History Main / SpeculativeFictionLGBT

* ''Literature/{{Spellster}}'': The story focuses on Dylan, a spellster (magic user) who realizes his bisexuality in the first book due to finding an elven male Tracker attractive and becoming his lover. Several other characters are LGBT+, and their society [[NonHeteronormativeSociety lacks any taboos against this]] (aside from some mild biphobia that Dylan encountered in [[MageTower the tower]]). Even minor characters are often identified as LGBT+, whether bisexual, gay or transgender.

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* The [[Creator/DCComics Island of Themyscira]] and its [[OneGenderRace Amazon]] population has been subjected to an extensive variety of interpretations on how a female-only society would exist. These range from UsefulNotes/{{asexual}} to heterosexual-but-without-men to a fully lesbian society. Franchise/WonderWoman herself has ranged from heterosexual to bisexual to pansexual DependingOnTheWriter.

[[folder:Fan Works]]

** Subverted in ''Fanfic/BecomingFree''. While Anna, Kristoff, and a few of the staff who noticed support Elsa's and Freya's SecretRelationship, it is made clear that same-gender romances are not acceptable in 1840s Arendelle. Freya was outright run out of her old town, in a neighboring country, because she fell for a friend and kissed her, without realizing that her friend [[IncompatibleOrientation didn't like her back]].

* ''Literature/ThatIrresistiblePoison'': Set on the planet Calluvia, where inhabitants have telepathic powers. Same-sex couples are just as accepted as opposite-sex couples. They also have artificial womb technology, which lets a gay couple conceive a child biologically related to both parents. This book stars two princes who are engaged to and later fall in love with each other.
* In ''Literature/TheMigaxCycle'', most of the important protagonists are LGBTQ+, with Leafsong being bisexual, Summer being a lesbian, and Moonwafer being asexual.
* ''Literature/NotYourBackup'': Sci-fi novel with superheroes and supervillains, featuring a budding queerplatonic relationship between a trans boy and an aro ace cis girl.
* ''Literature/NotYourSidekick'': Sci-fi setting with superheroes and supervillains, and a romance between two queer girls.
* ''Literature/NotYourVillain'': Sci-fi novel with superheroes and supervillains, featuring a budding relationship between a trans guy and an aro ace cis girl.
* ''Literature/OrlandoABiography'': Orlando is born a heterosexual male in the 16th Century, wakes up a woman in the late 17th century, and continues to live as a woman to the present day, never having to define or justify their existence. Though the concept of gender is wholly linked to biological sex, it is an early example of using the genre to discuss very untouched issues and may be opening a discourse on the possibilities of living as transgender.
* ''Literature/PostSelf'': Two different POV characters in the first book, set in 2112 and 2305, are non-binary and use the neopronouns ey/eir/em. Another 2305 character's preferred pronoun is "it" and is one of several divergent copies of an [[BrainUploading uploaded]] person whose "clade" includes copies of a variety of different gender identities.
* ''Literature/WorldWithoutMen'': Several thousand years into the future, men have been extinct since the 20th/21st century when feminists forced sterilisation and began reproduction through artificial means. This has left an entirely female population, most of which are blindly satisfied with their world. The main women, though, are a lesbian couple who have seen the truth that this is unnatural, and [[spoiler:treat a man that has been created as a Messiah]].
* Creator/MichaelMoorcock's recurring character Una Persson, who varies between being bisexual and exclusively lesbian at different times and in different timelines. See in particular ''[[Literature/TheCorneliusChronicles The Adventures of Una Persson and Catherine Cornelius in the 20th Century]]''.
* Creator/JoeHaldeman's ''Literature/TheForeverWar'' has this as an unintended side-effect. Sending an army several light years away to fight a war then retrieving the survivors afterwards means, inevitably, that the time-dilation effect applies and those soldiers have returned to an Earth several centuries older than the one they left. After the second or third jump to and from a war-front, heterosexually inclined veterans realise in their absence that the social mores of the world have reversed -- being gay is now the norm and a small population of diehard heterosexuals are now the "queer" ones. The inevitable happens and several formerly straight ladies travel on their next jump into time and space as active lesbians.
* ''Literature/TheGodsThemselves'' by Creator/IsaacAsimov, set in a parallel dimension in which there are three distinct genders that also function as guilds/houses that one may be sorted into (logicals, emotionals, and parentals). One of the main characters is Dua, who is split between the genders and so a version of non-binary (which in the setting is also naturally divergent).
* ''Literature/TheManWhoFoldedHimself'', in which time-travelling Daniel [[ScrewYourself ends up in a relationship with himself]] after travelling alongside various realities of himself, as well as with a woman called Diane -- who may also be a version of Daniel from another reality.
* In the ''Literature/ImperialRadch'' trilogy by Ann Leckie, the Radchaai Empire has no societal concept of gender, their language's TranslationConvention defaults to female pronouns, and no mention is ever made of Radchaai basing their choice of partner on which anatomical features they might have. The main character's asexuality is acknowledged and accepted by her crew. Meanwhile, marriage isn't used in the Radch; personal relationships are one thing, while patronage/clientage and adoption into a House are separate institutions, aside from a degree of social stigma against people who are believed to be SleepingTheirWayToTheTop.
* Creator/TheodoreSturgeon's 1953 short story "The World Well Lost" is a GayAesop featuring a pair of {{inhumanly beautiful|Race}} alien refugees from Dirbanu who gain brief popularity and sympathy on Earth, but who are then promptly deported when Dirbanu identifies them as fugitive criminals. The copilot of the ship deporting them learns that the refugees are a same-sex couple (which is illegal on their home world), helps them escape extradition, realizes that the Dirbanu's distaste for humans comes from BizarreSexualDimorphism that makes all human couples look same-sex to them and [[spoiler:is revealed to the reader as a deeply closeted StraightGay man himself]].

