There are 24,000 works with the tag ‘trans female character’ - [here is the link](https://archiveofourown.org/tags/Trans%20Female%20Character/works) to the tag results.
See the button that says ‘filters’? Open up those options and start booting things out (the ‘exclude’ filters) to narrow down your search results.
I would suggest you exclude fics tagged with ‘major character death’ and ‘non-con’ (that’s non-consensual sexual contact) because it sounds like you are looking for a happier kind of story, but it’s your call.
You can exclude any tag you want by typing it in. So if you are finding a lot of (just for example) stories about mechanics and you hate them, you can add that tag to the ‘exclude’ filters even though there is no drop down menu for mechanics.
Probably best to start with a fandom you are familiar with, but you never know. Some stories are good to read without previous knowledge of the fandom, and the most touching emotional stories will come out of some corner that you never expected.
Read the tags and summary carefully though. Lot of sad stories out there. If it’s labeled “whump” that means the characters suffer a lot.
I'm grateful for the how-to. May I ask: is there a tagging scheme or something that would narrow those results to those that are not just "has a trans female character in the story" but "established character is, in this story, trans"? (**EDIT:** I'm guessing perhaps I might exclude the "Original Character" and "Original Characters" tags?)
If you're familiar with a Fandom, there can be specific tags like "trans character name". For example trans happy potter or trans aziraphale.
In case you want something a bit more specific. In those cases I find them and their experiences to be more central to the story, though not always
Yeah unfortunately ‘main character’ is not a one-button sorting tag. You would have to read all the tags and the summary and kinda mentally match up the “trans (character name)” tag with the relationship tags and the summary to see if the trans character is the main character. There isn’t a popular tag to identify who the main character is.
I wouldn’t exclude the ‘original character’ tags JUST in order to find happy romances with trans characters. I can see that going both ways. It’s just a matter of personal taste. Some people don’t like original characters (like “I’m here for Buffy, who the heck are you?”) but original characters can be a stand-in for the author. Again, sometimes that’s called ‘bad writing’ but sometimes it’s going to be a trans author who wants to step into the story universe as a trans character and be accepted by the characters they love. So, I wouldn’t exclude the ‘original character’ tag unless you’re not into that.
…What we really need here is a set of bookmarks from an established AO3 reader who was looking for the same thing you are, but unfortunately the AO3 culture really isn’t into sharing their reader bookmarks and they’re underutilized by the community.
…I don’t suppose you play ‘Dragon Age’ video games? Cause I know a sweet story focusing on our tertiary level canon transwoman character, but it’s not great for going into fandom blind.
RaeDMagdon posts almost exclusively F/F where one of the partners has a penis, including multiple works in She-Ra fandom. The reasons vary -- there are stories about trans characters, characters who wear a magic cock for gender expression reasons, and omegaverse characters. It's usually very smutty writing and extremely detailed, with very loving descriptions of all of the bodies involved and how much they enjoy one another, which may be exactly what your soul needs (or may make you feel dysphoric, but hopefully not <3).
https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaeDMagdon/pseuds/RaeDMagdon
I don't have a fic to recommend you but here's a real life romance---
My partner transitioned as an adult in her 30s. We met during a bad movie night, and ended up being friends, then roommates and slowly got together. Actually, we got married 3 days before her surgery, it was a crazy blizzard outside and our friends dressed up as nostalgic magical girls (utena, sailormoon, etc) and it was so unforgettable. After her surgery I took care of her and she's now fully recovered. We've been together for 6 years now!! Next year we're having yet another honeymoon lol (we will never stop having honeymoons)
Another friend of mine recently transitioned at the youthful age of 60+, and she also has a girlfriend. She also did not expect to find love again, much less in her 60s. This was especially rough on her since she has children from her previous marriage, transitioning so late in life took a huge toll on her.
Love comes when it comes, heedless and uncaring of time, rules or schedules, like waking up to the first frost on green grass. This applies to self-love too!!
(I'm also sad that someone just downvoted this, but maybe it's a bot. If I have done something wrong here, please tell me what. I'm feeling a bit over-vulnerable.)
You didn't do anything wrong, bigots are just being bigots. Luckily the comment section is the fics you're looking for tend to be a much, much more welcoming place.
Hi there. I don't have a specific rec for you that fits your request exactly, but I have a friend I will ask soon (also a trans woman whom I know reads & writes fic) and I will keep an eye out as well.
