How To Craft a STRONG FEMALE CHARACTER (who isn't totally annoying)
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- čas přidán 20. 07. 2024
- In today's episode of #WritersLifeWednesdays we're talking about strong female characters! How to write them WELL so that they don't become part of the stereotype of "strong female characters" who are really just "mean, cynical, and rude female characters."
Comment below and tell me: who is YOUR favorite strong female character?
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The problem with Strong Female Character trope, and how it's being written, it's that this character has literally ONLY stereotypically male traits, and are usually recognized by the general public as male characteristics. If a female character it's only considered "strong" because of the masculine traits she has, it's saying that what makes women weak is their femininity. You're literally just saying that a woman can only be strong if she has zero femininity and feminine traits. Fuck that.
PREACH IT PREACH IT PREACH IT
omg u saw my comment !!! ily !!!! 💗💗💗
My strong female character is shorter than most of the male characters, because she’s female, and that’s common with girls. But that means she can fight quickly and is a smaller target. Small feminine characters are fast strikers and can hide more easily. A woman with all the qualities of a man is not the only strong woman
@@thestevens580 Haha I am pretty small (I'm 28 kilograms and 1.40 meter something) and I like to wrestle (and am pretty okay at it!) Nad I hide in the weirdest places haha. I hid inside one of those drawers under a sink once and got stuck, but that doesn't matter too much haha.
This is so true, like a woman can only be strong or powerful if she is manish. Pshhh more physically strong men have been taken down by mentally strong (and very feminine ) women throughout history than one can count. We want strong female leads that use their strength and smarts as woman to achieve her goals. And I don't mean winning a beauty pageant or a pie baking contest let them save the world and conquer their enemies. let them protect who and what they love not just with brute force and bitter attitude but with charm, wit and determination! Sorry for this rant haha the sterotypical , cliche, "strong" female lead urks me something fierce. 😅
Her: Explaining in a way that is easy for me to understand
My Brain: Are those books sorted by color? Oooooo.
Am also thinking that :-P
Ark Net Inc. Haha, I noticed the same thing. And here I was, thinking that my mom was the only person in the world that sorted books on their color and height.
Fuck sorting by author name libraries should organize books by color so that when you walk into the building your greeted with massive shelves of satisfying color patterns and rainbows
i had the exact same thought
You have a genius brain
Katara from Avatar comes to mind, immediately
They handled all their female characters extremely well, like everyone is a badass. Actually, avatar did everything good lmao
Katara is a feminine character and they still manage to make her a badass.
me too !!! you stole my comment haha
@@noonebossesthegarnet2890 That is what I'm aiming for when writing my female characters. The female character I’m thinking of writing is a law enforcement agent (FBI, MI5, Scotland Yard) who is hard nosed with slime/goo generation powers but she can be soft/delicate in some parts. However, she stands her ground and takes nothing from others. She also likes stuffed animals and some traditional feminine aesthetics while being athletic.
She is a real woman with STRENGTHS and Weaknesses.
Arya Stark maybe?
Personally, I admire a female character who can cry- who is allowed to have let downs, crisis and weaknesses, and SHE AKNOWLEDGES THEM. For me, a strong female character is nothing more than a well- constructed female character, one that you can relate to because she feels real enough.
I agree!! ✨
What i want to see is a damsel in distress but she helps the hero by screwing up her captors plans bye using her smarts and maybe her beauty because almost all damsel is distress characters are supposed to be pretty
@@theuglyfruit7704 don't you love it how charters can maintain a beauty routine: as a slave, in the streets, as a peasant, in the wilderness etcetera🤣
@@an8strengthkobold360 well actually it depends on what Time period the slave is in as slavery in the ancient Egypt times eas not actually bad it was a way for people to pay off debts, and while doing slave work they had to be properly taken care of. Heck after their time is up they can choose to continue being a slave.
@@an8strengthkobold360 but, other than that yeah it's pretty ridiculous
point number 1!!!!
the animated Mulan comes to mind first! She's not as physically strong as her male counterparts but she makes up for it with her wit.
and she's still feminine!
And the only reason she makes her hair shorter is to blend in! Not because strength transition
She’s the queen!
@@paulac.munoztorres She should be.
Then they destroy her character in the real life film.
This psrefect lil princess or girl boss with no need to train or get better.
Just a perfect specimen from the start.
🤣
Yeah, it's the main thing that annoyed me so much about the remake. They took an already really strong female character and got rid of all of her struggles and flaws to make her "stronger" when they didn't need to! She was already really strong and literally refused to give up despite everyone else looking down on her and risked her life to save other people. She is a perfect example of a strong female character with flaws and struggles and Disney completely missed that when they remade it
Bro I’m a guy and I look up to all the girls in avatar the last airbender
Katara’s brave and compassionate
Toph’s determined and resilient
Suki’s open-minded and respectful
Azula shows the horrifically real consequences of child abuse and reminds us that even people with unimaginable power and status have personal issues
the women in atla are so well written , i aim to write characters like them
@@Nickilob2006 Same , I wish I could write amazing story, amazing characters like ATLA , ITS JUST AMAZING!!