* In ''Literature/TheLeftHandOfDarkness'' by Creator/UrsulaKLeGuin, the planet Gethen is inhabited by androgynous humanoids who only get a specific gender during kemmer, their analogue of being in heat. The gender they get is random (unless they use hormone therapy). Therefore, their analogue of LGBT folk (and about as common as real-life LGBT folk) are "perverts", people who tend to be a particular gender for longer than usual. One can guess this creates some problems when they encounter an Earthman.[[/index]]
** Short stories have another planet in the same universe named Planet O, where EveryoneIsBi and marriages consist of four people and thus anyone in love with one gender (straight or gay) is considered unusual. "Mountain Ways" has a lesbian disguising herself as a man to complete a marriage, then finding out to her relief that her future husband is straight and has no interest in her.[[index]]
* ''[[Literature/VorkosiganSaga Ethan of Athos]]'' by Creator/LoisMcMasterBujold is the story of "homosexual obstetrician" Ethan, who is sent to find out what happened to a shipment of vital ovarian tissue cultures. These are needed for his people to reproduce because Athos (named after Mount Athos in Greece, which has been off-limits to women for millennia) is a single-gender planet of almost entirely homosexual men.
* After the first book of Literature/TheRedVixenAdventures, the action switches from the straight romantic couple of Rolas and Melanie, to Rolas' sister Salli and her romance with her [[BodyguardCrush bodyguard]] Alinadar. Notably while Salli's parents object to her love of Alinadar, it's because Ali is a convicted pirate and ex-[[ChildSoldiers child soldier]], not because of her gender. Later it's revealed that Rolas briefly had a same-sex relationship that ended badly, and that one of Ali's aunts is married to a SexShifter
* In Creator/JohnVarley's ''Literature/GaeaTrilogy'' all of the protagonists are bisexual, with the two main characters a lesbian couple trying to fight a sentient alien planet. John Varley's ''Literature/EightWorlds Series'' features many bisexual and homosexual protagonists, and centers on a universe where changing sex and gender is commonplace, and most people change at least once during their lifetimes - therefore, [[EveryoneIsBi almost everyone is bisexual]]. The protagonist of Steel Beach, Hildy Johnson, changes sex and gender halfway through the book.
* Creator/SamuelRDelany's works feature it heavily:
** ''Literature/{{Dhalgren}}'': Bisexual protagonist, gay friends, explore the discordian strange small town at the geographic center of the United States. Strange things happen. [[spoiler:The town, and only the town, is somehow in an event horizon]]
** Short story "[[Literature/DangerousVisions Aye, and Gomorrah...]]": Astronauts get neutered and given the fact that it's all of them, and they're all off-world so can construct whatever identity they want, develop into being an undefinable gender. Aliens then become sexually attracted to them as this gender, creating a new sexual orientation. Website/TheOtherWiki even maintains that "the story allows readers to reflect on the real world while maintaining an estranging distance".
** ''Literature/Babel17'': The protagonist is a woman in an extended marriage with all men.
* The main characters of ''Literature/RavellingWrath'' are a young lesbian couple living in a polytheistic UrbanFantasy setting, and the main plot involves them trying to maintain a healthy relationship with each other despite being [[TheChosenMany chosen]] by different gods who are enemies of each other.
* ''Literature/TheMurderbotDiaries'': It's presented as a background detail of the setting that {{Polyamor|y}}ous marriages/group communes are common and non-binary gender identities are accepted without question. The titular {{artificial|Human}} {{Cyborg}} is IntriguedByHumanity but considers this completely unremarkable.
