Writing for the Opposite Gender

[Absurdity]

I have an idea for something I want to write (not sure specifically about length and ideal medium) and the main character is a high school-aged girl. I've never written from a girl's point of view though and want to make sure I don't do a terrible job of it.

I've read that women often have an easier time writing as men because most "great books" tend to have men as main characters and male authors. Women also, arguably, have to spend a lot more time figuring out how men think in order to get by in the world.

We are of course all human, and I'm not trying to make it seem like women are inscrutable mysteries or whatever, but some of the ideas I'm interested in deal particularly with some of the struggles a young woman goes through. What's it like for a weird little girl (meant to be taken affectionately) to wake up one day and have people tell her she's really pretty? What if she has a staunch moral code and doesn't want to give up her virginity? Trying to have guy friends ("friend-zoning" them), figuring out what she wants to do with her life (what if she "just" wants to be a mother?), etc.

Not sure if that's very clear, but does anyone have any thoughts or recommendations on how one might be able to craft a believable character of the opposite gender?

 

[Cavallier]

If you were writing a plot driven story I think this might not be an issue for you. However, it sounds like you are writing something that explores life from a female perspective. Perhaps research might be in order. Try to find out how women experience the world?

Can you give us specific situations your character might deal with and we few female INTPs can weigh in?

 

[Cognisant]

I don't think there's anything wrong with writing a gender swapped version of yourself, so long as you're consistent about it there's no wrong way to write a character, you could even write a really girly-girl as long as you have other characters that contrast with her to show that's just her, not your perception of women in general.

It's just like how some guys are sensitive and others are macho douchebags.

 

[Jennywocky]

It depends on what type of woman you're trying to write, and what culture she is part of.

Examples are good.

 

[not]

Why do you want to write a story from the perspective of a girl? Can you incorporate the answer to the first question into your story somehow? - As far as whether or not it is okay, I advocate just doing it and then letting women read it and getting feedback. If you are going to offend someone then let it be a few first, unless your aiming to offend...

 

[Deleted member 1424]

So your idea for three dimensional female character is an attractive high school student who frets over boys and her virtue? It's deep because she's quirky and moral; like zooey deschanel right?

I'm trying not to be presumptive, but the base concept sounds superficial and patronizing. Kudos for trying, and trying to do it well. That's more than most I guess.


side thought:
People make way too much media centered around vapid high school problems.

side thought 2:
Gender is only one facet of a whole character.

 

[Cherry Cola]

Ya read some high school gal blogs and some margaret atwood and mby the little friend by Donna Tarrt

Ya avoid the MPDG archetype like the pest

 

[Absurdity]

So your idea for three dimensional female character is an attractive high school student who frets over boys and her virtue? It's deep because she's quirky and moral; like zooey deschanel right?

I'm trying not to be presumptive, but the base concept sounds superficial and patronizing. Kudos for trying, and trying to do it well. That's more than most I guess.

Fair criticisms. The questions had more to do with the basics of the character and the setting than the plot. I guess there's no point beating around the bush if I want more applicable feedback.

The basic idea is a modern St. Agnes of Rome: the girl hears the voice of God and wants to be a consecrated virgin like she was, but is persecuted for it.

 

[Pyropyro]

Well you could do it the way Stephen King wrote Carrie; by enlisting his wife's help. Perhaps you can have a girl friend help you with your reference materials.

 

[Pinion]

Since there isn't currently a one way women work, you're free to create a female character how you like - and I don't mean that in a dismissive way. This would be a problem if you wanted to make something like a believable and realistic modern fisherman, and needed to find technical and atmospheric knowledge in order to not put off anyone with the slightest idea of how to drive a boat. Something as broad as a man or a woman doesn't really require that kind of hands-on, researched understanding by default. Many beloved characters are not very much like real people.

You might do better to research settings and how they'd impact someone's ways of thinking and feeling, or even an audience for this and a message.

 

[r4ch3l]

It's tough.

I have been working on one fiction project for several years, have stacks of beatsheets, freewriting about concepts, excerpts from journals, research, character descriptions and development. But writing about or as women, even as a woman, is fucking hard. I find myself unable to write anything descriptive or being paranoid about making dialogue "believable". But only when I am writing for women. I worry that I will never finish.

I think a large part of the reason it is so difficult is that there are no examples and it's new terrain in a way. The lives/education/possibilities/priorities of women have changed so radically even in just the last 50 years. The most common women protagonists we see in books these days are....memoirists talking about overcoming ____ and politically-correct "strong"/"smart"/relatable-but-supernatural girls obsessed with boys in teen fiction.

I think Janet Fitch (White Oleander, Paint it Black) has been so popular because she taps into how women think and what is important to them without being self-conscious.

 

[Cherry Cola]

Most important of all: don't overthink it : D

 

[Ex-User (9062)]

Either you co-author this or you get deep into the female psyche.
If you don't plan to become a metro- or trans-sexual anytime soon,
i would recommend the first option.

 

[Jennywocky]

I haven't responded because I'm not sure how to answer; when I try to tear it apart, I come up with the answer that such writing is also very simple and yet very hard. I've seen stories with female protagonists that seem authentic without a vast difference between male and female, and I've seen other stories that are distinctly feminine and very much immersed in a view that I wouldn't expect to see coming from males.

Are you trying too hard or not hard enough? I'm honestly not sure.

Why not just take your best shot, without getting caught up in thinking about how to write, and see how your first draft goes? Maybe women will relate to your character without the process being so laborious; the fear here is that, if you think too much about how to write, you might never do it.

EDIT: I guess young girl fiction might be a little different (I had missed that part of what you were tackling), with the gender experiences more boundaried. (I think there is more overlap later in later in life.) Oh well, sorry if this whole post is a wash...

 

[Absurdity]

I guess I should note that I'm not as interested in this particular idea as I was when I started the thread. I'm still interested in the topic generally, but will be devoting my time to a different idea. All of the feedback is still greatly appreciated and I hope the discussion will continue.

 

[Minuend]

We are of course all human, and I'm not trying to make it seem like women are inscrutable mysteries or whatever, but some of the ideas I'm interested in deal particularly with some of the struggles a young woman goes through. What's it like for a weird little girl (meant to be taken affectionately) to wake up one day and have people tell her she's really pretty? What if she has a staunch moral code and doesn't want to give up her virginity? Trying to have guy friends ("friend-zoning" them), figuring out what she wants to do with her life (what if she "just" wants to be a mother?), etc.

For thinking exercise, replace the stereotype young girl with an imagined younger version of a female on this forum. Or someone you know in real life.

The basic idea is a modern St. Agnes of Rome: the girl hears the voice of God and wants to be a consecrated virgin like she was, but is persecuted for it.

The character could still transcend the shallow ideals of society and have a higher purpose to which other people's criticism of her moral code became irrelevant to her.

 

[Steven Gerrard]

A real life Manic Pixie Dream Girl? An ESFJ?

but like delve deep into the nothing that's there.

 

[Hawkeye]

I guess I should note that I'm not as interested in this particular idea as I was when I started the thread. I'm still interested in the topic generally, but will be devoting my time to a different idea. All of the feedback is still greatly appreciated and I hope the discussion will continue.

7 days... You lost interest within 7 days!



Unless you are writing something gender specific it doesn't matter. The personality of a character is what makes them interesting.