I can sort of see where you're coming from... if The Hardy Boys, then Nancy Drew, if Nancy Drew, then Gay Hardy Boys, if Gay Hardy Boys, then Lesbian Nancy Drew, etc., and so on, until every label has its own version so everyone can enjoy their detective story.
But at the same time, it seems conceivable that somebody could just come up with an upbeat middle grade detective series where gender wasn't a central aspect of the construct and people could just enjoy mysteries and detectives fantasies without having to relate to the characters' choice of dates.
In any case I was fortunate to grow up in a family which (essentially) stressed that being "normal" was basically like being an idiot lemming, and, more particularly, implied that being/feeling different was fine even if it wasn't always easy. So I guess with the right framing it's possible to feel like a relative space alien without coming to be convinced that you're the broken one, but it's sure not a path of convenience.
But at the same time, it seems conceivable that somebody could just come up with an upbeat middle grade detective series where gender wasn't a central aspect of the construct and people could just enjoy mysteries and detectives fantasies without having to relate to the characters' choice of dates.
In any case I was fortunate to grow up in a family which (essentially) stressed that being "normal" was basically like being an idiot lemming, and, more particularly, implied that being/feeling different was fine even if it wasn't always easy. So I guess with the right framing it's possible to feel like a relative space alien without coming to be convinced that you're the broken one, but it's sure not a path of convenience.