I thought it would be fun to spotlight my female characters today. They’re very dear to my heart. With it being International Women’s Day, I thought it would be a great time to give them all a shout out – some are noble, others are infamous. I hope you enjoy reading about them. 🙂

Jill in my short story The Red Coat & The Redhead

Jill is a young American woman who meets Jon, a deserting British officer, by chance. Their bond grows as she helps him with his wound and they run off together in hopes of fleeing the war. Like Jon, she is against the war itself, yet she has been trained how to fight by her older brother in case she ever needs to defend herself. While not a warrior by nature, she will fight for her life and for the ones she loves if needed. She’s one of the first female characters I wrote about and I admire her bravery and sense of adventure. I think there’s a part of that female solider in every woman. We are all strong in our own ways.

Eve in my short story Eve & Adam

Eve is a dreamy, free-spirited girl who meets Adam, a suicidal boy, one day at the top of a hill. While at first she seems like his manic pixie dream girl, he respects her kind, gentle nature and they share a bond over the fact that they are both struggling from mental health issues triggered by existential crisis. Eve has been raised in a cult and the laws she lives under don’t sit right with her. She wanders past the borders of the village and has a deep desire to escape. The problem is she’s so sheltered and needs someone else she can relate to. Adam is someone who seems to understand her for the first time in her life. While not a happy story, Eve represents a woman breaking free of conventions forced upon her. She’s a freedom fighter and eventually realizes she always had the strength to leave the cult behind.

Sarah in my novella The Suicides

Sarah is a closet writer. She’s married to a controlling merchant who doesn’t support her hobbies. Risking further abuse, she holds secret literary circle meetings and helps a young college student with his research about the town. While quiet and seemingly meek, Sarah has more strength than everyone gives her credit for. She has the courage to lay down her life for her friends, demonstrating that kindness and quietness are qualities often found in the bravest people. She may not be relatable to all women, but I think many women can relate to being underestimated. Like Sarah, every woman has the strength within to stand up for what she believes in.

Agnita and Helen in my novel A Season To Fight

A Season To Fight is written in multiple perspectives. Helen and Agnita are two of the main characters in the story. Both are young teenagers. Helen is forced to drop out of school to help support her family as she battles grief and depression. Agnita wants to help fight against the enemy, but faces many barriers being a girl while the boys are encouraged to fight. Young girls are very important – they will be humanity’s future women. Their opinions and dreams matter as much as everyone else’s. While many adults overlook teenaged girls or view their interests as silly, they are indeed stronger than they seem. Helen’s life takes place mostly in a domestic setting while Agnita is more wild and goes on daring adventures. They both show that every girl can make an impact no matter where they live or who they are. We need to remember to listen to and pay attention to girls.

Mary in The Broken & The Foolish

Mary is a portrait of how an individualist female outlaw might have lived back in the Wild West. Many of her choices are not wise, but that’s the basis of the story – this is why people read Westerns. She rejects the feminine roles of her time and chooses to be more like a stereotypical man. A few of my readers disliked Mary for her independence and foolish choices. Mary represents every woman who is going through a time in her life where she wants to break free from society’s pressure to be a certain way and take her own path – no matter how crazy it gets. I think every woman needs a season in her life where she does this. Solo journeys help you discover who you really are what you really want and they don’t normally last forever. You don’t need to be an outlaw to relate to Mary. While most of her views and lifestyle don’t represent my own, I can understand the choices she made for her own survival in the Wild West.

Sally in my novel Sally

Sally was written as minor character in The Broken & The Foolish. She’s one of Mary’s non-violent rivals. It’s easy to de-humanize people who act strangely in someone else’s story, especially women, but there is more than meets the eye. Sally is a complex person who had dreams to study art at university before she was forced to marry a farmer at age 17. As she adjusts to married life, she learns how things really work in the world she lives in. In order to cope with her ever-changing life, she starts to harden and become someone very different from the dreamy, idealistic girl she once was. I think Sally represents the darker side of a woman who is suppressed. While she finds her inner strength, she uses it for harm rather than for good. Written for entertainment purposes for people who love Westerns, it’s not a story I would say is encouraging, but I think it shows what can happen when one suppresses the wrong type of girl for too long. Sometimes an entirely different creature emerges. (Sally is probably the darkest story I’ve written).

Marie in my novella, Marie

Marie was written for entertainment purposes much like Sally. I enjoy digging into a a character’s mind and exploring how they might act with a certain personality disorder. Marie is a psychopath who will do anything to get ahead. I wanted to explore what would happen if a psychopath started to feel guilt or empathy for someone they killed. While not relatable to most unless they suffer from antisocial personality disorder, Marie is a complex character who is forced to face the crimes she’s committed.

Almaz in my novella Voice Of A Storyteller

Almaz is the epitome of a creative, peace loving woman. Sadly, she attracts the hatred of a young man who sees her as a fake and a threat. This story explores obsession and how quickly it can become violent against an innocent person. Almaz has beautiful dark skin, a kind smile, and a heart that inspires the people around her. She has the type of voice that lives beyond the grave.

Enya in my short story, A Seahag’s Song

Enya is a passionate, energetic creative woman who loves fiercely and has ambitions to travel. She has attracted an enemy, however, due to jealousy. The one who can’t stop spying on her is a sea hag who soon realizes that Enya is far deeper than she seems. I think sometimes people dehumanize women with certain qualities and label them as “basic” or “ditsy” so their thoughts and opinions can be easily brushed aside. Ella, the sea hag, can relate to being misunderstood herself and begins to see how much her target is actually hurting on the inside. Enya shows us how complex any woman can be.

Zara in my novel, Shepherd Girl

Zara loves the simple life and is not afraid to work hard to get what she wants. She loves hard and is a good mother. Zara is the very first female main character who becomes a mother. I suppose it was time to write about someone who doesn’t run from motherhood, but instead embraces it. As a writer, it’s good to have different types of characters, and your writing does grow with you. Zara is probably one of my strongest characters as she’s been through much abuse and loss, but still chooses to remain gentle and do what she thinks is best for her child. She represents hard working moms, especially single moms. Of course, her situation is more extreme in Ancient Israel where being an unwed mother meant social exclusion. I love how she has a sense of adventure and her self-discovery journey continues after her son grows up. Zara’s story is a coming of age adventure that shows the resiliency and strength of women, especially mothers.

Jasmine in The Peasant Woman

Jasmine is a young peasant woman whom the protagonist, a selfish prince, meets. She lives in the poor end of town and the prince loathes peasants. Not knowing his identity, she nurses him back to health and starts to like him. She carries herself with a natural elegance even he can’t deny. It’s sometimes common for the rich and/or privileged to dehumanize the poor and paint them all with the same brush. Jasmine shows how human, kind, and hard working the poor often are. Her gentle nature, kindness, and strength to defend her people are what eventually win over the prince’s love. Jasmine is an epic character who I think most people will love! ❤

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Thank you all for reading these brief character sketches. If you do happen to purchase any of my books above, please let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear what you think of my story once you’ve read it, too! 🙂