Depending on who you ask, J.K. Rowling is either a hero or a villain.
Either she’s the creator of the most iconic fantasy world to have ever existed or a trans-bashing vigilante.
I personally see her as the former and a staunch defender of women’s rights.
Does that, by default, make me a transphobe?
Not at all, but I also realise what I believe of myself and what others believe are two different things and rarely ever worth the sweat of changing their minds. I suppose my case isn’t helped that I haven’t written a single trans person (or anyone from the LGBTQ+ group) into any of my books. 😬
And if you think that’s bad, wait until you hear this:
I PROBABLY NEVER WILL.
Oh yes, I can already hear the frantic thumbs typing away mean tweets and angry FB posts.
Such fickle shrews. 🤦
If they just popped some Omeprazole and took a deep breath, they might just discover why I say this. In fact, the reason is surprisingly simple and almost a bit too respectful, given fiction authors have the creative license to explore anything they feel so inclined.
That reason?
I don’t know what it’s like to be gay or trans, nor have I spent enough time around those who are.
And before dissenters think he or she (or they?) has a smoking gun on me…
Yes, I write women.
Heck, I even lead with one in Abbey Ruins (Book #2 of my supernatural thriller series: Curse of Abbey Ruins).
What makes me qualified to write about a woman and not a minority person?
Well, for starters, I live with a woman. I’ve had a kid with one (soon to be two), grew up with many of them, and interact with women on a near-daily basis. They are fascinating creatures, let me tell you.
However, sadly, the same cannot be said for the former.
Until that changes, it would be disingenuous of me to write about a trans or gay character in a way that would do them justice.
Now, while the shrews gear up for yet another retort, let’s get back to Rowling:
I don’t agree with everything she says, but there is one thing I absolutely agree with, which was cited in a business article I recently stumbled upon.
She was quoted as saying:
"It's impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well have not lived at all."
One of the many things I’ve “failed” at was writing supernatural horror.
It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy the stories I wrote (I did — many of which are collecting e-dust on my hard drive). I simply reached a creative bottleneck that couldn’t be broken. Whether it was a brand-spanking new series or an existing one, I couldn’t shake the sense I was writing the same ghosts, in the same homes, haunting the same down-on-their-luck characters.
That’s not to say I regret writing supernatural thrillers.
Not at all.
The journey of being an author is to bumble and fumble around until you find your “lane.”
Right now and in the foreseeable…
That’s fantasy.
But if you couldn’t give two Hermiones for this genre, and much prefer to read about haunted woodlands and stuff that goes “bump in the night,” then remember that little duology I spoke of earlier?
The Curse of Abbey Ruins?
Well, you can grab the two-book bundle right here:
https://djjwatsonstore.com/products/COAR
DJJW