* ''Literature/WhoNeedsMen'' features a LadyLand where lesbianism and HomosexualReproduction is the norm, and men are treated as an undesirable foreign race. The military ActionGirl protagonist finds it a very painful experience when she falls in love with a ''man'' -- both due to [[InternalizedCategorism shame at being abnormal]] and because her society treats this [[PersecutionFlip in roughly the same way]] as [[HeteronormativeCrusader conservative 1950s Americans]] would handle a male homosexual in her position.
* The 1972 children's book ''Literature/XAFabulousChildsStory'' is about a child who is raised [[AmbiguousGenderIdentity free of strict gender identity]] as part of a top-secret scientific experiment. X's parents, the Joneses, receive instruction to give X a mix of boy and girl things and never hold X to gender-specific expectations. X's schoolmates are mocking at first, but eventually come around to X's example and begin rejecting gender norms. This draws the ire of MoralGuardians, who demand an examination to determine whether X is a boy, girl, or "mixed-up misfit". [[spoiler:The results conclude that X is plenty secure and well-adjusted despite not identifying as either.]]
* ''Literature/TheMachineriesOfEmpire'' is set in a GalacticSuperpower where GenderIsNoObject; same-sex and {{polyamor|y}}ous relationships, including marriages, are entirely unremarkable; non-binary gender identities are accepted; and UsefulNotes/{{transgender}} people are free to choose anything from a social transition up to a complete medical GenderBender.
* ''Literature/BlackDogs'': The series, set in a medieval fantasy world, features elven lesbian couple Sinai and Jacyl, who have a committed relationship that gets significant attention.
* ''Literature/GirlWhoAreYouAlienErImAnAlien'': The alien's species, due being advanced enough to switch from one physical body to another and even live the majority of their lives without a physical body, is largely asexual and UsefulNotes/{{aromantic}}. Procreation is largely sexless so their sexual needs have significantly dwindled, as have their romantic needs, but a minority of her species still engages in sexual activity purely for pleasure with no indication this as seen as abnormal or even wrong. When faced with the prospect of [[spoiler:entering a romantic relationship with the girl, the alien's only qualm about it is that they will not be able to have children due to being same-sex but this doesn't bother her at all, implying that the alien's species has no issue with gay relationships in general]]. On top of this, gender roles have largely been antiquated and sex is treated as little more than a minor biological difference, as the alien has a pretty nonchalant view of gender and she doesn't even mention that she's a woman until she's asked, initially leading the girl to speculate that her species [[NonHumanNonBinary doesn't have the concept of gender]].
* Both parts of the ''{{Literature/Cityverse}}'' released so far have been queer romances involving personified Cities.
* The ''Literature/TheSecondMango'' by queer author Creator/ShiraGlassman is set in a fantasy world where the concept of a lesbian or bisexual queen is treated as normal.
* ''Literature/TheRiseOfKyoshi'' and ''Literature/TheShadowOfKyoshi'' go deeper than the show and comics they're based on, explicitly showing Kyoshi's relationship with [[BodyguardCrush Rangi]].
* ''Literature/DeeperUpTheTower'' is a queer fantasy zine about the mysterious knight Florian and their climb through the strange, mind-bending Tower. A trippy and surreal tale told installments with illustrations. Florian encounters mythical creatures, colorful adventurers, and magical queer weirdos as they seek an uncertain goal.
* The ''Literature/{{Nightrunner}}'' series takes place in a society where same sex relationships are entirely normalized and rarely commented on, and the main characters are two men in a romantic and sexual relationship.
* The ''Literature/DoctrineOfLabyrinths'' is a DarkFantasy series is about a gay man, Felix, his brother, and their adventures. Felix is not the only gay character, either, and sexuality is heavily explored.
* ''Literature/TheKingstonCycle'' is a GaslampFantasy series featuring all queer protagonists.

