Hi! I've been struggling recently with a character I'm currently writing for a future comic.
Basically, I'm writing a character who is a trans teenager living in Japan, currently having a hard time writing this character in a way that doesn't feel like tokenism or potentially flat or worse, offensive.
I'm open to any tips or criticism in order to write such a character!
are you writing her pre-transition or describing her pre-t in a flashback? what are her own attitudes towards her transition? does she like talking about it or is it a sore subject? is the writing gin her POV?
asking bc all that would change how she feels about it. I think it just really depends on her perspective. write her like any other character, it's just part of her backstory.
trans woman here! in addition to agreeing with the questions toy is asking above, I'd also point out that there is no one general trans experience. She is trans, yes, and that is an integral aspect of her character, but she is also just herself. let her be herself and, when her trans identity becomes necessary to decipher within the context of your work, let her show you how she interprets her transness– after all, she will know her experience better than anyone else. once she's fleshed out as a character, she will let you know what you need to know.
also, as I would recommend for anyone writing about any character who doesn't fit the author's own experiences in any way, please get sensitivity readers on your work! it is okay to not have things "correct" in draft versions; that's what sensitivity edits are for. Give life to your character and she will show you how she wants to be written, and once you've written her, go from there and make sure you've done her story justice.
as a trans guy, the only piece of advice that the two people above me didn't mention is if you want to give your character some depth, write them as a person who's trans, not a transgender person. basically, your character should be her own person outside of being trans. being transgender is one of many attributes of one person, just like being smart or funny or a good listener are attributes. they combine to make someone who they are.