Yes, agreed, and especially where it has been much harder to find stories that represent you and where publishing hasn't always been open to everyone. For a straight male to masquerade as a lesbian is off putting to me to say the least. However, if a straight man writes a great book with awesome lesbian characters then I am all for it!
Sexism, racism, homophobia, etc. are all still very much with us.
Women historically wrote under male pen names because women were not taken seriously and/or not deemed to be suited to be writers or practically any other profession. Even today, a woman writing under a male name is not equivalent to a male writing under a female name because sexism is still very much alive and well. So yes either way it can be done, but I don't think it's exactly the same thing myself and there are different ramifications and considerations to be accounted for.
Also, if I were to write a heterosexual romance, I would use a female pen name (I'm female so that is consistent). I wouldn't claim to have a husband or in any way claim to be something I wasn't. I'd just have a bio where everything was true and not embellish or try to be something I wasn't. I wouldn't take a real personal approach on social media or a newsletter. I'd keep everything about myself very low key and focus on the books and characters I wrote about.
That is your choice. However, some people want to write under a pen, create a mostly true bio that is surface oriented and like writing behind a curtain. They don't want their world outside of writing to meet with their writing world. Just because it is different from how you would do it, doesn't make it wrong or less valid.
I think the biggest problem I am having with this thread is that it's all or nothing. Very few people are willing to say, "Hey, your way might not be my way, but keep on moving." Instead, they are saying, "Your way isn't my way, therefore it is inherently wrong."
As of right now, I think most people believe the excessive use of bonus content that is duplicated ad nauseum is at the very least exploitative and bad for the marketplace. It's when we start narrowly defining behavior as right or wrong based on our own personal value system that we get into trouble.
And for the record, it has nothing to do with pretending. Do you honestly believe that every writer who wrote a Nancy Drew book was a woman? The author is as much a brand and persona and the creator of that brand or persona should be allowed to dictate that brand. Now, when they start to interact in a personal way with readers under that persona I will raise an eyebrow and probably question their integrity. But writing a fictionalized bio under a fake name with an image that is clearly not human, doesn't warrant criticism.
