Conversations surrounding fictosexuality have been trending after news resurfaced of a man, who identifies as fictosexual, marrying a virtual character.
Akihiko Kondo, from Japan, took part in a hologram wedding to software voicebank character Hatsune Miku in 2018 but Japanese newspaper The Mainichi caught up with Kondo in January 2022. Now his story has been widely reported in UK and US publications.
As people read about Kondo, some have wondered what fictosexuality is and what the fictosexual flag looks like. Let’s take a look…
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What is fictosexuality?
A fictosexual person is essentially someone who is attracted to fictional characters.
Fictosexual is also an umberella term that encompasses a list of other identities including more specific attractions such as novel/visual characters (booklosexual) and vampire-related characters (tobousexual).
It is an identity considered part of the asexual spectrum, which represents people who may lack sexual attraction to others.
Those who identify as being fictosexual can also align themselves with other sexual orientations. Some may also find themselves attracted to different genders in the fictional world than they are in real life.
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The fictosexual flag
The most widely circulated edition of the fictosexual flag features a background of black, grey and purple stripes with a pink circle outlined in black at its centre.
Sexuality Wiki explains the colours on the fictosexual flag all have their own meaning. The black and grey stripes are said to reflect lack of attraction to real-life individuals, while the central purple stripe represents sexual attraction and fictosexuality’s tie to the asexual spectrum.
Moving to the central icon, the black outline of the pink circle is said to symbolise a portal into the fictional world, while the pink circle itself reflects attraction to fictional characters.
Over the years, fictosexuals have created their own version of the flag. A couple of alternative designs that feature on the LGBTA+ Wiki include green and blue stripes.
Other users on Twitter have kept the design with the circle in the centre but switched the colour palette: