Nonbinary For Beginners: Everything You've Been Afraid To Ask About Gender, Pronouns, Being An Ally, And Black & White Thinking

By Ocean Atlas

Whether you are exploring gender, you want to support a loved one or be an ally, or you have heard about LGBT folks on the news, your curiosity about non-binary, genderqueer and transgender identities suggests that you are a caring and open-minded person.

 

This book is for nonbinary folks and for allies - to read, to get validation and talking points, and to pass this book on to your neighbors, your community, your acquaintances, and anyone who would like to better understand and empathize with others.

 

After reading, you will have a deeper understanding about:

• The difference between gender and pronouns
• Why nonbinary is seemingly so visible now
• How to navigate a nonbinary person coming out to you
• Simple action steps to take as an ally
• Where to find community of like-minded people
• The benefits of defying black and white thinking in your own life

 

This easy read dives deftly into complex, nuanced topics without judgment, shaming, or hundreds of pages to work through.

 

If you want to have more meaningful conversations with those in your life and embrace this great experiment of being human, scroll up and click the buy button.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Condor Maple Press
• Release date: Dec 19, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215758779

Book preview

Ocean Atlas

Nonbinary For Beginners

Everything you’ve been afraid to ask about gender, pronouns, being an ally, and black & white thinking

Copyright © 2022 by Ocean Atlas

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

Ocean Atlas asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

Ocean Atlas has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet Websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such Websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book and on its cover are trade names, service marks, trademarks and registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publishers and the book are not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. None of the companies referenced within the book have endorsed the book.

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To anyone who loves someone a little outside of the box,

especially if that person is you

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Nonbinary 101: what you need to know

3. Is nonbinary natural?

4. Three elements of gender to avoid confusing

5. Navigating trans and microlabels

6. How to love a nonbinary person

7. Finding nonbinary community: you are not alone

8. Disrupting black and white thinking

9. Conclusion

10. Resources

1

Introduction

Ican already tell that you are an amazing person.

Why? Because not everyone would pick up a book like this. Some people do not like to question what they have already learned, see between black and white, or get to know people who might be different from them. Not everyone is curious and empathetic like you are.

If you are interested in learning about nonbinary identities, whether because you are exploring gender, because you want to support a loved one, or because you have heard about folks on the news and you are wondering what that is all about - that means that you are a person who is curious about lived human experiences, and to that, I say thank you.

In a political climate that is deeply divided all around the world, where we read horror stories about hate and fear every day, we rarely see curiosity on the news. For me, curiosity is the foundation of caring, because curiosity is what leads to empathy. If we think our way is the only way, it is hard to be empathetic with another person. But regardless of how we feel about another person, we cannot assume we know how someone else is feeling - we need to ask, listen, and learn - because we might be surprised. And in that surprise, in that small pause in our mental chatter that says, hm, maybe I don’t know all the answers and it would be nice to listen once in a while - that is where we connect with another human being.

As a trans, nonbinary person who is deeply curious about people, psychology, history, sociology, and the way we all interact with ourselves and others - from the great social experiments of politics to The Bachelor - I cannot thank you enough for being here in the murky curiosity with me.

When I was initially coming to terms with being nonbinary, I scoured the internet for articles, memes, and books for ways to explain myself in the simplest terms - to myself, to my family, and to others who might not understand but could be willing to listen. I found that there were not a lot of nonbinary 101 books to share. I knew that my family did not want to dive deep into multi-hundred-page books. In our age of instant gratification, mindless scrolling, 30-second reels, and short news cycles, I wanted something short and accessible that my loved ones could read quickly, and that I could easily quote and share with anyone willing to get to know me a bit better. So I wrote it - for me, for you, and for those you love.

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