There is a gay male character in one of my books and he's always saying things are "faaaaaabulous!"
The problem is that it's the year 2030. Would a gay man speak like this 20 years in the future? It doesn't seem likely, does it? I mean, he might do it for a retro thrill but there would probably be some wonderful new word that gay people use with a sense of style and fun and exaggeration.
I need suggestions. It's 2030 and you're a gay man. What word would you use in a gay, campy way? This one's got me stumped. Any thoughts?
The problem is that it's the year 2030. Would a gay man speak like this 20 years in the future? It doesn't seem likely, does it? I mean, he might do it for a retro thrill but there would probably be some wonderful new word that gay people use with a sense of style and fun and exaggeration.
I need suggestions. It's 2030 and you're a gay man. What word would you use in a gay, campy way? This one's got me stumped. Any thoughts?
2 comments:
The words we use in daily conversation are always changing. Back in the 1960's people said "groovy". How often do you hear that term used at all these days?
To answer your question, one would have to understand the popular culture of the envisioned time, something I have no clue about minus the context that a description of the world you are creating to people with your characters would provide.
You are likely going to have to invent a pop/gay culture for the time period of your story. In that, you are likely going to have to work in an explanation of your new word or phrase to a reader that hasn't visited your future.
Think for a moment where the expression "she's toast" or "he's toast" might have come from. Then perhaps you can create a pop scene that a gay character might have mined for a particularly catchy substitute for the rather old-school word "fabulous".
You're right. I'm handicapping everyone by not talking about the world. On the other hand, I have to hide that world until publication. There's a good reason for this. So perhaps I've asked an impossible question.
But despite this, you've made excellent suggestions. I'm going to try exactly what you said. And thanks for diving in and trying to be helpful. I really appreciate it.
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