What do female writers do poorly when writing male characters?

Good thread! Women often — rightly — complain about male writers doing a poor job of characterizing women, but women writers often deal with male characters just as horribly in my opinion. I’ve seen some absurd shit written by women, no different than men writing garbage like, “She breastily emerged from the pool as her all-encompassing chestly being swayed breast-takingly.”

It’s just that women don’t get criticized often for writing horrible, unrealistic male characters and men do regarding writing women. Don’t understand quite why, though. Maybe because a lot more women read than men?

I didn’t know until just now that Norah Vincent (author of the book Self-Made Man) took her own life last year partially as a result of the trauma of living as a man for 18 months. And no one would like that, for these reasons:

If you want to be invisible in a way that almost no one would want, be a man. You’ll get your wish. And if you want to be treated by trash by a lot of women most of the time, same.

What was your first science fiction book?

I’m not 100% sure, but I think it was Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. But I tore through so many books back then I can’t say that was definitely it. Could’ve also been Brave New World.

Everyone needs to read Mark Granovetter! https://t.co/wr6Rq7o7Vr

— Noah Smith 🐇🇺🇦 (@Noahpinion) January 22, 2023

Mark is right. I’m not a very social person at all but I have a wide network of connections in the tech world, and people who would give me a job if I wanted it. Even in bad times I could likely have another role in 2-3 weeks if I needed one.

If my anti-social ass can do it, the rest of y’all can too.

China is extremely culturally compatible with America, both are giant multiethnic capitalist countries full of real estate hustle grindset guys who love business and light corruption. Completely mutually intelligible, which is why we allied with each other against the USSR. https://t.co/EIASR43P5U

— Quantian (@quantian1) January 22, 2023

China is indeed culturally compatible, much more so than Russia/the USSR.

Note: I lived in China. I’m not just guessing.

AITA My wife got a tattoo and I hate it.

Reddit people are fucking wild. I abhor tattoos and would not date anyone with them anyway, but if I were into tattoos I 100% would consult with my partner before I made a permanent change to my body she’d have to look at every goddamn day. Doing anything else at all is FUCKING INSANE.

By the same token if my partner got a tattoo without checking with me, honestly I’d probably leave her. That’s no secret at all.

I’m usually very indulgent with the kids but how dare they (not to mention Livejournal and anime message boards!) https://t.co/NH3Dqp6wVY

— Faine Greenwood (@faineg) January 21, 2023

I first used a BBS in 1984.

The reason I write about Sydney Sweeney is a lot of FA types shame her for her body and she has what was a completely normal, average 24-year-old woman’s body in 1990. Sure, she’s often dolled up, but she’s not super-fit. She’s not super-skinny. She’s not gym buff. She’s just…completely normal.

That the FA clowns see her as some anomaly, some impossible-to-achieve goal is fucking preposterous. Back in 1990, 90% of 24-year-old women looked about like she does.

The oil company propaganda against EVs is really just all out there now and hitting hard.

Guess they are getting scared at this point. And rightfully so.

US pilot shot down four Soviet MiGs in 30 minutes — and kept in a secret for 50 years.

Interesting story, but this part is not correct.

On November 18, 1952, Williams was flying the F9F Panther – the US Navy’s first jet fighter – on a mission during the Korean War.

The McDonnell FH Phantom was the US Navy’s first jet fighter, though not a particularly successful one. It was quickly replaced by better models. But facts matter — and their “fact” is wrong.