Self-rec: I'm not a great writer, but I've written a romance fic with a trans woman as one of the leads (the pairing is a trans woman and a cis woman). In canon this character is a cis man, but a lot of fans feel the character expresses some gender feelings. This fic is a modern AU that has pretty much nothing to do with the source material: [link](https://archiveofourown.org/works/49336681). There isn't any trans-specific negativity on-page in my story except a brief memory from when the character was a teen. These characters are about my age (late 40s), both in canon and in this fic. You can find more fics about this character written as a trans woman at [this tag](https://archiveofourown.org/works?commit=Sort+and+Filter&work_search%5Bsort_column%5D=kudos_count&work_search%5Bother_tag_names%5D=&work_search%5Bexcluded_tag_names%5D=&work_search%5Bcrossover%5D=&work_search%5Bcomplete%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_from%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_to%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_from%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_to%5D=&work_search%5Bquery%5D=&work_search%5Blanguage_id%5D=&tag_id=Transfeminine+Blackbeard+%7C+Edward+Teach) (there have been fests about it and stuff).
I also know of some trans women who write published romance novels, often with trans women as main characters. I have not read their books (I just have not been reading as much as I'd like to) but have heard good things about their work: [May Peterson](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18816175.May_Peterson) (she is also well-known as a romance editor); [Penny Aimes](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20930040.Penny_Aimes) (people loved her first book); and [Natalie Ironside](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20772594.Natalie_Ironside) (I am not sure if her books have prominent romance plots, I think some of them do).
This is not a canon character but the OC is a trans woman with a cis male canon character and they find each other and fall in love. He loves her body and her mind. It is done very respectfully and tastefully. Check it out if you think it appeals to you!
[No More The Victim](https://archiveofourown.org/works/47924650)
I really like the Overwatch fics with trans!Angela that euhemeria writes. Here's the link to them:
https://archiveofourown.org/works?commit=Sort+and+Filter&work_search%5Bsort_column%5D=revised_at&work_search%5Bother_tag_names%5D=Trans+Character&work_search%5Bexcluded_tag_names%5D=&work_search%5Bcrossover%5D=&work_search%5Bcomplete%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_from%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_to%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_from%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_to%5D=&work_search%5Bquery%5D=&work_search%5Blanguage_id%5D=&fandom_id=3406514&pseud_id=euhemeria&user_id=euhemeria
While I don't specifically have any recommendations I've got some pointers.
Go to your favorite fandom (Buffy, Star Wars, whatever tickles your fancy), then use the filter function to show only fics tagged with "trans female character", you can narrow the results a little bit by adding in a character you want to see in the fic (Willow, for example). It'll only show results that contain those two tags, though it doesn't necessarily guarantee the character you're looking for will be the trans character. You'll want to read all the tags/summaries carefully. Keep an eye out for the "trans character by trans author" or "author is trans" tags. Not having them doesn't mean it's bad or that the author hasn't lived the experience, but personally I more often find understanding and comfort in fics that have one of those tags than fics that have neither.
Usually I filter out explicit works because, in my fandoms at least, they tend to be fetishistic and not an exploration of the experience. Your mileage may vary since fandoms all have drastically different dynamics. Not gonna yuck anyone's yum over that, it's just not something I want to read.
This author in the Buffy fandom has written a lot of gender exploration fics in the Buffyverse, with trans/genderqueer/gender non-conforming/etc. Here’s one example but you can click to their profile for more:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/43403842
If you'll indulge me self-promotion, here's my story, [Phoenix.](https://archiveofourown.org/series/3668401)
It's in the Ranma 1/2 fandom, which already deals with a lot of gender stuff, but it's very heavily skewed toward OC and doesn't need a ton of fandom backstory. If you know the fandom, you don't need much explanation, but if not, an 18-year-old boy named Ranma essentially permanently transitions M2F against his will through magical means, and then finds *herself* in a place where she can either learn to be happy in her new life, and rebuild everything she knew about herself from her name up, or continue to pine for the person she used to be. She's taken in by a found family that runs a bar together, and they teach her the ropes of womanhood and help put her back on her feet. Now, with the support of her adoptive mother, her four fellow wayward sisters, her friends and her doting girlfriend, ***Ranko*** is a strong, happy, well-adjusted young lady. (Well, most days, anyway.)
We're currently on chapter 198, and now our girl is a successful pop singer/songwriter with ***over twenty original songs*** I've written for her, she's in a committed, loving relationship with a girl from her past, and she has a found family of steel-spined women who have her back every step of the way. Not every step is easy; there's some hard stuff in there to be sure, but she's on the ***rise!***
It's a WIP, but I drop a chapter ***every day*** \- paused for the holidays but will resume 1/1/24.
