#personally i have a weak spot for emotionally reserved/guarded characters who struggle with vulnerability and self-revelation

[chamerionwrites]

Somewhat more controversially - beyond just well-written characters, I think a lot of people find themselves repeatedly drawn to particular Types of characters. And I think the frequency with which those types appear, and the particular flavor of those types, is often (unnecessarily!) gendered. (Sticking with the espionage theme: it’s pretty difficult to find clever, calculating, socially astute female spy characters whose tradecraft doesn’t hinge primarily or at least very heavily on their sex appeal). TL;DR even very well-written female characters are often (unnecessarily!!!) confined to a much more limited set of narrative roles and archetypes.

And while I’m definitely not saying this is something we should all just accept completely uncritically, I do think it’s a pretty undeniable factor in why a lot of people’s lists of favorite blorbos might be kinda dude-heavy.

#as an aside one of the things I’m enjoying about bg3 is that there’s a lot of genderswapped archetype stuff going on w the companions #reading tag #also #fandom #my posts #like to be clear i think that as writers we should be the change we wish to see in the world #add depth and dimension to characters that canon did wrong by! genderswap some archetypes! #ask yourself if there is any particular reason the character you created needs to be the gender you initially assigned them! #but also i think it’s at least *slightly* more complex than people not engaging with characters just because they’re women #personally i have a weak spot for emotionally reserved/guarded characters who struggle with vulnerability and self-revelation #there is nothing inherently gendered about this and I can certainly name female characters that fit the mold! #but also surprise surprise: Socially Enforced Masculinity Norms And The Crushing Weight Thereof are a thing #and this is reflected in fiction. and in fictional dudes.