Should I use the LGBTQ+ Tag?

[ameliori]

Hello everyone! I'm new to Tapas! I just started my comic a week ago, and my main character is pansexual. I thought about using the LGBTQ+ tag, but I wasn't sure if it's appropriate, since the story doesn't focus too much on his gender identity. He just happens to bang everyone that's all lol.

But then again, leaving it out might not also be good. The main genre is Romance, and some readers might assume it's het and get surprised. I don't think it's bad if they get upset. They're just not in the mood for a queer romance that's all, and I understand that might not be what they're looking for at that moment.

So what do you think? Maybe I should just let the story run its course and let people unsubscribe if they don't like the content?

Also, I'm only at my third chapter, so there isn't LGBTQ+ content yet. Should I warn people beforehand? Do you think they'll get upset if I suddenly spring some gay without warning? haha

[darthmongoose]

I'd say put it in as a secondary genre if it's relevant. It helps ward off homophobes and attract people for whom it's a plus.

I've got it in my tags already even though so far there are only vague hints and mentions of LGBTQ+ characters in my Action comic, because it gets really freaking gay later and I don't want anyone to be reading it and then get all pissy like "nobody told me this comic made by a lesbian about ladies swinging huge swords around and rainbow ghosts and really buff demons was going to be GAY!"

[Inspector_Spinda]

nobody told me this comic made by a lesbian about ladies swinging huge swords around and rainbow ghosts and really buff demons was going to be GAY!"

You laugh but I’m literally that clueless. Not a homophobe thankfully, but I was looking at a pic of butts the other day and I thought they were eggs for a full 5 minutes.

[thedude3445]

I suggest LGBTQ+ tag as your main one, if only because Romance is super crowded and you may have more luck getting new readers to discover your comic that way. The Fantasy genre is even more crowded, so I'd suggest swapping that one with LGBTQ+.

[Kaydreamer]

I've got the same conundrum. Most of the romances in my sci-fi/fantasy/action comic are het, because it's what I'm into, but there are a couple of LGBT+ romances as well, amongst side characters. I feel like tagging the comic as LGBT would be lying, but at the same time, it would ward off people who would potentially complain about some characters turning out to be LGBT down the track.

I wish there was an easy answer.

[tiredpigeon]

I wouldn't- Most of the characters in both of my novels are LGBTQ+ in some way and in one the gayness of the characters ends up being really important later. SO... if the gayness of your character doesn't give to the narrative or plot in some way (love interests included) then you shouldn't mark it. Also, if your pansexual character (male, I assume) ends up dating a lady, then don't mark it LGBT unless said lady happens to be trans or nonbinary.

[Freemints30]

I disagree with that period.

Bisexuality/pansexuality is still LGBTQ+ regardless of your final partner (even if its Het)

If he dates a variety as you said until the end. Put the tag to ward off the weirds.

Really have that tag even though my main relationship only comes into play much later)

[Llyrel]

The way I did it was adding "lgbtq+" as a tag, rather than as a sub-genre. About half of the cast in my comic is LGBTQ+, but since the main focus of the story is not romance (no, seriously, you'll have to wait for... what, 35 chapters for the first hint of proper romance to show? ._.), I didn't feel like adding lgbtq+ as a whole sub-genre.

If the comic does fall into the romance category as is the case for OP, though, I would definitely consider adding LGBTQ+ as a sub-genre or even a main genre, since the romance category, as others mentioned, is very overpopulated.

Bisexuality/pansexuality is still LGBTQ+ regardless of your final partner (even if its Het)

^ THIS.

[ameliori]

Thanks everyone for the replies! Your insights were super valuable.

I think I will add the LGBTQ+ tag and consider putting it as a second genre, just cos I remembered I have a handful of asexual characters whose gender identity will affect the story.

The second reason is the "Romance" tag. If we explore the romance tag just a bit, I think we can all agree there is a certain kind of expectation there. Het romance, in particular, is very cut and dry. There's the FL and the ML, maybe a second ML, and they go through various situations/hijinks while falling in love. I'd say that's the expectation.

For this reason, I am strongly considering making LGBTQ+ a second genre, just cos my story doesn't follow that same flow.

Now, if I use the LGBTQ tag, the question becomes "how long will it take for the people looking for the gay to put up with het romance before they riot"? hahaha

[ameliori]

Yeah, I feel the same way. I don't want to mislead anyone, as if I'm advertising Lgbt content when it's not the main focus... Sigh. I wish it wasn't a big deal. Some characters are just queer, why is that a problem? Why are we so worried people will complain?

But then, it goes the same way, I am also worried that people looking for LGBT content will get upset that I feature the MC with het romances.

@ghostoast May I ask why I shouldn't mark it LGBT just cos the partner is female? The MC is nonbinary, after all. The comic will feature queer romance. I'd like to assume you're offering a practical reason. If so, I'd like to hear it so I can consider.

Honestly, I am a little worried that people looking for LGBTQ stuff will get annoyed at the het romance. Are they against seeing that sort of thing?

[cortezlord96]

I agree with @Freemints30 just cause they end up in a hetero relationship doesn't make them not LGBTQ+. That is like saying just cause a bi male ends up with a female, it makes him straight. As long as the story features LGBTQ+ characters in a larger role or themes, then they qualify for the tag.

The reason I say that is cause then you could be sending a bad message to the Pan and Bi, etc communities that you MUST end up with a certain type of people to be "LGBTQ+".

