Was the issue for them that A&B were equating asexual fic with gen fic? (Which has a lot to do with how gen seems always to have been defined by what it isn't.) But a story centered on a relationship is by definition not gen, regardless of what constitutes that relationship and it's not like asexual characters don't want relationships.
In some ways I do see queer fic as much like gen fic, in that it is also defined by what it is not -- which is heteronormativity.
Either way though, I can imagine the sense of erasure that produced -- and has probably continued to since it is easy for it to become obscured. Plus most interactions would have a lot of assumptions built into them that would be time consuming or awkward to confront.
"What fics about asexual characters?" I'd never seen one. I'd never imagined one. Were they out there? What would that look like? How was a fic about an asexual character different from a gen fic? I was thirty-ish, and I'd known that I was asexual for a decade or so, but it had never once occurred to me that someone like me might appear in a story.
I've read across various large, active fandoms, and I'm not surprised you were surprised. I'm not surprised it was in Sherlock fic that you first saw asexuality presented. I find it amazing that he's so rarely written as one when canon almost presents him that way (especially pre-S3). It's been only the last 3-5 years that I've come across any fic with asexual characters, and I suspect there was very little a decade ago.
I do agree about Illyria. Granted, I understand they have a long comics history together but I found it unfortunate that this is the direction Vision was taken in the MCU because it seems so unnecessary. (Which brings up the larger issue that if you don't know what to do with characters, throwing them into a sexual/romantic attraction seems to be a common choice -- I had an issue with this in S4 of Lucifer). But I have also seen writers create AU stories that change a character's canon sexuality.
I still feel a little sheepish about how it's only a sub-plot; in the actual stories, the building up of Mac and Vic's relationship gets a lot more screen-time.
This made sense to me because Li Ann was not going on any kind of intentional journey of self-discovery, whereas most of the stories were a very deliberate reveal of Mac's past and present. Plus Vic also discovers new things about himself as a result. So even though all three were on a similar path, it's Mac that got the most focus and it isn't really until Safe that Li Ann really starts understanding the parts of his past that she missed.
That said, I hadn't realized that Ben's existence and subplot had been primarily a way for Li Ann to encounter a new identity!
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branchandroot
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Date: 2019-05-27 08:22 pm (UTC)In some ways I do see queer fic as much like gen fic, in that it is also defined by what it is not -- which is heteronormativity.
Either way though, I can imagine the sense of erasure that produced -- and has probably continued to since it is easy for it to become obscured. Plus most interactions would have a lot of assumptions built into them that would be time consuming or awkward to confront.
"What fics about asexual characters?" I'd never seen one. I'd never imagined one. Were they out there? What would that look like? How was a fic about an asexual character different from a gen fic? I was thirty-ish, and I'd known that I was asexual for a decade or so, but it had never once occurred to me that someone like me might appear in a story.
I've read across various large, active fandoms, and I'm not surprised you were surprised. I'm not surprised it was in Sherlock fic that you first saw asexuality presented. I find it amazing that he's so rarely written as one when canon almost presents him that way (especially pre-S3). It's been only the last 3-5 years that I've come across any fic with asexual characters, and I suspect there was very little a decade ago.
I do agree about Illyria. Granted, I understand they have a long comics history together but I found it unfortunate that this is the direction Vision was taken in the MCU because it seems so unnecessary. (Which brings up the larger issue that if you don't know what to do with characters, throwing them into a sexual/romantic attraction seems to be a common choice -- I had an issue with this in S4 of Lucifer). But I have also seen writers create AU stories that change a character's canon sexuality.
I still feel a little sheepish about how it's only a sub-plot; in the actual stories, the building up of Mac and Vic's relationship gets a lot more screen-time.
This made sense to me because Li Ann was not going on any kind of intentional journey of self-discovery, whereas most of the stories were a very deliberate reveal of Mac's past and present. Plus Vic also discovers new things about himself as a result. So even though all three were on a similar path, it's Mac that got the most focus and it isn't really until Safe that Li Ann really starts understanding the parts of his past that she missed.
That said, I hadn't realized that Ben's existence and subplot had been primarily a way for Li Ann to encounter a new identity!