Right each of them are distinctly THEM and no one takes their agency away. Gosh, they wrote the gals wonderfully
you left out Kyoshi who became a literal Goddess............
You can't look up to toph, she's smol, like 3 feet smol.
I see that the problem with the stereotype of "strong female characters" is that they are actually leaning towards Mary Sue style of characters. And your video shows ways to bring someone from a Mary Sue type of character back to a strong character. Like you said, real strong characters have flaws, weaknesses, and altogether fail on some level or another at some point.
So true, Jacob! I'm so glad you liked this video!
Remember if she struggles it's sexist.
Here's a way to create an authentic SFC: go out and live an interesting life, then transfer that life experience into your character. It goes a long way toward coming off as authentic and not a shallow contrivance of a sheltered person totally unaware of the beautifully ugly complexities of the real world. The human condition is convoluted; don't let your narcissism steer you into producing a 2-D Mary Sue in a fantasy world designed to stroke your ego.
I find it interesting when the subject of "Mary Sue" characters come up we don't hear Batman, or Sherlock Holmes, James Bond, Jack Bauer, Wolverine - Superman...
He's maybe a bit more common, but it's typically in a separate conversation about characters who are considered less interesting because they're "too OP" (as opposed to _perfectly_ OP, like Batman, I guess) so even our conversations about characters that are "too perfect" split into a gender divide, and it still seems like flawed men get to be *more* perfect.
Some of my favorites are the explanations for why these characters are "not" perfect. Like for Superman it's usually "As Clark Kent he's nervous around Lois Lane!" (My OC is clumsy!) or the mere existence of kryptonite, particularly the red variety.
I'd like to point out that Hollywood has gotten a lot of crap recently for supposed "Mary Sue" characters, and the most reasonable examplar, Wonder Woman, is the one that made the most money and won the most praise. I don't think the arguments people make necessarily reflect their purchasing habits.
@@futurestoryteller same thing happened w captain marvel since she got a lot of hate because people thought she was too strong and too "basic" and they called her a mary sue. yeah she has amazing powers but she actually had a character arc too and she's actually a strong female character
Now that I've watched the movie "Encanto", I can say Luisa is the perfect example of a strong girl with an important weakness
yesss, i love encanto and luisas character is so interesting
People can have physical disabilities and have strong insides
Or have metal disabilities but have a sharp mind
Or a highly sensitive and still saves the days
Or storng and still have weaknesses
PREACH IT!! 👏💛
Jake Sully begins the Avatar movie in a wheelchair. Daredevil (in the Netflix tv show) is blind and so is Toph from Nickelodeon’s Avatar.
@@matityaloran9157Daredevil's blind in the movie as well
@@GACHAShadow-cb5kf I haven’t seen the movie
@@matityaloran9157 That's alright. It is really good though. I haven't seen the Netflix show tbh
It's actually pretty easy
Write a good character and make them Female
Exactly
That's a good one. I'm gonna try it 👼
exactlyyy dont think of them as female. that's irrelevant just make them a good person who happens to be female
@@peachy-wd6ci the problem is that its honestly hard to make a likeable female character bc most fandoms r just sexist without even knowing it, most writers want to give their characters flaws but its hard to do that with girls bc they will get hate for them while a male who has those same flaws will get praised for them, lots of female characters r awesome but they r deadass just not liked bc they r female
I'm gonna write a story with a strong female character, who is sexist, hated by her parents and peers, but is actually the boss. So if you dislike her, it's the effect I want to achieve.
Buffy is definitely a strong female character who i think was written perfectly. Honestly, all the women on that show are amazing.
Yes, Buffy is always the first to come to mind when anyone talks about strong female characters. She's such a REAL, strong girl who also cries, wears girly clothes and sometimes loses fights.
I agree
I immediately thought of Buffy as she walking. In my opinion, the greatest female character ever written!
I know lots of people hated her, but I loved the Cordelia Chase character. (That doesn't mean I liked her, not at first, but I was rooting for her.) Talk about a strong woman. Yeah, she was a shallow bitch in Buffy, but she changed a lot in Angel. Her character arc had so much potential, and they didn't do it justice at all. Pissed me off.
Buffy is the perfect example of a strong female character. Yes she’s physically strong but is also very feminine, vulnerable and makes a lot of mistakes. I wish more modern female characters were written as well as her.
Vulnerability and resilience are the two traits that really grab me in a character. The girl who gets her ass kicked, but still gets back up and into the fight, even though she knows she'll get her ass kicked again and again. That takes an immense amount of courage, and really keeps us rooting for her to eventually beat her adversary at some point in the future.
