I don't know why I let you talk me into these things. sighes, opens Word document

Not for completion until after my exams are over, you understand.

Of course. Education comes first, naturally.

Here's a loaded question for y'all:

First, the background. The current weekly challenge in one of my anime/manga fic groups is for genderswap. Things are open as to whether the character has always been the opposite gender, gets a nasty surprise when he/she wakes up, or has been concealing his/her true gender all along.

Now, I've seen a few very bad genderswap fics out there. Some of them seem to be a way of getting two male characters together without the icky slash thing, others are a roundabout way of writing mpreg, while still others are just an excuse for a whole bunch of 'OMG, so-and-so has boobs/PMS/a dick!!!' jokes. (Some of these are funny. Others are just sad.)

Now for the question: What are some of the implications of genderswitch that you haven't seen explored in fic that you think would make for an interesting story?

Apologies if I'm not being totally clear.

Education comes first, naturally.

How I wish it could be just set aside for a day or two...

What are some of the implications of genderswitch that you haven't seen explored in fic that you think would make for an interesting story?

The most common irritating thing I see in genderswitch fic is the skinny man who, on being genderswitched, has enourmous breasts. I'd like to see a fic which gave a slightly more realistic picture of how much of his/her bodyweight might be breast. In more general terms, an MTF genderswitch fic in which the man becomes a realistically shaped woman, rather than some kind of idealised woman.

Now for the question: What are some of the implications of genderswitch that you haven't seen explored in fic that you think would make for an interesting story?

While I think it's been explored in bad genderswitch comedies of the 1980s, the difference in how others treat the switchee in the new gender.

I always thought it might be interesting, instead of exploring the "new parts!", to explore the lost parts. Like, a woman becomes a man, and is completely reoriented toward regard for her upper body. Not just how she feels physically, but how she feels about how she looks, and how other people feel about her. The sensation of public toplessness is totally different. Maybe a little alarming, maybe freeing, if public nudie beaches are any predictor.

Of course, there's a whole Fassbinder movie in "In my head I'm a man but lack man parts, oh noes the crisis of masculinity."

What are some of the implications of genderswitch that you haven't seen explored in fic that you think would make for an interesting story?

I think it would be interesting to see how they feel about their body beyond the chest and genitalia. What is it like to be taller, or shorter, or to have a weaker or stronger upper body?

Also, seeing how differently they're treated not just by other characters, but by strangers.

I think it'd be interesting to see someone be proactive about the switch, as there are medical solutions to having a dichotomy between mental and physical gender.

So, my polyfannish crack dealers...

Anyone happen to know where I can find some good Jools Siviter fic? I fear the show's canon didn't give me enough of him, damn it.

A fairly tame entry from Nikita writer, yet still with a few gems:

Nikita noticed Michael’s movements were almost subliminal

“I don’t know.” He answered, lifting a heavy metal grate and above them they could see emergency lights and could hear vehicles moving, the air was piercing with sirens and the cold temperature perforated their skin.

Her hands held on to the chair as she bounced rapidly on the hard rod that slid in and out of her very wet hub.

He was still inside her, like a lifeline, an umbilical chord.