* The ''Literature/CaptivePrince'' trilogy is a LowFantasy series with a romance between two men - both princes of rival kingdoms - as a central plotline and almost every major character [[EveryoneIsBi is bisexual]]. The trilogy falls more towards the mundane side of things with very few fantastical elements, although it does take place in a secondary world where the two cultures most focused upon are highly accepting of homosexual relationships; in Vere in particular it's considered normal for people to have same-sex relationships (serious or casual), whereas heterosexual relationships are restricted to marriage (having pre-marital or extra-marital relations with someone of the opposite sex is a huge no-no, especially because illegitimate children are stigmatized).
* ''Literature/TheNeanderthalParallax'': The trilogy involves opening contact with a parallel world wherein Neanderthals instead of Cro-Magnon humans are the dominant species (with our species long extinct there, just as theirs died here). Among the many differences they have, bisexuality is apparently universal for Neanderthals, with every person shown having a male and female spouse. They largely live with their same-sex mates as a form of PopulationControl.
* ''Literature/AMemoryCalledEmpire'': In the series the main characters lesbian relationship and another character's [[{{Polyamory}} polyamourous]] relationship with a man and woman are not treated as remarkable.
* ''Literature/ThatIrresistiblePoison'' is a male-male romance set on a planet where everyone has a telepathic link to their betrothed. The culture is a NonHeteronormativeSociety.
* The ''Literature/{{Wayfarers}}'' series includes several alien races that include nonbinary or nongender members, as well as non-heterosexual couples. In the first book, ''The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet'', main character Rosemary Harper begins a sexual relationship with the female Aandrisk Sissix. This is in part because she has some affection for Sissix and to help her feel more like part of the ''Wayfarer'' family.[[note]]Aandrisk's are very physical beings with showing physical affection and free love being an important part of their culture.[[/note]]
* ''Literature/OfFireAndStars'': Dennaleia and Mare, two young princesses, live in a world with powerful magic based on [[ElementalPowers the elements]]. However, in Mare's country of Mynaria, [[BanOnMagic magic is banned]]. Dennaleia has magic, and falls for Mare while she's [[PowerIncontinence struggling to control it]]. Their relationship too is forbidden-not as a result of both being girls (they come from societies [[NonHeteronormativeSociety wholly accepting]] of same-sex relationships), but since Dennaleia's engaged to Thandilimon, Mare's brother. Dennaleia pursuing both her magic and their relationship despite this are major arcs. The {{prequel}} ''Literature/{{Inkmistress}}'' centers on Asra, a bisexual girl, whose relationship with Ina (a bisexual girl like her) is explored, though not as focused on.
* ''Literature/TheFactoryWitchesOfLowell'' is HistoricalFantasy [=LGBT=], featuring a union girl and a reluctant witch falling in love as they become involved in the American Labor Movement in the early 1800's.
* In ''Literature/FromTheNewWorld'', the humans that remain AfterTheEnd are a society of psychics. They use sex to relieve stress so that their mental powers stay under control. Bisexuality is considered normal, and same-gender relationships are nearly mandated during adolescence in order to avoid teen pregnancy.
* ''Literature/TheSpareMan'': Gender freedom is expected to the point that people introduce themselves with their pronouns as a matter of course, absolutely no one cares what your sexual preferences are, and Shell uses "Husband" as a fake surname on his honeymoon as a historical joke that no one else gets; "spouse" is far more common. The chief of security is treated as a sexist fossil for constantly assuming gender (even though by all appearances he mostly guesses right), and it's implied that he's doing it on purpose because he's just that much of a {{Jerkass}}.
* ''Literature/LucifersStar'' and ''Literature/SpaceAcademy'' are a FreeLoveFuture where bisexuality, homosexuality, polygamy, and other relationships are normal without comment. It is commented on that spacers have a far more relaxed attitude to such things than humans who live on planets.
* ''Literature/ProudPinkSky'' is a cyberpunk alternate history set in the world's first gay state.