I like to call that the "heroine who keeps fighting with tears in her eyes", but it's the same concept. I actually think the audience will naturally have more empathy with female than male characters by default - unless you actively spoil that by making them overly tough and obnoxious. Strength is amplified in the visible presence of weakness. You can make a character's strength admirable without wasting the natural potential of the protective instinct.
Yeah - if there is a real and serious threat of danger. You can make anything work.
Take Ripley in aliens. Take gandoloh in lord of the rings even. He was a BOSS and strongest wizard going..... Yet there was always a sense of danger and the balrog dragging him down just makes it that much better and darker.
I'm seeing this argument thrown around a lot, and I'd just like to point out that I'm a little annoyed by the concept of "guy" things and "girly" things. I'm not saying we should be gender blind, and so therefore these authors who write "masculine" females should not be called out for gender swapping a character _stereotype,_ to convey "strength" but if our focus is on whether or not the character likes "dresses," then maybe we're expecting too much from these authors anyway.
A lot of character "flaws" are also just disadvantages to being born a certain way. So the interesting thing about Brienne from Game of Thrones (the show anyway) is that we get the _sense_ that maybe she likes, or prefers elegance, and pretty dresses, and ballroom dancing, but those things just aren't in the cards for her as a character. She also falls in love with a gay man, and she knows he's gay, but she wants to express that love to him in the only way that she knows how, and that's to become a knight in his army. It's not ideal, but it's the best she can do under the circumstances. That's _really_ interesting.
Notice there's nothing really _wrong_ with her, based on that breakdown anyway, it's just not what she wants. She may have an appreciation for those "girly" things, but she rarely endulges in them, she's both physically strong and *not* girly and that's both fine *_and_* not by choice. Hopefully you see what I'm getting at here.
Danielle from Ever After 💖
Penelope Garcia from Criminal Minds 💖
Katherine, Dorothy and Mary from Hidden Figures 💖
Scarlett O'hara (of course) from GWtW 💖
Belle from Beauty and the Beast 💖
Buttercup from The Princess Bride 💖
Rose from Titanic 💖
List of good female characters:
1. Korra from “The Legend of Korra”
2. Eda from “The Owl House”
3. Asami from “The Legend of Korra”
4. Nobara from “Jujutsu Kaisen”
5. Black Canary (a superhero)
These are just some example…
I'm glad you mentioned nobara
One of the earliest and my favorite: Ellen Ripley in "Alien". She's scared sh*tless, but she still gets the job done.
Korra was one the worst ones.
This came at the right time for me ! My WIP's MC is a strong female character, but I don't want her to be the annoying type that people are tired of. This video helped me so much!
I'm so glad this video helped you, Jenna! I can't wait to read your book, I'm sure your strong female MC is EPIC!! 😍✨ thanks for watching!
There is one character that is a real badass character that changes the mood of Fullmetal Alchemist, Olivier Mira Armstrong the Ice Queen.
But the whole ice queen thing isn't just a 2d "I'm serious all the time" and thats what makes it work.
I particularly love when shes fighting her brother and we get this exchange:
Alex:are you trying to kill me?!
Olivia:what tipped you off?
honestly all the women in Fullmetal are great. Super strong and definitely not perfect beings with all the answers but still valuable nonetheless.
I know I'm late to this post, but I wanted to say how much I appreciate this. I'm so tired of the Mary Sue Paragon that is the "strong female character" because she rejects everything that's traditionally associated with femininity, and becomes bitter in the process. It's as if the author is telling women that in order to be strong, she has to be like man. Then it annoys me further because typically in those kinds of stories she's still one of the only female characters.
yea exactly
Good on you for realising that a lot of Mary Sues are actually failed attempts at writing paragons. Took me a while to figure that out. But it applies to male characters, to: Richard from Sword of Truth starts out as an everyman and is then supposed to become a paragon, but he just turns into the biggest Gary Stu I've read about so far. Not because he's rarely ever wrong, but because the entire universe of his story seems to warp around him.
Male or female there has to be danger.
There can't be this perfect specimen without any danger.
It's boring and becoming the norm.
Ripley in Aliens and even gandolph in a fantasy setting.
He gets dragged down to his doom and you fear for his character. There is always real danger.......
Ever since I was little Cinderella was a huge role model for me, I know there's a lot of controversy around her character but I see her as someone who endured a lot but maintained her kindness and courage (ie Disney's 2015 Cinderella). She was always strong and just because she ended up marrying a prince, doesn't mean she had no depth or inner strength.
My fav strong female character is Buffy Summers from the Buffy TV show. She's just epitome of a badass chick who can kick butt & who isn't afraid to cry or make mistakes or say she was wrong or even learn from her enemies.
And she still likes shopping at the mall. Best show!