[cortezlord96]

People are gonna riot REGARDLESS. The romance community is already toxic AF, cause your gonna bring the shipper, the people who DEMAND every aspect be LGBTQ+, and unfortunately the people who are gonna say your story isn't diverse enough regardless of how diversity you have.

So my point, is don't worry about the hate and the angry. Look for good feedback and focus on telling a quality story.
You got this

[ameliori]

You have a super good point!! I think I'm just a little nervous cos I'm new to this. I really don't want to mislead or offend anyone, but there will always be talk no matter what. Thank you so much for the encouragement!

[kitkatxk]

I love how people think gay needs a warning like we just popped a tit out or something in public and started waving it around. I dunno if people want to sit there and be sensitive that things got a little too gay for them. Maybe they should be taking a minute to step back and wonder why. It's 2021 after all.

That said I think you should tag it. But if you decide not to then just add a small disclaimer at the front of your story description. Like LGBTQ character within, peek at your own risk.

pfft.

We so scary.

Also side note side note. Yay a Pansexual like me as a main character. highfive Some rep, yas.

[indagold]

I have lgbt characters in my comics but don't use the tag. I feel like unless that's the main theme or one of the main themes, seems kinda pointless. People click on lgbt specifically for the romance, pride or discourse. I don't think they wanna spend 300 pages waiting to see something remotely gay lol maybe that's just me.

[CytricAcid]

I see the lgbtq tag for a more inclusive and/or written by actual lgbtq people, for lgbtq people type comics. it doesnt preclude romance, but i feel its a catchall term for comics that deal with lgbtq themes.

[HippieGhost]

I second most of these suggestions. Your work may not focus heavily on being LGBTQ+ but it's still an LGBTQ+ work, and as it evolves you may find that those themes will grow only more prevalent.

Case in point: I have fantasy marked as my primary genre and LGBT+ as my secondary, but of my 4 short stories out so far, 2 of them ended up having LGBT themes as their focus, with one ending up being about a person discovering she's transgender, and the other featuring a character who is very obviously thirsty for her lady mercenary. On top of that a third features a nonbinary MC, and that's when I included the tag since they were my first clear showing of a non-cis character.

Basically what I'm saying is that I had the same question about my work, but the longer it goes on the gayer it gets. My next story might depart from that a bit, but all it takes is my one character to decide that she's thirsty for someone to change that too.

[Iris-Grimoire]

Lots of good points on the work itself, but here's a pratical reason to put LGBT+ first - secondary tags don't work unless people search for them, just like work tags. For now, it'll only appear on the first genre you have set - so if you keep Romance or Fantasy, you might get buried at the start.

Personally, I switched to LGBT+ exactly because of that - my story is character-focused and that doesn't show much through a cover in the middle of tons of similar works. The characters' identities aren't as overt as most stories there, but it's still a fundamental part of most of the cast, so it still belongs AND someone will click to go "yeah, I would like to read a fantasy story with those themes" rather than fighting the uphill battle the other way around.

[vothnthorvaldson]

Ah yes, the question I'm asking myself since years..
Still no definitive answer, but I went for the pros/cons strategy, and see how the proportion of pros vs cons evolves as my story advances. This is for the case of Tapas or any other case where I can change category/tag as I go.

Pro putting my story in the LGBT category

• Most of my cast is LGBT

• I am a LGBT creator and it apparently shows in my work even when LGBT themes are not involved (for eg. I am NB and also have difficulties perceiving other people's genders, thus my characters are (apparently? I can't see it myself) gendered in an 'unusual' way, which make some people hesitate on their gender; and I also had some NB people guessing I was NB without me telling them, only from my comic).

• There are two chapters speaking mainly and directly of LGBT related themes.

• I personally love reading about LGBT characters in genres others than romance or entirely LGBT-themed stories. This is something that I missed enormously growing up, and I think it is a shame if it exists but cannot be easily found because it is not tagged so, and thus get lost into all the other material.

• It is useful as a warning. I don't give a shit about homophobes, but I care about people whose families, environment etc is a threat. I had to warn a few real life friends about the existence of LGBT themes in my work so they could read it when they are alone and safe. So, I feel the need to do the same with anonymous readers.

Cons about putting my story in the LGBT category

• Although my cast is mainly LGBT, it's not really something that is important for most of the story.

• Only about 1 chapter out of 5/6 has significant LGBT material. It may be disappointing for someone who would read my story mostly for that.

• The first clear allusions to LGBT content come pretty late in the story.

• Despite my feelings about the need to warn people as explained earlier, it is still very difficult for me to warn people about what I am. It is very, very uncomfortable, and much more difficult when it comes to strangers (much more difficult than to tell my IRL friend with the homophobic mother that there will be LGBT content and please read it in your room).

So first I only put a LGBT tag, because I thought it was a good way to give people more info if they wanted it. Maybe not for actually searching the tag, but for informing on content the person who would be about to start reading.

When the multiple category came, I put LGBT as a secondary one, same idea, as extra info. But I did not think putting it as main category was fair, because I felt it was going to disappoint people specifically looking for LGBT content.

HOWEVER! When I will be publishing a later chapter, that focuses almost entirely on the teen years and early adulthood of a trans character, I will switch to LGBT as a main category. Because I think this chapter will be exactly what kind of relevant content should be found under a LGBT category, and also that chapter is possible to be read alone, so someone who would only be interested in this section could find it (and hopefully read the rest too, but this is their choice).

So, in conclusion my strategy is balancing pros and cons and not hesitate to change my categories when I feel it makes sense to do so.

[cortezlord96]

No problem! Keep your head up and don't let the negative voices get in your head.