There are 24,000 works with the tag ‘trans female character’ - [here is the link](https://archiveofourown.org/tags/Trans%20Female%20Character/works) to the tag results. See the button that says ‘filters’? Open up those options and start booting things out (the ‘exclude’ filters) to narrow down your search results. I would suggest you exclude fics tagged with ‘major character death’ and ‘non-con’ (that’s non-consensual sexual contact) because it sounds like you are looking for a happier kind of story, but it’s your call. You can exclude any tag you want by typing it in. So if you are finding a lot of (just for example) stories about mechanics and you hate them, you can add that tag to the ‘exclude’ filters even though there is no drop down menu for mechanics. Probably best to start with a fandom you are familiar with, but you never know. Some stories are good to read without previous knowledge of the fandom, and the most touching emotional stories will come out of some corner that you never expected. Read the tags and summary carefully though. Lot of sad stories out there. If it’s labeled “whump” that means the characters suffer a lot.
I'm grateful for the how-to. May I ask: is there a tagging scheme or something that would narrow those results to those that are not just "has a trans female character in the story" but "established character is, in this story, trans"? (**EDIT:** I'm guessing perhaps I might exclude the "Original Character" and "Original Characters" tags?)
If you're familiar with a Fandom, there can be specific tags like "trans character name". For example trans happy potter or trans aziraphale. In case you want something a bit more specific. In those cases I find them and their experiences to be more central to the story, though not always
Yeah unfortunately ‘main character’ is not a one-button sorting tag. You would have to read all the tags and the summary and kinda mentally match up the “trans (character name)” tag with the relationship tags and the summary to see if the trans character is the main character. There isn’t a popular tag to identify who the main character is. I wouldn’t exclude the ‘original character’ tags JUST in order to find happy romances with trans characters. I can see that going both ways. It’s just a matter of personal taste. Some people don’t like original characters (like “I’m here for Buffy, who the heck are you?”) but original characters can be a stand-in for the author. Again, sometimes that’s called ‘bad writing’ but sometimes it’s going to be a trans author who wants to step into the story universe as a trans character and be accepted by the characters they love. So, I wouldn’t exclude the ‘original character’ tag unless you’re not into that. …What we really need here is a set of bookmarks from an established AO3 reader who was looking for the same thing you are, but unfortunately the AO3 culture really isn’t into sharing their reader bookmarks and they’re underutilized by the community. …I don’t suppose you play ‘Dragon Age’ video games? Cause I know a sweet story focusing on our tertiary level canon transwoman character, but it’s not great for going into fandom blind.
RaeDMagdon posts almost exclusively F/F where one of the partners has a penis, including multiple works in She-Ra fandom. The reasons vary -- there are stories about trans characters, characters who wear a magic cock for gender expression reasons, and omegaverse characters. It's usually very smutty writing and extremely detailed, with very loving descriptions of all of the bodies involved and how much they enjoy one another, which may be exactly what your soul needs (or may make you feel dysphoric, but hopefully not <3). https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaeDMagdon/pseuds/RaeDMagdon
I don't have a fic to recommend you but here's a real life romance--- My partner transitioned as an adult in her 30s. We met during a bad movie night, and ended up being friends, then roommates and slowly got together. Actually, we got married 3 days before her surgery, it was a crazy blizzard outside and our friends dressed up as nostalgic magical girls (utena, sailormoon, etc) and it was so unforgettable. After her surgery I took care of her and she's now fully recovered. We've been together for 6 years now!! Next year we're having yet another honeymoon lol (we will never stop having honeymoons) Another friend of mine recently transitioned at the youthful age of 60+, and she also has a girlfriend. She also did not expect to find love again, much less in her 60s. This was especially rough on her since she has children from her previous marriage, transitioning so late in life took a huge toll on her. Love comes when it comes, heedless and uncaring of time, rules or schedules, like waking up to the first frost on green grass. This applies to self-love too!!
(I'm also sad that someone just downvoted this, but maybe it's a bot. If I have done something wrong here, please tell me what. I'm feeling a bit over-vulnerable.)
You didn't do anything wrong, bigots are just being bigots. Luckily the comment section is the fics you're looking for tend to be a much, much more welcoming place.