Those are great tips! Hearing those I think I have "accidentally" written a strong female character :D. She has no clue of combat, she is not physically strong or fit or anything. Her strength purely comes from her mind. She is kind and compassionate, highly emotionally intelligent. When in the middle of a bloody conflict she manages to keep a clear head, lead everyone to safety, and makes quick vital decisions. She is headstrong, and honestly has her foot in her mouth sometimes, which brings herself in trouble more than once. She just cant shut her mouth lol. But she is also smart, and brave and saves her male counterpart at least as many times as he saves her, not with stereotypical "strength", but with her heart and quick thinking. A woman raised in the midst of a highly patriarchal society, but still taking control over her own life, despite all the backlash she gets. This psychological strength is something I hope I have somehow captured.
I believe that the authoress of Little Women wrote about her life, and she was Joe in the story, actually. Maybe that's why she's so relatable?
Also, I wish I could give you a million likes for this video!! It's so good and helpful! Thank you for it!
Yes I heard that too! So cool. 💛 THANK YOU SO MUCH JULIA! ✨
Oh yeah I know joe and I luv her cause she writes and is always there to take lace for her father
I read little women last year and i literally couldn’t stop crying i was so sad when beth died
Hi! I'm Ana, a writer from Spain. I don't know a lot of English, but I'm trying to learn it, so I decided to watch English YT videos and your channel is one of my favourites. And I am totally agree with you in this one. Thank you for all these tips and examples :) ¡Un abrazo!
Hi Ana! I'm so glad you like my channel! thank you so much 💛✨ (also, your English is great!)
Your English is PERFECT 👌🏻 this is coming from a native English speaker
Strength means being able to accept your flaws, push through those hard times while knowing it’s okay to cry, and being able to accept yours and others vulnerability.
When it comes to the “Not like other girls” trope, what do you think of “Not like other girls but wants to be like other girls.”? One of my female characters is like that, she was raised to basically be a man in a female suit the annoying “strong female character” but it isolated her from other kids on both genders and left her friendless so she hates being “not like other girls” and tries to do traditionally girly things with the other female characters. What do you think of that?
I know you're not asking me, but I think it's highly relatable. I grew up with 2 brothers so I didn't really know how to be girly in a traditional sense. But I really wanted to be as I grew up and matured into my femininity. :)
I wrote one character in a similar situation: She turned herself into that "conflict-seeking fighter bad*ss* (including the "cutting off her hair" part 😁) but is *aware* that she sacrificed her femininity in the process and longs for a future in which she can get it back. If I ever finish and release that story, I'm pretty sure the woke crowd is not going to like that latter part... 😇
Oh thats my life
my brain automically plays "i wanna be like other girls" 🤣
You literally described one of my characters.
Tell this to Hollywood writers.
Natasha Romanoff, and my favorite trait is her compassion.
Wanda Maximoff
@@elite_piggyzillaxx174 most of the mcu women are AMAZING (carol is the one exception)
@@brennareynolds147 The concept of many female characters in the MCU is amazing, but in the MCU they dont get full character development. How many female characters have tgeir own movies? Only a couple..and they are very recent. I love the MCU and the potential of these characters but it feels like its too little too late. Only now are we getting Black widow and wandavision. But I feel like Marvel still doesnt get how to write female characters yet.
Gamora from marvel , everyone forgets her but she’s amazing
@@scarlett4484Did you watch the show Agents of Shield? It's the best production Marvel ever made when it comes to strong female characters.
#3 made me think of what Michelle Obama said in an interview about how she became a strong and independent because she amazingly loving, supportive, and strong men in her life that supported her and believed in her. I very much connected with #3 because of this. Thank you for these videos, they are very helpful; I have been studying them intently.
Thank you so much for this!!!! This is one of my biggest pet peeves in fiction. I think it's especially important to let characters be feminine without implying that this makes them weak. What I've tried to do with my current main character is made her a quiet, shy, kind type, yet showed throughout the story that she is still incredibly strong when it comes to what matters. (Just starting revisions so it remains to be seen if I actually succeeded 😂)
AMEN, GRACE! I'm so happy you're writing a strong female character like that!! BREAK THE STEREOTYPES. *fist bump * your book sounds awesome and I need it in my life 😍
Thank you for this, I've been at the grindstone trying to form and understand my main character without letting her become something mundanely cookie cutter or two-dimensional.
I'm so glad this video inspired you, Brian! thank you for watching ✨
Strong Female Characters that I love:
Raven Reyes from The 100
Mary Stuart from Reign
Molly Weasley from Harry Potter
Kestrel from The Winner's Curse
Laia from An Ember In The Ashes
Arya Stark from Game of Thrones
Raven! I’ve always favored Octavia
Yesss Molly Weasley! Such a queen!
Her best line is still “Not my daughter you b*tch!” While protecting her children, winning the duel against Bellatrix.
I finally got to the Lunar Chronicles a few weeks ago and it amazes me how well the series has held up since it came out in 2012 - you have characters like Cinder and Scarlet who could easily fall into the Strong Female Character(tm) stereotype but who don't, who get moments of vulnerability, are allowed to be kind and compassionate (especially in Scarlet's case, given her relationship with Wolf and her friendship with Winter). You mentioned Cress, and there's also Iko and Winter who are stereotypically feminine but who are both badasses in their own way.
