4 Comments

By the very nature of my marginalized identities (queer and crazy) I often don't know whether someone shares them or is simply closeted.

I love love love the Chinese novel mo dao zu shi, which is *probably* by a heterosexual woman, although because she's Chinese she might very well be queer and closeted. It does have quite a lot of the "isolated queer" problem you mention though (the only non-protagonist gay character dies before the book begins). It also has probably my favorite autistic character of all time, Lan Wangji, although again I have no idea if the author has autism.

NBC Hannibal has a really deep understanding of what it's like to be autistic, psychotic, Crazy Not Otherwise Specified, and a victim of psychiatric abuse. I assume that Bryan Fuller isn't crazy because all of the things he says about being crazy in interviews are extremely stupid.

Revolutionary Girl Utena was directed by a cisgender and heterosexual man but I and many other lesbians and transgender people I know found it deeply resonant with our experiences.

It's not quite a marginalization, but I also want to mention that several of my otherkin friends have read Amends and they universally love Sharptooth. Some of the shibboleths aren't quite right, but you did a really good job of writing *what it's like* to be an otherkin.

Expand full comment

Hi Eve. I have a movie example too, which is The Fits (eerie magical story about a Black girl directed by a white woman). I could also read for you. Just a disclosure that I'm not African American, technically. My parents are from Africa, Cape Verde to be specific, but I would like to help or pass this along to my friends.

Expand full comment