Protego in Prose: Writing a Non-Binary Character

by Marina Montenergo (ne/nem/ner)

I recently began work on my next novel, currently working under the title Eyadion, and for the first time, I am including a character who is genderless. Being gender neutral myself, I immediately fell in love with my non-binary character. However, the character has been difficult to write. Despite being gender neutral, I was still raised in a society where my mind is used to gendering people. Below are a few decisions I had to make when I began writing about my character, and things you should know about any non-binary character you are going to write.

How Does Your Character Identify

A character can identify as being just non-binary, but there are a lot of options. My character is genderless, meaning that the character does not identify with any gender at all. A character might be gender neutral, meaning that they do not feel particularly drawn to any gender. There are so many gender identities out there, so make sure you find the identity that best fits your character. For more gender identities, look here.

What Pronouns Does Your Character Use

The pronouns we see most often are he/him, she/her, and they/them. However, there are plenty of pronoun options. My character does not use pronouns at all.

(He/Him) He went to the store to buy himself chips for his party.
(She/Her) She went to the store to buy herself chips for her party.
(They/Them) They went to the store to buy themself chips for their party.
(No pronouns) Charlie went to the story to buy chips for the party.
(Ne/Nem) Ne went to the store to buy nemself chips for ner party.

Keep in mind a non-binary person chooses their own pronouns. Being gender neutral, I used she/her pronouns for a long time. I recently decided to start using ne/nem pronouns. It is perfectly acceptable to continue using standard pronouns, such as he/him or she/her pronouns to refer to, say, an agender character that chooses those pronouns (regardless of if the character’s sex), but some agender people might prefer they/them, ze/zer.

What Name Does Your Character Use

Especially for a trans character, their name might be chosen by themselves. If this is the case, think of how the character seems themself. Consider what a character values more than what the character is. For example, your character might be sweet, kind hearted, and gentle. I might name them “Grace” or “Liam” or “Angel”. However, if that character wants to be braver or stronger, they might prefer to call themselves “Raven”, “Xander”, or “Thorn”. Consider genderless names as well, “Alex”, “Spencer”, “Caden”. You can find lists of names online. A trans character may wish for a very traditional name, so a male to female transgender might with to change her name to “Amanda” or “Claire”. A female to male transgender might want a traditionally male name, such as “Michael” or “Jason”. Some characters might want unique names, like “Lynix” or “Blayde”. Know your character well before you let them choose their name.

Also, unless it’s relevant, you do not have to include their birth name.

*Side note: While some non-binary people identify as trans, and some trans people identify as non-binary, but this isn’t always the case!

More questions on non-binary life? Let me know!

About the Author:

Marina (ne/nem/ner/ners/nemself) is a Hispanic-American gender neutral writer living in New York City. Marina’s writing has appeared in Pif Magazine, Teen Art Out, and Aegis Publishing house. Currently, ne works in the voice over industry at Edge Studio. Marina is also a beater on the Horn Tailed Horcruxes quidditch team. For questions about writing non-binary characters and to learn more about Marina’s writing, find ner on facebook, twitter, and Writing the Words blog on tumblr.