I love your Elinor reference - so spot on as the strong character in heartbreak that stays strong for everyone else. I absolutely adore her and can't imagine a better representation for a silent sufferer.
Jo March was my literary idol growing up - another perfect example.
YESS ELINOR IS SO GREAT ISN'T SHE :''') And Jo! (even if I'm eternally angry at her for not marrying Laurie *distant sobbing *) I'm so glad you liked this video! Thank you so much for watching 💛✨
Again, another needed message! Thanks for really analyzing important issues with humor and respect. 😊
Thank you so much! I'm so glad this resonated with you! 💛
“But, she will rise again.” 🥰 i’d get that tattooed
10:15, Camicazi from the How To Train Your Dragon books. She lives for the thrill of danger and is an incorrigible burglar and can be too quick to violence but in her first appearance in the third book How To Speak Dragonese, she repeatedly escapes from the Romans who have captured her and Hiccup but is recaptured every time resulting in her eventually thinking “maybe, you can keep a Bog-Burglar under lock and key” before she ends up going along with Hiccup’s plan of escape. And in her later appearances, she has a heart of gold and is loyal to Hiccup but she still sometimes loses (even though she normally doesn’t.)
Hi, I am a young Brazilian girl who loves to write, and I am very happy that I found your channel =D You and your videos are very inspirational to me (and I love your accent ^-^)
Thank you! I'm so glad you're here, Beatriz! ❤️✨ and so glad my channel inspires you!
This was very helpful. I am writing an epic sci-fi novel with a female lead, and pretty much all you talked about reaffirmed how I am writing this lead. When I see female characters who are portrayed as "strong" by simply having increased masculine traits, with an almost complete rejection of feminine traits, it feels artificial, and that's boring. When I see a female character who is just ordinary, but then develops over time into a strong character, especially due to circumstance, that feels very "human" and it makes me love the character. This can be applied to both males and females.
I often think of Maggie Greene from The Walking Dead when I think of what a real strong female character is. She's not needlessly cruel or overtly butch, she's not perfect, she's not stoic, she does have flaws, she's not physically powerful but mentally and emotionally like a rock. Considering how badly that show was written, like, 40% of the time, she's a great character.
I have a strong female character who actually loves to fight in dresses lol
My strong female character fights in wedges lol.
@@elite_piggyzillaxx174 lmao-
@@emxry She be stepping on the enemies toes 😂 (for real though, that would hurt)
Like Alexia Tarabotti in "Soulless" ☺ she fights in a full Victorian walking dress, complete with custom weaponized parasol - love it >///
Love how well are Katara, Toph, Suki and Korra written (ATLA and LOK fan here), they show their weaknesses, mistakes, where they went wrong, they overcome their fears, and grow beyond their limitations, and they all have a sensitive side, and they show it sooner or later, as they grow. I love that Toph's blindness becomes the basis of her abilities, and pushes her to learn another ability to navigate the world, defying what her parents told her she couldn't do, never gave up and kept trying. That is strength.
Writing my first epic fantasy novel here! Hope I can do a good job writing my characters (and choosing their names, which is something I struggle with a lot 😅)
And they never look down on another for being a different "kind of girl". Korra gets in a relationship with Asami, who's really feminine and portrayed as having strength and is really smart on her own.
@@_Risa1992_ and inclussion is not forced, which is the best thing that can be done when writing characters, it all flows naturally, smoothly, giving more importance to their development, so people get used to see other realities and accept them better.
Thanks for the topic, I write about strong female characters, I like it that they are feminine yet yet have agency and make informed decisions.
For me, a strong female character is someone who has _emotions_ and can control those emotions. They are badass, but kind hearted and don't hurt people deliberately with their words because they know, even in a game of show off, words sting. They care for others before themselves, and do not back off from hard fights.
I could go on, but I have homework.
5:24 Also Aliens - Ripley learns how to handle some pretty advance weaponry from Hicks. It doesn't diminish her in any way. in fact he is even more impressed, as unlike Vasquez, she's a civilian imbedded with military professionals (who are out of their depths) and yet she steps up. Fierce.
Buffy the vampire slayer, one of the most important scenes when she chooses herself over the world because she is afraid to die, ultimately she still goes but that fear is very realistic. Still one of my fave shows to this day
Amen!! Loved everything you had to say about building a truly strong female character. So refreshing! I love Margaret Hale from North & South by Elizabeth Gaskell. There's so much internal conflict where she's the buffer between her parents' marriage and hiding the secret of her brother the mutineer, and then she moves to somewhere completely foreign and has to build a new life. She messes up a ton, especially where Mr. Thornton is concerned, but she is the coolest, strongest, kindest character ever. Just love her to pieces!
