Writing Female Warriors - Things to Remember - Part 3

Jan 9

Ice Queens, Mothers… and Korra

I see a lot of posts highlighting examples of male writers getting descriptions of female characters wrong. Of male writers falling back on tired sexist tropes that place women as props in the male MC’s storyline. But in a world where it’s quite possible to read works only written by men… and I must stress here the importance of diversifying if you haven’t already… it can be difficult to know how NOT to do those things.

Following on from Part 2 – Fashion vs Function, Part 3 explores some of the most common female warrior tropes, and how they might be avoided.

If your female warrior isn’t a main character but performs a core function in the plot and inspires your male characters… you’ll need to make sure she’s still a fully rounded person in her own right. Despite what you might think it can be difficult to tell the difference between making a female character into an integral plot device, and turning her into a prop.

The fact is, if you’ve given your female warrior a sword and powerful attributes… and then used her as nothing but background inspiration for your male protagonists, she might as well be a statue.

Dignity Above All

So you’ve written a female character who’s both high born and kickass. A princess who’s been trained in refined combat. A woman who has scaled the ranks to be the head of her order… or a powerful CEO. She is the Ice Queen. She is untouchable. She wields a bow instead of an axe. She uses throwing knives instead of a hammer. She flourishes a rapier instead of hefting a longsword. She is carried, she does not walk.

Ladies of War are all about dignity and prowess. They slaughter their adversaries without dirtying their beautiful robes and they survey the battle scene, only deigning to involve themselves when every lesser mortal has failed. See O-Ren Ishii in Kill Bill.

So what’s wrong with this? She’s a powerful, kickass woman, right?

The problem is, it’s a fantasy that’s based on image over utility. She is grace and she is poise, just like a true lady should be. But her success depends on being so far above the rest that they’re barely a challenge. Usually she is a figurehead, adored by the army for her beauty alone, because why oh why would an army adore a person who’s willing to watch them all burn before lifting a finger, unless she’s incredibly beautiful?

If you’ve written a Lady of War, what function does she serve?

If you’re using her as a patch because there are so many badass male characters in your story that you need to address the power imbalance, and you’re doing it in the form of a single super-powerful goddess… perhaps consider adding more female characters in believable roles. A Lady of War is so aloof in manner that she will never fill the space a well-rounded female character would occupy.

If you want to give your male warriors a figurehead to rally around, but you want to empower the figurehead… well, true heroes are humans not symbols. Ask yourself why you’re making your figurehead so perfect and so cold.

If her demeanour is a result of external pressures preventing her from showing her skills, does that have to be the case throughout the narrative? Does she fight it? Or is that feature of the story only saving you from having to give her character depth?

Ask yourself the questions. Be honest about the answers.

What you can do instead:

Allow her to take off the robe and get her hands dirty. After the battle she can put the dress on again and straighten her hair and return to her usual state of poise, but make her believable. If she has genuine power and the skills needed to save lives, how realistic is it that she would sit by and watch people die? Unless you’re writing a villain (Azula - Avatar: The Last Airbender), you really want to avoid this. Make her brave, make her valiant, but make her fallible. We don’t want a Mary Sue.

Good examples of fallibility in her position could be:

A lack of confidence. Weirdly, despite her prowess, she could hold herself to such impossible standards that she’s terrified of falling short/disappointing people.
Snobbery. There’s nothing like a high-born snob learning that the common folk deserve recognition.
Fear of her own power. If she cares about people and her abilities can cause real harm, you could make her overly cautious - at first.
Overconfidence. If she knows she’s untouchable she could drive her people into impossible situations.
Loneliness. If people are scared of her/intimidated by her, she might need a friend. It doesn’t have to be romantic. If you want to do this really well, make the friend one of your other female characters, because platonic female friendships in genre fiction are hard to find. I mean, by all means make it sexual if you want. But it doesn’t have to be.

Her shortcomings/humanity might not be endearing and that’s okay. Not everyone has to be likeable. But people need to be believable. And an object is never empowered.

She’s Basically a Guy

If you’ve written a Lady of War because you want to prove that woman can be badass and ladylike at the same time… well I’d ask whether you’re making your other badass women overly masculine.

If your female warrior has shed femininity to such a degree that she’s not just “one of the guys”, she’s the same as the guys, there needs to be a good reason for it.

