We really shouldn't judge authors' writing based on their identity. 9/10 times, we don't even know what their identity is.

I've seen reviewers say "this non-cis representation is flawed. Cis ppl shouldn't write non-cis characters" →

Only to have the author popping in to say "Hi. I'm actually not cis. Thanks for assuming." →

It feels silly that I have to post places "I'm LGBT+ spec" to avoid being attacked like I see others getting attacked. →

I've dealt with discovery, hiding my identity, feeling like a freak, coming out, etc. I tended to not write about that stuff with my chara.→

LGBT+ characters who don't go through that aren't any less valid even if it's not the rep someone in particular is looking for.

And when that stuff is there, just because it isn't your experience doesn't mean it isn't valid. It could be the author's or someone the →

author spoke to who has that identity.

I don't think anyone should have to say "I'm X identity so I'm qualified to write this!" If you aren't that identity, just research and →

talk to people who are if you're worried. But as readers, even if we find something disagreeable, we can say so without pointing →

→ The Author Must Be Cis/Het/Diff. ID fingers. Because you don't know what they are.

Just because a female author is married with kids doesn't mean she isn't bi, pan, trans, or hell, even lesbian.

And it frankly isn't our business. So if we're going to criticze rep, we can criticize it, but bringing up the author's identity based →

on assumptions isn't fair. "I couldn't really relate to this rep" or "I felt this rep was personally offensive" is fine. Authors ID doesn't→

matter when you just want to let other readers know. It's either offensive/ill-portrayed to you or it isn't. Author ID doesn't matter.

And, again, the reason it doesn't matter is because: 1. You probably don't know for sure. And →

2. Authors of ANY ID can research and talk to in-ID people. So even if the author is out-ID, that's not an excuse for bad rep/portrayal. →

TL;DR: If you criticize LGBTQ+ rep, do it without assuming and bringing up the author's ID. And keep in mind your perceptions on the rep →

don't represent the entire community. Someone with the same ID may not have those same concerns because their experiences are different. //