This post is a huge PSA for anyone writing X Reader content
You may not think this post applies to you, but it does.
There is a massive issue with inclusivity and assuming the audience. I have seen and personally experienced, time and time again, that me and many others feel as if we have no place in fandom. This specific part of it has to do with the majority of "x reader" content out there. It is all written for a cisgender (mostly heterosexual) white woman audience.
Now, cis white women getting content made for them is OBVIOUSLY not the issue here. People write for their personal interests, and there is nothing wrong with that. We all know this, and we all enjoy a fun story with our favorite characters centering around us.
The main issue here is the mentioned women not tagging their content properly, refusing to tag their content properly, straight up lying in the tags or not tagging things at all.
Trans men, nonbinary people, trans women, gay men, disabled people, fat people, intersex people and many people of color or non-american readers are constantly left out of fandom space and forgotten entirely. I've seen hundreds of complaints about it, and it needs to be spoken about more. While I'm on specifically talking about the fanfiction part of it, it is a VISIBLE issue in every fandom space you could possibly partake in. I don't even need to explain to you the rampant racism and transphobia in the cosplay community.
And the fix is extremely easy! TAG YOUR THINGS PROPERLY. It is the easiest, simplest form of allyship one could do for the community, and it goes miles. However, a lot of you seem to not understand how to, even if your heart is in the right place.
How to tag your fanfiction for the general audience:
- Specify the gender of the reader. This goes MUCH farther than just what pronouns are used. I've read WAY too many fanfics that tell me it is gender neutral, only to be hit with nicknames like "princess", or to be told the intended reader loves dresses and wears a bra.
- In tags or a prior description, mention every nickname used for the reader and every possibly gendered descriptor. It's really not difficult, and doesn't take too long.
- If necessary, mention what style of clothes the reader is specified to wear. And if this applies as well, specify any highlighted personality traits you gave the reader.
- Specify the body of the reader. This also goes much farther than gender. "Afab" and "amab" don't exactly cut it. Many people are triggered by certain words connected to genitals, so specify what words are used for those as well! Also, if you are trying to write a gender neutral body, PLEASE specify whether it is entirely gender neutral or something is implied. Many say it is gender neutral, and then explain how the reader's body self lubricates, or even has a clitoris. Please do better than that.
- For the love of God, do not automatically feminize the "GN afab" reader you wrote without a warning, and PLEASE MENTION if breasts are even spoken of, let alone used for smut reasons. And do NOT refer to someone's body as having "fem" or "male" genitalia. just say vagina or penis, please.
- Specify what body type you had in mind. Many fat or even slightly chubby individuals need to look for fanfiction that specifically caters to them, because "neutral body reader" writers, tend to not make it neutral. If you have any specifics on whatever you have written for the body mentioned, do tag it!
- Specify what sort of skin tone or hair texture is mentioned, if at all. Many POC complain that they read neutral fiction just to find straight hair, pale skin, light eyes, and blushing faces to be mentioned. If any color of the body is mentioned at all, or anything is implied, do say so! This also can go for specific things you may not think about, like how long it takes hair to dry, how easy it is to brush, hairstyles and other things of the sort.
It may seem like a bit of a list, but this is really the LEAST you can do for your community. We are consistently forgotten and ignored anywhere we go, and the simple things like this truly mean a lot.
- If there is an implied location, or anything to imply a place of origin, it's best to be on the safe side and mention that if it feels important.
- Please tag if you put the reader through, or mention a past traumatic event. Casually putting the reader character through things like an abusive ex, abusive parents, bad home or work life, or something like a car accident can be highly triggering. tag your scenes thoroughly! This also applies to putting the reader insert through something like sexist comments, unwanted touching of any kind, and similarly negative situations.
I cannot tell you the amount of times I've turned to fanfiction as an outlet and an escape, as many others have, just to be jumpscared by my favorite characters misgendering me. It's truly a miserable experience knowing no place is actually welcoming to me, or in the very least accommodating for people who aren't like them. This post is NOT meant to shame or send harassment to those who are forgetful, but ignorance is never a good thing to uphold. No one is asking you to write for an audience you don't want to, we just want to KNOW who you are writing for. Assuming an entire space is all one demographic is never, ever a good thing.
If you need help writing for a demographic you don't fully understand, just ask people who are a part of it how they would! Look at how other writers write and tag their content, and listen to anyone if they have necessary critiques. I wish you all happy writing! :]
Reblogs are highly appreciated, as this message needs to be spread as far as possible!
Compared to how much human language and Cybertronian are different from other, they would never guess one day their human would come to them and use some keyboard device to talk to them. (Like how rocky talk to grace on the ship lol)
Human: *start typing* [ Greetings fellow bot. ]
Bots: !??!!! You can talk Cybertronian now?!
Human: *clicking sound* [ Yes, how are you today? ]
Bots: Fine…Great actually—, wow you really speak our language…this is incredible!
Human: [ device still in developing]
Human: [ want to know bot’s name ]
Bots: but aren’t you already know my name?
Human: [ in cybertronian not earth language ]
Bots: OH— okay it’s (…).
