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Fujoshi, fudanshi, yaoi, and Boys’ Love resources

The fujoshi / fudanshi subculture is a complex overlap of several interests, including cosplay, ageplay, gender play, and kink.

Some people in the boys’ love fandom seek social, medical, and/or legal gender transition options. I encourage you to read my questioning page and think about why you might be interested in transition.

Background

The terms fujoshi and fudanshi are slurs used to describe those who enjoy stories with romantic relationships between young men, typically androgynous bishōnen [“beautiful boys”]. The term fujoshi means “spoiled girl” in Japanese. The term 腐 (fu) can also mean “fermented” or “rotten,” and fujoshi is sometimes translated as “rotten girl.”

The slang tem yaoi (やおい) is an acronym for the phrase やまなし、オチなし、意味なし [“no climax, no punchline, no meaning”]. It was originally used starting in the 1980s to describe works by people who make amateur fan fiction (dōjinshi).

The fandom is also called Boy’s Love (ボーイズラブ bōizurabu) or BL (ビーエル, bīeru). Some fans use the acronym MLM (men-loving-men). It is related to “slash fiction,” a genre of fan fiction about romantic or sexual relationships between fictional characters of the same assigned sex. It is also related to “shipping,” where fans dream of relationships between two people or characters they like.

The first known attested use of fujoshi was in 1999 on a GeoCities blog. Some people use the slang term “fujo out” to describe engaging with the fandom and its erotica.

For many transgender men and transmasculine people, the term fujoshi is a gendered slur. Some prefer fudanshi which means “spoiled boy” in Japanese. Some consider fujoshi and fudanshi to be reclaimed slurs and use them with pride. Some people consider both slurs. Others consider them an erotic identity.

Interest in masculinization

There is nothing wrong with finding yaoi / BL stories erotic. In the trans community this is sometimes called crossdreaming and male embodiment fantasy. In my 2006 paper on this subject, I discussed three possible kinds of interest:

  1. interest in masculinization
  2. erotic interest in masculinization
  3. autoerotic interest in masculinization

In other words:

  1. you may wish to be more masculine to match your identity and expression.
  2. you might also be interested in being more masculine in order to enjoy romantic and sexual relationships.
  3. you might even think it’s sexy to imagine yourself in a masculine sexual role.

All of these interests exist in subsets of both cisgender and transgender people.

Some trans and gender diverse people feel shame about their interest in yaoi / BL. No one can make you feel bad without your permission!

As Samuel said on reddit to other trans guys who like BL:

At the end of the day, you are a gay man. There’s nothing wrong with gay men liking gay romance. Often that’s an early sign of being trans, how strongly you identify with either straight men or gay men in terms of sex and romance. Would anyone think that a trans woman must be faking it because she watches The L Word? No one would ever say that. So why does the reverse have a stigma?

Because these interests sometimes leave young people questioning their gender, I encourage you to read my questioning page and think about why you might be interested in transition. It’s important to distinguish fantasy from reality. If you decide to take steps to transition, I encourage you to think about how that decision will affect all aspects of your life. There are good and bad things about being trans, and transition won’t make you a new person or solve all of your problems.

The most important thing is to have healthy attitudes about your interests. With self-acceptance and realistic expectations, how you identify and express your gender can be fun and exciting.

Media with BL content

Many mainstream manga series like Attack on Titan and My Hero Academia are popular with BL fans. The titles below are more specifically created for BL fans:

Anti-fujoshi/anti-trans movement

The ex-trans movement and the gender critical movement have both used the existence of this fandom to undermine the rights of trans and gender diverse people. Some of these anti-trans activists describe the BL fandom using metaphors of disease and impairment, like the disputed diagnosis “autoandrophilia.”

The topic of BL fandom’s overlap with trans and gender diverse identities frequently comes up on toxic online communities, including Ovarit, reddit’s detrans subreddit, doxxing sites, and Tumblr. Fujoshi Info has an extensive database and overview of fascist and anti-trans coverage of the fandom.