2:35, though it can be perfectionism. With Princess Azula in Avatar, everything must be perfect “almost isn’t good enough” and when she realizes that she can’t get that, she goes mad.
That introduction was perfect my friend!
Thank you, girl!! 😊
Abbie: Give her a weakness
Me: Oh I know!
Abbie: Not perfectionism
Me:
Me: how did she know
I might be missing something. Is perfectionism a bad weakness? I got confused at that part
@@jerryr9901 It's not a bad thing, I mean, I'm a perfectionist. But it can't be that character's only flaw. Because then you're implying that your character is flawless which defeats the purpose. I hope this helps!!
It's also rarely written in a way that shows how bad and debilitating it can be at worst. Usually it's written just "oh they always try hard++". Rarely you see characters who fail at their work or studies because their perfectionism is stopping them from returning the work because it is not yet perfect. Or even from starting the work at all because they know they can't get it perfect.
@@jerryr9901I think that she means it can’t be a job interview weakness but has to be something that affects her in some adverse way.
Oh my gosh the Luna chronicles 😀 i read Cinderella one years ago and I've always tried to remember what the book series was called! Thank you 😊
In my book I have 4 main character, 3 being girls. Something I like to do is to get stereotypes and make them realistic! Something that was the main idea I had when making these characters. Clem is basically a spoiled girly girl... that is the strongest from the team and who stands up for the rest! She at first is very narrow minded but slowly opens up and stands up for the minorities. Her main weakness is her easy to annoy (she acts, doesn't think) personality and her small knowledge a it magic. El is a shy, weak little girl... that is forced to go against her beliefs (like Clem) and has to save her teammates, especially one she hates and her family is what caused her to be so scared. Her main limitations is her fear to act and her very weak body. While Lati (the one with the mean family) is the main main character! She is your super childish friend that just happens to be the leader of the group. She has to balance being herself and taking care of the group (which just really happens in dangerous situation to be honest). She quietly does a lot of the work and barely shows her problems, these being that she is practically lying about her group (basically you gotta choose who you support), her mother's side of the family and her powers.
Sarah Connor from T2 is pretty much a textbook example of how to do a strong female character right.
Nadia Valerius with benefit heavily from this video.
At first, I wanted to make her a female character that was on the weaker side, more dependent on her man, less capable than the strong female character, more in touch with her feminine side than other characters. But gradually throughout the book, getting stronger and smarter and more capable as she learns that she won’t always be taken care of, so she needs to learn to take care of herself, so that she can take care of her lover.
I just really didn’t want to lose her as a character. I wanted to make her stronger but not allow her to become those cocky, arrogant, “I can do whatever a man can do” strong female characters. I like her personality, and I don’t want to change it, because to change it, would be to lose her. And I really didn’t want to lose her.
Honestly, this is one of the most helpful videos I've ever watched. I also appreciate how you are unbiased--not a D.I.D. super supporter or a super-butch strong woman supporter. This is generally awesome advice, thank you so much!!!! 🙏
THIS. YES. SO MUCH YES. 👏👏👏
(P.S. I loved all your shoutouts! & I may or may not have squealed out loud at the mention of Victoria. 😉)
VICTORIA IS SO GREAT 😍👏 and eeep I'm so glad you liked this video!!
Yaas Jenna Coleman
In my eyes I see Cinderella as a strong female character. Cinderella is seen as the damsel in distress when in reality she was making the best of her awful situation. Her positivity and creativity helped her persevere against her toxic family. She even tried to make her own dress for the ball despite the amount of work her stepmother gave her. Even in her darkest moment, her creativity manifests as her fairy god mother and takes her to the ball: not to marry the prince or even woo him, but to have one night of fun. After the prince searches for his true love and visits her home, Cinderella ceases this opportunity to leave, getting help from the mice and other animals she cared for and ultimately succeeds.
Too many critics have watered down Cinderella when out of all the Disney princesses at the time she was the most relatable and imo the best well written one. I'm sure many people could relate to being in a toxic relationship (be it familial or relationship) and being unable to leave.
Yeah, people are overly harsh on Cinderella
I’m binging all your character videos, AND THIS IS YOUR BEST YET.
Naomi Nagata is my favorite. Tomboish, badass but also caring, smart and funny. She's the heart of the Roci crew and my favorite character in the series.
"Learn something from a man"
You mean Aliens? When Ripley learns how to use a gun from Hicks.
I'm a thirteen-year-old writer and I love strong relatable female characters.
I think a good example of a strong female character is Katniss Everdeen. A bad example would be Tris from divergent.
Katniss is a good role modle. Tris, not so much. I enjoy books where the female character is feminine, has weaknesses, doesn't give up, and of course wins in the end.
My strong female character is a girl who's entire family has been bombed during a war for freedom. She has horrible flashbacks and has been diagnoised with mental instability. She freaks out in the most lethal instances and couldn't care less about the surrounding war. Little by little and with the help of an enemy friend whom she has no choice but to save from certain death, she over comes all obsticles and in the end is the savior of her people. She likes floaty dresses and enjoys peach ice cream. Her favorite color is blue.
