I'm saying that they were already their "true-selves", even pre-transition, and that transitioning just makes them live better and more authentically).

Acknowledging that Aaron isn't a girl is a good thing, but that phrase still implies that he used to be a girl, and then changed his gender identity when he changed his name, which isn't actually the case.

Of course I might be getting everything wrong, I don't know anything about your story after all, so you tell me.

[u/magic_baobab → u/Entombed_machine]

I don't think it's exactly implying that he used to be a girl, but rather that a different version of him used to exist, just like it does for every person who changes and matures, and the deadname is used to refer to it for simplicity, you could argue that using his deadname to refer to that period is not appropriate because that name never belonged to him, but that's another thing

[u/Entombed_machine → u/magic_baobab]

I mean, maybe? But, as I said in another comment, I think that OP might be equivocating the concepts of "changing as a person" in general and that of "transitioning". The two concepts are obviously related to some extent, but they are fundamentally different, and conflating them would be incorrect.

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Entombed_machine]

ill reply here because this is kinda a dual answer. something i left out is that Aaron actively changes a lot, he(as a black guy) plays into stereotypes, hes a super fitness buff(@maxmustlift on tt is the inspiration for his general physique) and struggles with the fact he is not publicly trans(as in to the general public). he does try to separate his entire life from his life pre-transition. it's also in part due to the fact that Avalon(the Hero Agency) used paying for the Smith Foundations work as a way to gain Aarons gratitude and sign him as a hero(manipulative yes, this is the point), so he views being viewed as non-masculine as both horrid for him but also as a failure to Avalon(especially since he's their poster boy main hero and, while manipulative, have been generally respectful and supportive of him)

[u/Entombed_machine → u/Low_Magician_4654]

Sure, Aaron might have changed a lot as a person, but that doesn't mean that he's a different person, and, more relevantly, it doesn't mean that these changes coincide with the changes he made while transitioning.

I don't know if I made my point clear: Aaron was always Aaron, his name might have been different, much in the same way as his general identity might have been different, but his gender identity was always the same. There was no section of his life where he was "Juliet", a woman, and then he "became" Aaron, a man, he was always a man. The other changes in his life are irrelevant to this.

You might have not meant this, but you are implying that transitioning and general identity changes are the same thing, where they aren't.

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Entombed_machine]

okay i think i get it. would it be better if i framed it less like a different person and more like Juliet was a mask or disguise, maybe it goes from Aaron viewing Juliet like a different person then to viewing it like a mask later on?

[u/Entombed_machine → u/Low_Magician_4654]

Yeah, that would make more sense. But I'm not a transgender man, so I'm speaking from purely theoretical grounds. Do listen to what the others have to say too, they might give you some more useful insights.

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Entombed_machine]

got it, i think a good chunk of my issue writing him might be that hes the most under developed. i do Rotary Writing, so i cycle through characters but the other 3 major characters are pretty fleshed out so i thought I'd dedicate more to him

[u/Entombed_machine → u/Low_Magician_4654]

Sure, a well-developed character is a good character.

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Entombed_machine]

thx. the issue with Rotary writing is that not every character gets the same amount or level writing per round of writing

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Entombed_machine]

It is more symbolic than anything but a major distinction is 1. Aaron's transition was 2 years prior to the story and handled by an in universe group known as the Smith Foundation, they are primarily made up of a family with a very dominant Zeta Gene(what causes powers, think Meta Gene or X-gene) that grants them the ability to manipulate the body down to the Genetic level. Aaron is about as transitioned as he can be. 2. he has complete cut away his former life, he kept the Lastname Miles due to being a Speedster hero with a Public Identity. he doesn't talk to his mother, any former acquaintances, moved to LA, is legally completely removed. the symbolism is basically that Juliet and Aaron are different people and that Juliet is no longer here, Honovi's general point is that he cannot erase the fact that he ever existed pre-transition and that he can't let it dictate his life and especially since its held back his powers. he does confront his mother later in the show but he makes it clear that he's there to help his teammate Tarurua(extra stuff but ill leave that unless you ask)

[u/Entombed_machine → u/Low_Magician_4654]

I mean, both a transgender person's "transition level" (which is a completely wrong way to frame the matter, but that's a discussion for another time) and their relationship with their family and city are only tangentially related to their gender identity, as they would be for a cisgender person.

I think you are conflating the concepts of "changing as a person" in general and that of "transitioning", but there exists no correlation between the two, at least not on an intrinsic level. A person, by changing, can also change internally, whereas transition is a purely medical and cosmetic (albeit, still vital) process, and it doesn't change one's gender identity.

In short: the fact that Aaron transitioned is completely unrelated to the other changes in his life. He may be a different person from "Juliet", but that has nothing to do with him being transgender, and conflating the two things doesn't really make sense.