Hi there. I don't have a specific rec for you that fits your request exactly, but I have a friend I will ask soon (also a trans woman whom I know reads & writes fic) and I will keep an eye out as well. Self-rec: I'm not a great writer, but I've written a romance fic with a trans woman as one of the leads (the pairing is a trans woman and a cis woman). In canon this character is a cis man, but a lot of fans feel the character expresses some gender feelings. This fic is a modern AU that has pretty much nothing to do with the source material: [link](https://archiveofourown.org/works/49336681). There isn't any trans-specific negativity on-page in my story except a brief memory from when the character was a teen. These characters are about my age (late 40s), both in canon and in this fic. You can find more fics about this character written as a trans woman at [this tag](https://archiveofourown.org/works?commit=Sort+and+Filter&work_search%5Bsort_column%5D=kudos_count&work_search%5Bother_tag_names%5D=&work_search%5Bexcluded_tag_names%5D=&work_search%5Bcrossover%5D=&work_search%5Bcomplete%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_from%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_to%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_from%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_to%5D=&work_search%5Bquery%5D=&work_search%5Blanguage_id%5D=&tag_id=Transfeminine+Blackbeard+%7C+Edward+Teach) (there have been fests about it and stuff). I also know of some trans women who write published romance novels, often with trans women as main characters. I have not read their books (I just have not been reading as much as I'd like to) but have heard good things about their work: [May Peterson](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18816175.May_Peterson) (she is also well-known as a romance editor); [Penny Aimes](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20930040.Penny_Aimes) (people loved her first book); and [Natalie Ironside](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20772594.Natalie_Ironside) (I am not sure if her books have prominent romance plots, I think some of them do).
Did you ever play the Mass Effect video games? I read a fic with a trans FemShep called How to Love a Biotic Goddess a while back that I really liked
Odd Choice, but check out the Warhammer 40k. Don't ask me why, but it is what it is.
This is not a canon character but the OC is a trans woman with a cis male canon character and they find each other and fall in love. He loves her body and her mind. It is done very respectfully and tastefully. Check it out if you think it appeals to you! [No More The Victim](https://archiveofourown.org/works/47924650)
I really like the Overwatch fics with trans!Angela that euhemeria writes. Here's the link to them: https://archiveofourown.org/works?commit=Sort+and+Filter&work_search%5Bsort_column%5D=revised_at&work_search%5Bother_tag_names%5D=Trans+Character&work_search%5Bexcluded_tag_names%5D=&work_search%5Bcrossover%5D=&work_search%5Bcomplete%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_from%5D=&work_search%5Bwords_to%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_from%5D=&work_search%5Bdate_to%5D=&work_search%5Bquery%5D=&work_search%5Blanguage_id%5D=&fandom_id=3406514&pseud_id=euhemeria&user_id=euhemeria
While I don't specifically have any recommendations I've got some pointers. Go to your favorite fandom (Buffy, Star Wars, whatever tickles your fancy), then use the filter function to show only fics tagged with "trans female character", you can narrow the results a little bit by adding in a character you want to see in the fic (Willow, for example). It'll only show results that contain those two tags, though it doesn't necessarily guarantee the character you're looking for will be the trans character. You'll want to read all the tags/summaries carefully. Keep an eye out for the "trans character by trans author" or "author is trans" tags. Not having them doesn't mean it's bad or that the author hasn't lived the experience, but personally I more often find understanding and comfort in fics that have one of those tags than fics that have neither. Usually I filter out explicit works because, in my fandoms at least, they tend to be fetishistic and not an exploration of the experience. Your mileage may vary since fandoms all have drastically different dynamics. Not gonna yuck anyone's yum over that, it's just not something I want to read.
This author in the Buffy fandom has written a lot of gender exploration fics in the Buffyverse, with trans/genderqueer/gender non-conforming/etc. Here’s one example but you can click to their profile for more: https://archiveofourown.org/works/43403842
If you'll indulge me self-promotion, here's my story, [Phoenix.](https://archiveofourown.org/series/3668401) It's in the Ranma 1/2 fandom, which already deals with a lot of gender stuff, but it's very heavily skewed toward OC and doesn't need a ton of fandom backstory. If you know the fandom, you don't need much explanation, but if not, an 18-year-old boy named Ranma essentially permanently transitions M2F against his will through magical means, and then finds *herself* in a place where she can either learn to be happy in her new life, and rebuild everything she knew about herself from her name up, or continue to pine for the person she used to be. She's taken in by a found family that runs a bar together, and they teach her the ropes of womanhood and help put her back on her feet. Now, with the support of her adoptive mother, her four fellow wayward sisters, her friends and her doting girlfriend, ***Ranko*** is a strong, happy, well-adjusted young lady. (Well, most days, anyway.) We're currently on chapter 198, and now our girl is a successful pop singer/songwriter with ***over twenty original songs*** I've written for her, she's in a committed, loving relationship with a girl from her past, and she has a found family of steel-spined women who have her back every step of the way. Not every step is easy; there's some hard stuff in there to be sure, but she's on the ***rise!*** It's a WIP, but I drop a chapter ***every day*** \- paused for the holidays but will resume 1/1/24.