References

Factora, James (December 19, 2024). What Is a Fujoshi, and How Does One “Fojo Out?” them https://www.them.us/story/fujoshi-meaning-fujoing-out-japanese-slang-history

Kyodo (June 23, 2023). Hong Kong manga cafe a safe haven for fans of Japanese ‘boys’ love’ romantic fiction. SCMP https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3224867/hong-kong-manga-cafe-safe-haven-fans-japanese-boys-love-romantic-fiction

Ishida, Hitoshi (2022). Survey report for BL readers / Non-readers. (BL読者／非読者に対する調査 報告書) Published works of Ishida Hitoshi. https://researchmap.jp/ishidahitoshi/published_works [PDF]

Strusiewicz, Cezary Jan (January 13, 2021). Fujoshi – Girls Who Love Boys Who Love Boys. Tokyo Weekender https://www.tokyoweekender.com/art_and_culture/fujoshi-girls-who-love-boys-who-love-boys/

Novitskaya, Alexandra (2021). Otaku sexualities in Japan. In Forman, Ross G. and Chiang, Howard [editors], The Global Encyclopedia of Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) History, (pp. 1177-1180). Charles Scribner & Sons, ISBN 9780684325538 [PDF] https://transreads.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/2021-08-04_610b1b73c34f0_GlobalEncyclopediaofLesbianGayBisexualTransgenderHistorybyCharlesScribnerSonsz-lib.org-2.pdf

Davidson, Danica (October 2, 2020). BL Typing Game With Undressing Feature Goes Viral in Japan. Otaku Magazine https://otakuusamagazine.com/bl-typing-game-with-undressing-feature-goes-viral-in-japan/

Yukari, Fujimoto (September 24, 2020). The Evolution of “Boys’ Love” Culture: Can BL Spark Social Change? Nippon.com https://www.nippon.com/en/in-depth/d00607/

Staff (August 18, 2020). How much do fans of boys’ love spend every year on homoerotic comics? The amount may surprise you. Sora News 24 https://soranews24.com/2020/08/18/how-much-do-fans-of-boys-love-spend-every-year-on-homoerotic-comics-the-amount-may-surprise-you/

Santos KML (2020). The bitches of Boys Love comics: the pornographic response of Japan’s rotten women. Porn Studies, 7(3), 279–290. https://doi.org/10.1080/23268743.2020.1726204

Hakker, Ashley (September 4, 2018). Anime Made Me Gay: Let’s Go With Hot Blooded Yaoi! Anime Herald https://www.animeherald.com/2018/09/04/anime-made-me-gay-lets-go-with-hot-blooded-yaoi/

Joyce, C. (2020). American Identities and Consumption of Japanese Homoerotica. Unpublished thesis. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.12857.24160

Ressler, Karen (December 13, 2017). YaoiCon takes 1-Year Break in 2018. Anime News Network https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/daily-briefs/2017-12-13/yaoicon-takes-1-year-break-in-2018/.125243

Okabe, Daisuke; Ishida, Kimi (2017). 9. Making Fujoshi Identity Visible And Invisible. In Mizuko Ito, Daisuke Okabe and Izumi Tsuji [editors]. Fandom Unbound: Otaku Culture in a Connected World. (pp. 207–224). Yale University Press. https://doi.org/10.12987/9780300178265-012

Shinbun, Asahi (May 3, 2016). Do Japanese Gay Men Read Boy’s Love Comics, Dislike ‘Fujyoshi’? Nijiiro News http://www.nijiironews.com/2016/09/14/wn-4-gay-men-boys-love/ [archive]

McLelland, Mark; Nagaike, Kazumi; Suganuma, Katsuhiko; Welker, James [editors] (2015). Boys Love Manga and Beyond: History, Culture, and Community in Japan. University Press of Mississippi, ISBN 978-1628461190

Coello, Joan (August 15, 2014). A Fujoshi’s heaven on earth exists in Ikebukuro’s Boy’s Love Academy cafe. Sora News 24 https://soranews24.com/2014/08/15/a-fujoshis-heaven-on-earth-exists-in-ikebukuros-boys-love-academy-cafe/

Kamm, Björn-Ole (2013). “Rotten Use Patterns: What Entertainment Theories Can Do for the Study of Boys’ Love.” In “Transnational Boys’ Love Fan Studies,” edited by Kazumi Nagaike and Katsuhiko Suganuma, special issue, Transformative Works and Cultures, no. 12. https://doi.org/10.3983/twc.2013.0427

Hori (Akiko. 2013). “On the Response (Or Lack Thereof) of Japanese Fans to Criticism that Yaoi Is Antigay Discrimination.” In “Transnational Boys’ Love Fan Studies,” edited by Kazumi Nagaike and Katsuhiko Suganuma, special issue, Transformative Works and Cultures, no. 12. https://doi.org/10.3983/twc.2013.0463.