I have been streaming your videos the whole day and I really just want to say how thankful I am. This is all actually helpful advice that I don´t get to see a lot when it comes to writing. All your videos are so well done, everything is efficiently explained and you are just a super nice person to watch and listen to. If I´m gonna let anyone tell me what to do in writing, it will be you. Please keep at it, you´re doing wonderfully and you deserve way more subscribers, although I have no doubt they will come
This is really helpful for me because I've never written a story with a female lead and this among many other videos will be super helpful.
I love your tips, you deserve more subscribers. I'm a new writer and really appreciate these kind of videos! I always agree with your tips, especially these ones because I don't like it when a female (or male) character is overdone. I think flaws are what makes a perfect character
I AGREE 100%!! Thanks so much! I'm so glad you liked this video 😊✨
I believe I have written myself a couple of SFCs. In particular the series of novels I’m writing now. It’s why I watched this video when it showed up in my feed. I was glad to see that I was already doing everything you suggested. In particular discussing one having PTSD from something. Great video.
This is why I love sailor moon so much, you have a cast full of strong female characters who are still feminine AND showcase a huge variety of personalities and interests!
Totally late to this video, but better late than never. I say a strong female is someone who isn't afraid of relying on a man sometimes and acknowledging that sometimes a man is stronger. But, I love every point you made in this video! And HAWK IS SO EPIC I LOVE HER!!! I related to Hawk, not in events in my life, but mindset.
Loved this. I'm inspired!. 😁💕
AMEN, IVIE!! PREACH 👏✨ I'm so glad this video inspired you dear
**inhales**
*HAZEL LEVESQUE*
Edit: *YOU MENTIONED CRESS I LOVE CRESS*
Greetings from the UK! I discovered your channel only this morning and you're already my new favourite CZcamsr! This video was a tremendous help to me as I'm working on achieving exactly this which my character, so I thank you. Loving your energy, humour and enthusiasm sister and I can not wait to read your book!!
I've been watching your videos on writing a good story and your videos are so helpful! Thank you for all your tips on a good story arch, good characters, and this video was really helpful because I'm currently writing a story with a strong female lead. :)
I love your channel! I have had a passion for writing since I was little, but I didn't know how to unpack the story or format it or create good characters. I have rediscovered my passion since watching your channel!
That helped so much Abby! I am writing a fantasy with the main character as a female. She's tomboyy like me but I don't want to make her the cheesy typical type of a strong female character. This video has been so helpful to me. I'm probably going to watch it five more times! Thank you so much Abby, your the best!
We all know inner conflict had to be mentioned here - I've never known someone sooo in love with inner conflict & i LOVE that about you !!! Your advice is sooo good, girl 💖
i love your book references to relate a point to a story. i know you are a writers channel rather than a booktuber but i would love to see you talk more about books you like, whether its on this or your personal channel 🥰❤️
AHH THANK YOU! haha I have to watch out or I'll just hardcore fangirl over all the books and shows… 😂 I like that idea!
So many excellent points made here. Thanks for the insight.
Thank you, Stephanie! I'm so glad you liked it! ❤️
Thank you! Because I could not get through the divergent series because of the MC negative inner dialogue and pessimism. I mean, would it hurt you to trust somebody? Something? How bout lunch? Can we trust lunch? No? Ok 😒
That's why I loved Marjorie (GoT). Super feminine, fierce and uses all her assets and resourcefulness to fight to win.
"I don't wanna be a queen, I wanna be The Queen!"
I am glad I found this video. I am working on a story about a very independent man who desperately needs help from a strong female character; he just does not want her help. I'll be returning to this video a few times to remind me of what you shared in the video.
Memroirs of a Geisha has LOTS of strong female characters in it (both protags, antagonists, and secondary ones). Loved that book. Also, the book The Time Traveler's Wife has a strong female lead. And...I'll mention a bad example - the girl in the Divergent series. ugh...don't get me started. This video really helped me. I'm writing a protagonist who's a mom and there's so much she wouldn't do that's like the stereotypical strong female lead, so this was so great to hear broken down. Thanks!
Writers need to watch this honestly 😭
I've got to say, some seriously good advice. Brilliantly presented too. Like it!
I have already written a fanfic and I yesterday found this channel. So I just see if my book fits her notes and all, and tbh I am pretty happy lol. My fl actually ticks all the boxes. Its my first ff and I love it so much, but the execution is so bad it makes me sad 'sometimes'. I am right now writing my 3rd ff and I hope i can improve my writing skills a bit. IDK how I would do that but I would love to see if in a few years I will myself enjoy re reading my ffs or not.
I’d say that compassion is another key characteristic of the strong female character. It enables her to form a deep emotional connection through hardships and misfortune. I have the idea of having the female protagonist possess a powerful healing ability that is fueled by her compassion.