* ''[[Literature/TheHaremProtagonistWasTurnedIntoAGirlAndDoesntWantToChangeBack The Harem Protagonist Was Turned Into A Girl!! And Doesn't Want To Change Back!!!??]]'' is a parody of the HaremGenre and anime and manga where a hapless everyman gets alien girlfriend/s and other suitors after finding out he is somehow special - in this instance heir to the Galactic Empire and the focus point of an intergalactic war. However, after an incident with a Gender Confirmation Ray that one character was trying to "punish" him with... she very quickly decides she's much happier as a woman and had wanted to be a girl for as long as she could remember but hadn't figured out she was trans.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'': The late ''[[Franchise/StarWarsLegends Legends]]'' books then newer [[Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse canon ones]] show the galaxy as a whole [[NonHeteronormativeSociety lacks prejudice]] toward LGBT+ people (even the Empire doesn't care-two high-ranking officials are a bisexual woman and a lesbian, with an openly gay lower-ranking officer too). Several are main characters in these works, such as lesbian archeologist Dr. Chelli Aphra, who's a fan favorite while ''Literature/StarWarsTheAftermathTrilogy'' has the gay main character Shevek, his sexuality being established over time. The jump has now been made to live action with ''Series/{{Andor}}'' where the lesbian couple Cinta and Vel are the two main rebel female characters, among the [[PreserveYourGays only survivors on a mission]] in the first season. LGBT+ characters are beginning to be highlighted by Disney with each Pride month having images released with them plus their corresponding Pride flags.
* ''Literature/TheAfterward'': The protagonists Olsa (bisexual) and Kalanthe (lesbian) live in a HighFantasy setting, with both having been part of the seven companions, the heroes who banished the evil Old God from the world in the past, becoming lovers during their quest. Additionally, two more of the companions were LGBT+, as Terriam is asexual and Banathear's a trans woman. Their society accepts everyone LGBT+, so this at most garners mild interest.
* ''Literature/SoThisIsEverAfter'': It appears that EveryoneIsBi, since no character is ever shown as having a gender preference. The story is set in a HeroicFantasy setting, with the protagonist having a slow-burning romance with one of his male comrades after they complete a quest. Some nonbinary people are supporting characters too.
* Creator/JacquelineCarey has two different series which feature bisexual women as the protagonists.
** In ''Literature/KushielsLegacy'' the first and third trilogies are both focused on different bisexual women. Though their main relationships are with men, they also have significant female lovers too. Many other people in the main country where this MedievalEuropeanFantasy is set also are bisexual. There are some gay supporting characters too.
** ''Literature/SantaOlivia'': The protagonist is a genetically enhanced young Latina in a future dystopian US. She's bisexual, becoming lovers with another Latina as they fight the oppressive government.
* ''Literature/{{Spellster}}'': The story focuses on Dylan, a spellster (magic user) who realizes his bisexuality in the first book due to finding elven male Tracker attractive and becoming his lover. Several other characters are LGBT+, and their society [[NonHeteronormativeSociety lacks any taboos against this]] (aside from some mild biphobia that Dylan encountered in [[MageTower the tower]]). Even minor characters are often identified as LGBT+, whether bisexual, gay or transgender.