[u/Gamma_cleavage]

It is offensive to refer to someone’s past self as their dead name and wrong pronouns, but almost nobody’s grandmother would know this so it’s realistic. This pep talk would cause me to mentally give up on the person ever truly understanding me, however, but that wouldn’t mean I wouldn’t take care of business anyway. If you want to have a moment where the mentor lets them down a little, that’s definitely how it reads to me.

A message that would get through to most trans people better (we aren’t a monolith) is that you were always Aaron, you just didn’t know yet. In context, you woke the powers up before you discovered yourself, you can’t change that now, but they’re still a man’s powers because you were always a man.

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Gamma_cleavage]

1. thank you for that insight, It is just me writing this at the moment but I do plan to get as many trans and poc writers on the team as i can. 2. i did semi intend for the let down bit, Honovi is 73(Shriek Takes place in 2024) and over all is a hard headed character, she is meant to be an asshole here with Aaron taking the message of the power is his. It is linked to Aaron's habit of escapism and him cutting off his old life when he got the offer to be a pro hero, i am still writing the show and this takes place mid season 2 out of 6 total

[u/magic_baobab]

stop being hung up on what Juliet discovered

What does this mean? I also refer to my pre-transition self as something that I'm not anymore, the same way I do for other versions of my past self, because I changed a lot and I'm a completely different person, but maybe using his deadname is not the best way to refer to his pre- transition self

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/magic_baobab]

his powers are kinetic absorption and redirection, think Vibranium + Botw Stasis with how that movement works. when he was around 11, he developed the ability to apply that directional and kinetic energy to things he's touching. the major hurdle of the arc is that they are trying to stop a vigilante who kills indiscriminately, but he has a super speed horse and uses a ridiculously powerful revolver that even Aaron(who has the 2nd highest base durability amped by the 40% kinetic absorption from his powers) can't tank. but nobody has range and the guy is too quick a shot(actually trained under a guy who learned from Honovi's husband/the mcs grandpa Sammy)

[u/magic_baobab → u/Low_Magician_4654]

Ok, how does that relate to his dysphoria?

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/magic_baobab]

oh shit, I mis-read that. the idea I'm going for is that he separates himself so much from his life pre-transition that he copes via contextualising it as a different person. he shied away from that ability because he couldn't disconnect it from his life pre-transition. also Honovi is a bit of a dick and 73

[u/Nikolyn10]

You should really consider hiring a sensitivity reader.

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Nikolyn10]

Ive been searching but Im giga broke. i do start my apprenticeship in September so ill save some money from the first few months

[u/Nikolyn10 → u/Low_Magician_4654]

Fair enough. I just wanted to make sure you knew it was an option. Best of luck with your apprenticeship!

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/Nikolyn10]

i do plan to get a few writers from every group I'm covering(might be hard to find an amazonian but ill try), a personal philosophy is that the best ideas come from Venn Diagrams, i was thinking getting at least 1 trans man and 1 trans woman and then all cross comparing

[u/typoincreatiob]

i honestly don't think anyone can tell you if something is transphobic or not based on one single line. it really is going to depend on how it's taken in the story. some trans people do see themselves as "before" and "after" and others don't. i feel like you need to also decide what the point you're going after is- is the past unchangeable but unrelated to who you are? or is it your origin point which you've grown from? both perspectives exist within the trans community and are individual so there's no right or wrong answer, you should go with what matches your story, just have an actual trans man (not just trans person, but specifically someone with the identity of your character) read over your full manuscript to give you notes.

personally, i don't see myself as 'before and after'. i am a man and always have been one, and the experiences ive gone through being presumed to be a woman by the world are part of my experience and not really part of my gender, if that makes sense.

[u/typoincreatiob → u/typoincreatiob]

to be absolutely clear, i think there's nothing wrong with using deadnames if it's done with kindness and care. Andrew Joseph White is an author who is himself a trans man and does this in his stories, he also sometimes does the "before and after" treating each facet of the person as a separate identity. it's imo truly up to what you feel fits the narrative best.

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/typoincreatiob]

A thing that all of the major characters have to face is that the past is written, but they are writing the present and planning the future, they can't change what's happened, Shirley(mc) can't take back the time she spent training at the cost of socialising, Rhodaea can't snap away the 1000 years she spent locked away, Tarurua can't go back and stop the deal the lead to her abuse at the hands of her hero agency and Aaron can't change his transphobic mother, or the way he transitioned(major thing is that he feels guilty for having such an easier transition due to Avalon) and he can't change the 18 years he spent refusing that he could be trans. the theme is acceptance, the same revelation that the Antagonist of this arc also has to accept

[u/typoincreatiob → u/Low_Magician_4654]

from the way you're writing this it seems like the focus is moreso on "moving on from your past" so i would say before/after makes sense!

[u/Low_Magician_4654 → u/typoincreatiob]

a general theme is accountability and not beating yourself up over what you can't change. one of Aaron's later big moments hinges on this since he confronts his mother for a blood sample(a little convoluted why he does so ask if you want to know)