Suzuki, M. (2013). possibilities of research on “fujoshi” in Japan. In “Transnational Boys’ Love Fan Studies,” edited by Kazumi Nagaike and Katsuhiko Suganuma, special issue, Transformative Works and Cultures, no. 12. https://doi.org/10.3983/twc.2013.0462

Suzuki, Midori (2013). The Possibilities of Research on Fujoshi in Japan. In Transnational Boys’ Love Fan Studies, edited by Kazumi Nagaike and Katsuhiko Suganuma, special issue, Transformative Works and Cultures, no. 12. https://doi.org/10.3983/twc.2013.0462

Galbraith, Patrick W. (2011). Fujoshi: Fantasy Play and Transgressive Intimacy among “Rotten Girls” in Contemporary Japan. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 37(1), 211–232. https://doi.org/10.1086/660182 available here: https://jmpc-utokyo.com/keyword/fujoshi/

Aoki, Deb (2011). Interview: Hikaru Sasahara of Digital Manga Publishing: DMP’s CEO Talks About Taking the Reins of YaoiCon in 2012. http://manga.about.com/od/mangaeditorsinterviews/a/Interview-Hikaru-Sasahara-Of-Digital-Manga-Publishing-YaoiCon2011.htm [archive]

Aoki, Deb (October 27, 2010). This Weekend: Manga Fans’ Guide to Yaoi-Con 2010. http://manga.about.com/b/2010/10/27/this-weekend-manga-fans-guide-to-yaoi-con-2010.htm [archive]

Masaki, Lyle (January 6, 2008). “Yowie!”: The Stateside appeal of boy-meets-boy YAOI comics. AfterElton http://www.afterelton.com/Print/2008/1/yaoi [archive]

James, Andrea (2006). A defining moment in our history: Examining disease models of gender identity. Gender Medicine. 3. S56. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1550-8579(06)80121-X

Scott, Christine N. (December 2005). Yaoi Con No. 5. Sequential Tart http://www.sequentialtart.com/archive/dec05/cv_1205_13.shtml [archive]

Avila, Kat (December 2005). Yaoi-Con 2005: A Celebration Of Female Fantasies. Sequential Tart
http://www.sequentialtart.com/archive/dec05/cv_1205_14.shtml [archive]

Thorn, Rachel (2003). Girls and Women Getting Out of Hand: The Pleasure and Politics of Japan’s Amateur Comics Community. In Kelly, William W. [editor] Fanning the Flames: Fans and Consumer Culture in Contemporary Japan. SUNY Press, ISBN 9780791460313

Akaho, Shotaro (August 11, 1999). Diary. GeoCities http://www.geocities.jp/shotaro_akaho/diaryj-199908.html [archive] cited in 腐女子関係の最古のネット記録と思われる。 ボーイズラブ回顧年表：ぶどううり・くすこ文責 (Boys Love Retrospective Chronology: Gourmet/Kusuko Fubun), page 12 (2016). https://bllogia.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/blchronicle_20160322.pdf

Selected anti-trans coverage

Ito, Alina Joan (June 19, 2023). Is the Boys’ Love Genre Homophobic? Tokyo Weekender https://www.tokyoweekender.com/art_and_culture/is-boys-love-genre-homophobic/

Page, River (March 22, 2023). The Yaoi To Trans Pipeline. Pirate Wires https://www.piratewires.com/p/yaoi-trans-pipeline

“Mondegreen, Eliza” (February 20, 2023). Seeking Refuge in Idiosyncratic Sexual Identities (And Yaoi). Genspect https://genspect.org/seeking-refuge-in-idiosyncratic-sexual-identities-and-yaoi/

rottenboysclub (December 5, 2018). Various Sources on the Anti-fujoshi discourse originating from TERFs. https://rottenboysclub.dreamwidth.org/3356.html

Media

I’m So Popular with  Zach Langley ChiChi and SAKI (June 30, 2021). Immaterial boys with telepathy party and muscle master el lobo. https://open.spotify.com/episode/6nVg53SiFB7DaV9eKCemys

Jellie’s World (May 29, 2021). What Type of Fujoshi Are You? (2D). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HogBYh7vNCs

Jellie’s World (April 22, 2018). Stages Of A Fujoshi/Fudanshi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wP5UVn8_984

Crunchyroll: Inside Anime with Reina (Apr 4, 2017). What Does FUJOSHI Mean? | Anime Academy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1kZWKkwo70

Anna Singatulina (January 31, 2017). The psychology of a Fujoshi – Reasons why girls love yaoi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHg30zok-EM

akidearest (September 2, 2016). THE FUJOSHI. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkb21ghrPcA

Resources

note: some links contain erotic material.

Fujoshi Info (fujoshi.info)

Fanlore (fanlore.org)

Dere Types Wiki (the-dere-types.fandom.com)

  • Fujoshi
  • the-dere-types.fandom.com/wiki/Other:Fujoshi

reddit (reddit.com)

Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)

Know Your Meme (knowyourmeme.com)

X/Twitter (x.com)

Facebook (facebook.com)

Yaoi-Con (yaoicon.com) [2001-2023 – archive]