* ''Literature/OfFireAndStars'': Dennaleia and Mare, two young princesses, live in a world with powerful magic based on [[ElementalPowers the elements]]. However, in Mare's country of Mynaria, [[BanOnMagic magic is banned]]. Dennaleia has magic, and falls for Mare while she's [[PowerIncontinence struggling to control it]]. Their relationship too is forbidden-not as a result of both being girls (they come from societies [[NonHeteronormativeSociety wholly accepting]] of same-sex relationships), but since Dennaleia's engaged to Thandilimon, Mare's brother. Dennaleia pursuing both her magic and their relationship despite this are major arcs.

** The first book, ''Literature/TheQueenOfIeflaria'', centers on two princesses who were arranged to be married (although there are also other candidates initially), falling in love as the pair face dangers together. Esofi is bisexual like most people.

* The lyric of Terpander ([[OlderThanDirt 7th century BC Archaic Greek]] ''father of music and poetry'') is notably playing with the trope, but ultimately reinforces why it would later be invented in the first place: [[https://chs.harvard.edu/CHS/article/display/4394 it features themes of speculative fiction, and themes of homosexuality, but not in the same places]].

* ''Film/{{Zerophilia}}'' centers around a rare genetic condition that causes people with it to [[DeusSexMachina physically change genders when sexually aroused]]. Unusually for a work with this kind of premise, it averts TransgenderFetishization by treating it a ComingOfAgeQueerRomance through which protagonist Luke's zerophilia gets him to reconsider his relationship with his gender and sexuality, and the fact the condition explicitly does ''not'' impact one's own gender identity means that his TransRelationshipTroubles largely mirror those in real life.

* While neither ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' nor ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' explored LGBT topics in detail, ''ComicBook/TheLegendOfKorraTurfWars'' does offer some clarity, since it explores [[spoiler:Korra and Asami's relationship.]] In particular, the Air Nomad and Water Tribe nations are the most tolerant towards same-sex couples, due to their beliefs towards pacifism and personal autonomy respectively, while the Earth Kingdom is the most homophobic due to its emphasis on tradition. The Fire Nation used to be tolerant as well, but homosexuality became illegal under Fire Lord Sozin.
* ''ComicBook/TheTransformersMoreThanMeetsTheEye'':

** Cybertronians even ''having'' a concept of femininity is a result of contact with alien races that had female genders. Some of them realized that was the best fit for them, basically meaning all female Cybertronians are transfeminine.

* ''Recap/BlackMirrorSanJunipero'':

** One review also points out that the setting as created with the San Junipero technology as a norm legitimizes and justifies homosexual relationships, as theoretical "salvation" is possible without the need to live through children [[spoiler:(also enforced by Kelly's daughter's death)]], and it prioritizes individual enjoyment. The moral philosophy arm-in-arm with the SF setting has normalized and even promoted homosexuality, which might be more the allusion that Kelly makes when she tells Yorkie that nobody cares anymore (rather than just that it is around 2030).