I'm don't think men are actually bad at yuri. I just feel all of their characters are second hand interpretations of lesbians. I know this is a bit unfair, but as a straight cis man I know it's true.
Well, considering a lot of BL stories are written by women (and some really good ones, even), I wouldn't say it's impossible for a cis guy to write good yuri, even without first hand experience. The problem is finding a guy that can write about les/bi women without resorting to stereotypes.
I'm not into BL, but strangely enough if I were to read it, I would read a woman writer. It would give me a glimpse into how women see men. Plus I think women write BL for the same reason I read yuri, A connection to a world we want to know but can't ever really understand.
I guess each person has their reasons. I dabble in both GL and BL fiction, myself, but it's not like I want to have a connection to the reality of gay men, it's just that I like love stories, really, and I enjoy exploring several possibilities. Besides, I'd say most people tend to prefer love stories that match their orientation (like how I read and write mostly gay stories, but my mother and sister always prefer straight romances).
But I get what you say about wanting to read stuff that we can't experience, because that's maybe the very reason why fiction exists. Even if you're a gay girl, the stories in yuri may have some small similarities to our experiences, but a lot of it is original. None of us will ever be in the exact same situation as, say, Yuu or Touko, but we still enjoyed reading YagaKimi. It's not too far off if you're a guy reading yuri or a gal reading BL.
It would give me a glimpse into how women see men.
Yeah well then it's the same things for mens writing yuris. Why womens can write BL and nobody bat an eye but if a man write a yuri, it's not ok ? It's contradictory.
Because 80% of the time, men who write yuri/GL fill the story with stereotypes and fetishes they get from lesbian porn. But if a guy does write good lesbian romance stories, I don't think most people would mind that.
last edited at Dec 29, 2019 1:18PM