Love the different blues in your shelf🖤
'But at the end of the day we care. Unlike Rhett' Omg that hurt 😂
Scarlet O'Hara has actually always been someone I admired because she was so resilient and resourceful (of course I did always recognise her flaws, even when I was a little kid).
If you think about it, this is why Disney Princess's are so popular. You can still be badass in a pink dress. There are so many female characters out there now a days, that basically the story wouldn't change if they were male, like Captain Marvel or Rey. While it's okay to celebrate females with more masculine traits, it's also okay to celebrate the girly girl and everything in between.
I LOVE CRESS. She was the best example I could think of although I couldn't determine why I loved her. I don't know how the author did it cuz it just seems like Cress was a girly girl with an awesome trait that made up for it even though her thoughts never came off as cring but I know there's more too it and I wish I could replicate that type of female character.
This is pretty good. I was worried at first that you would fall to the modern norms of "the strong female characters" but there was a lot of reason, common sense, and ultimately very well said info in here that includes everyone. You did a great job here.
Wow! This was so helpful! My character Bicycle Bonnie will be boosted! You were right on
I also think the strong female character often feels like just a really masculine woman... like basically a man with boobs, which still portrays any female who actually enjoys feminine activities as being weak which is not cool
Edit: oh good you said that, thank you 👏
Yes!! Thank you so much for this! I am currently making a novel and I am def adding this to my strong female character!! She is very much girly and sure does fail a ton, and keeps her feeling balled up and private. However she is a badARSOL and can kick some butt so don’t underestimate her!😌 she is wicked with a bow and even though she has mastered her ability with mind control..she refuses to use her power bc of her mother...
This is so good
Thank YOU Gisele! 😊
I write DnD Adventures. I try to end up with strong female characters by just writing interesting characters, and deciding their gender basically via cointoss.
your videos are helping me a lot.. I'm going to watch your video on how to make your MC stand out after this... my female main character starts out as human, very girly, until the inciting incident throws her into the plot and she's forced to level up.. but I want to maintain her kindness and femininity because that's the best part of being a woman! It doesn't make her weak.. it's her inner strength, exactly like you say
Violet Evergarden is the character who comes to my mind. She was in the war at a young age and while she was in war, she falls in love with her superior officer. Although out her story, she learns about different kinds of love and what her superior officer meant when he said that he loved her just before he died. Violet Evergarden is an emotionless 14 year old girl and it takes her a long time to find the terrifying truth that her superior officer is dead. How she copes with this truth is by running away to the place she and her superior officer were and breaks down crying after trying to dig her way to the truth. Abbie please watch this anime and put it into your videos. I cried every time she broke down in tears.
OMG, I needed this video so much. Your tips are sooooo, soooo, sooo helpful. I love Victoria also :D
Yay!! so happy you liked this video, thank you! 💛
Excellent tips, delivered in an easy to grasp way. Well done.
If you aren't familiar with his work, I suggest at least a glance at David Weber's Honor Harrington series. It is military science fiction genre where the lead character is, Honor Harrington; a bi-racial woman in her star nation's military. The way Weber threads the needle between a "Mary Sue" or a wet blanket/doormat is amazing.
She is to me, the epitome of a strong woman character. She is a bundle of strengths, both physical and psychological and yet she also possesses an off setting amount of physical and mental weaknesses that she constantly has to overcome during the series. Just to make her that much more believable, she is most male character masquerading as a female character. She has many traits that are usually associated with women, such as empathy and compassion.
Reading about her trying to get through life and meet her responsibilities to her country, her crew and balance that against her personal life, is captivating. She is a brilliant tactician, confident in her ability to meet those challenges and win. Yet when it comes to romantic interpersonal encounters, (at least in the first couple books) she is much less sure of herself. Presented with a tactical problem, she knows what she wants (victory) and how to best use of resources get it. When it comes to romance, she knows what she wants (mostly) but is uncertain how to get it. She has to learn, she has to spend time in self reflection, she has to make mistakes and struggle to overcome them before finally achieving victory.
Weber also doesn't fall into the trap of making all the male characters grotesque caricatures and stereotypes of men, just to make Honor seem that much better in comparison.
I'm not doing his writing and his characters justice but hopefully I was able to communicate that, if you want to see another example of a strong woman character done right, give Honor Harrington a go.
thissss!! such good advice to keep in mind!
Thank you!
I wrote a story, "Sired Of Fire", and by the end of the first book three knights, all of whom are women, learn that their father the king is really a stranger who had their parents killed. In the second book, which is still in the works, all three must come to grips with the horror of the action and the lies that were told to them by the man they trusted above all others.
This is exactly the video I needed, I am struggling to give this ENTP based personality with the appropriate internal and external struggles without losing what makes that personality so refreshing.
My favorite strong female character is Seo Dan from Crash Landing on You. Great video as always Abbie.