Good reasons include:

Disguise for the sake of safety, i.e. Arya Stark.
Disguise for the sake of free choice, i.e. Eowyn.
Being raised by men and therefore adopting masculine habits and traits by default/accident - which could be part of her journey.
Trauma related to societal expectations - i.e. Brienne of Tarth.

Less good reasons include:

A woman who wants to fight is basically a man anyway.
It’s muscles or dresses - pick one.

Female characters deserve specific attention and consideration. Simply writing a male character and changing the name and pronouns is a clunky, shallow way to approach representation. But how do you include aspects of femininity when she’s performing a masculine role? Ask yourself:

How was she raised?
Was she raised differently to male relatives? If so, how?
Is she a rebel for taking on this role, or is it acceptable/normal?
Did she want to take this path?

Once you have answers to these questions, weaving in hints/details as to her wider place and personality should be straightforward.

Tying-in femininity

Female warriors can be complicated people and knowing their backstory is essential. Think about what a warrior can carry with them. What symbols communicate femininity in your world. If married women braid their hair in a particular way, and your female warrior is/has been married, perhaps the act of braiding her hair is important to her. If daughters wear a specific token pinned to their dress, can she pin it to her armour instead? Could she fight in a different style to her male counterparts or use a different weapon? If it’s a case of deportment, do ladies salute differently?

Displaying these behaviours/items could be an act of rebellion or just part of her routine. And the shedding/attainment/defence of tokens could be part of her journey.

Brienne

Brienne of Tarth is a great example of a warrior woman who grapples with trauma related to her femininity. It’s not that she never wanted to be a feminine princess, it’s that when she tried to take on that role she was laughed at. Now, when faced with feminine situations she responds defensively. She is still a Lady, but she associates behaving in a ladylike way with being ridiculed.

In addition, she knows that she will never fit in with the men. Being different makes people uncomfortable and she’s different no matter where she stands. It’s a tough spot to be in and we feel it.

She Loves her Powers/Abilities

This is an option I’ve only seen once and it was glorious. The moment at the beginning of The Legend of Korra when the elemental benders are searching for the new Avatar, and an infant Korra bursts through the wall, whipping water, shooting sparks and blowing a gale, declaring:

“I’m the Avatar, you gotta deal with it!”

Now Korra’s journey goes on to be complicated and she faces multiple physical and emotional challenges while mastering her elemental powers… but she always knows what she is. Being able to bend multiple elements is fundamental to her sense of self.

It would be wonderful to see more female warriors basking in their abilities. Genuinely enjoying what their bodies can do. Not necessarily for the sake of competition - i.e. the opening of Wonder Woman 1984 when Diana is competing in the trials - but for the sheer joy of it.

What are the options?

Let her go to a shooting range for fun. Let her make something… do something creative with her skills. It’s not just about fighting or taking out frustration. Being deadly with a spear in battle could translate to spear fishing later on. Perhaps agility allows her to reach a solitary spot where she can find peace. When we’re good at something, we find pleasure in it.

Weaving in a moment of joy could round-out the powers she has at her disposal and the good they can do as well as the bad.

Motherhood

Women who are warriors can’t have babies, right? Wrong. Women operate in the armed forces with families at home and, shockingly enough, manage. Sure they might not be there all the time, but that doesn’t mean they’re failing. If your female warrior is earning her keep as an assassin or a soldier, why can’t she be sending her wages back to a husband or relative who’s looking after her kids?

Too often we see women having children at the end of their adventures, e.g. Katniss Everdeen having babies with Peter in the epilogue.

Too often we see female assassins sterilised to prevent childbearing, e.g. Black Widow and Red Sparrow.

Very rarely do we read about a woman who combines soldiering with motherhood, like in Anna Smith Spark’s A Woman of the Sword.

Children don’t have to be a key feature of her story, especially if they’re not physically present. But having children can add depth to your female warrior. Perhaps a conversation can take place about responsibility vs valour. The fact is, life happens and if you’re writing her right, she has been living up until now.

Conclusion

From badass Princesses learning to respect their troops, to wayward daughters hiding among the ranks of an army, to working mothers sending wages back home, there are so many stories you can tell through your female warriors. Don’t limit her to the role of “tough woman” or “battle angel”, give her nuance, depth, joy and pain. Fully embed her in your world and give her multiple reasons to keep fighting.