Human: *typing* [ -— -—? ]
Bots: YES! I’m so proud of you! Good human!
Human: [ proud happy thank you ]
Bots: *mutter* Primus…this is the best day of my life.
I like to imagine how the bots react to humans just going down to town on fruits/meat as we eat them with very little to none tables manners (it would be in a setting where bots have kidnapped the human and keep them in an enclosure) and they leave them food and fruits after forgetting to feed them for the past 36 hours because they are still getting used to humans having to eat every few hours or else they die.
Which makes it funnier if they leave them the food (let's say a dragon fruit and steak) and they come to check on the human after a few minutes to see the human staring at them like this
The sight alone is enough to make a grown mech leak oil down their panels as they try to figure out if that pinkish red stuff on their mouth is some poor organic life form that managed to somehow sneak it's way into the enclosure and ended up in the human's mouth, "by primus, what's that in your mouth,SPIT IT OUT NOW!!" As they try to wrestle the steak out of your mouth, as they shake you like how a preschooler shakes their hamster.
Only to see the peels of the dragon fruit laying down beside the piece of steak that you had been busy tearing into with your teeth after having been starved on accident by them
Said bots would be worried about the chance of you tearing into their neck cables if they do forget to feed you (they deadass forget they are made of metal) like idw rodimus, drift, brainstrom, tfo sentinel, most of starscream's versios, last but not least Megatron in almost all continuities with the skybound one being where either of you go at the other's throat and you being a human is NOT a free pass, cause you getting chomped.
I’m sure this is a very common take, but I haven’t had any motivation to write fandom stuff lately, so I wanted to get this little bit down while I had the inspiration
—
Being the human partner of a Cybertronian, any Cybertronian really, and turning this huge, hulking, intimidating bot into a giant mechanical cat with some gentle touches, some kisses, and sweet words. Standing on your bot’s shoulder, gently stroking a hand over their cheekplate, and listening to that earthshaking rumble of their engine as they purr. Your bot gently nudging you with their cheek or nose when you stop, silently insisting the continued touch and affectionate words. Your bot mass displacing and crawling into your bed, arranging pillows on your lap before laying their head down and promptly falling into a well deserved recharge. (Let’s pretend that they wouldn’t shatter the bed frame just by putting a little weight on it, lmao-) Your bot trying to teach you chirolinguistics, not realizing that you don’t have the same kinds of sensors in your palm as they do, leaving you incredibly confused. Your bot relishing in the tiny flickers of unabashed emotion they get from your very weak organic EM field. Singing softly to your bot, only for them to croon one of their favorite Cybertronian tunes right back, and the both of you giggling over just how vastly different your music is from each other’s. Your bot trying to teach you the Cybertronian language, and you trying to teach them about human art/literature/philosophy/etc. You and your bot being soft and cute and fluffy. Send tweet 🏃♀️💨
—
I hope you don’t mind me tagging you, but you’re the one who motivated me to get back into writing!!! This lil drabble certainly isn’t my best work, but it’s the most I’ve done in awhile, haha @revelboo
Y/n: Male platypus has half-inch poisonous spurs located on the inner side of the back ankle. Scientists believe that males use these spurs to compete with rivals during the breeding season. A kick from one of these bad boys is potent enough to kill small animals and cause intense pain in humans...
Bulkhead: B-but it seems friend-shaped...
Y/n*Pats his helm and kisses it*Oh boy, you are not ready to know about otter's truth of male otters...
Y/n*Is in a giant birdcafe*The Egyptians believed, the most significant thing you could do in your life... was DIE
Megatron*Who Kidnapped you, and just stared at you with a raised "brow"*I think we got a defective human...
Shockwave & Soundwave:....
Y/n*Looks at Megatron*You look like a metal shark...I like sharks- OH, did you know Baby sharks eat their siblings inside the womb of their mommy shark!... Actually, humans that too tho only with twin cases if the twin dies inside the mother
Megatron & Soundwave*Both their shoulders raise up like a flinch*...
Shockwave: Humans are...more interesting than first thought. All that they stated seems to be true
--------------------------Still inside the Nemesis--------------------------
Y/n*Is on soundwaves desk, watching him work, your leg chained to the wall*You like elephants, don't you...
Soundwave:....
Y/n: Don't try to hide it, your pretty bird of death spilled the beans. Did you know Humans and Elephants are the only ones in the animal kingdom to have chins? Not even gorillas or chimpanzees have one...
Soundwave*Was enraged Lazerbeak seems to humoir you, but then his head tilted to imagine the cuteness of elephants and now you being similar*Statement: Fact seems to be...true
Y/n: Oh, also Elephant, so matter if they're adults ot babies...think humans are cute-...go on see videos on youtube!
Soundwave:...
-Five minutes later-
Starscream*Coming into Soundwave's workplace*Soundwave, The autobots are requesting-...
Soundwave, Lazerbeak, you, and even...some vehicons are on the youtube watching a compilation of cute animal videos
Y/n: Where putting cat videos next, wanna join us?...
