Category: Females in YA (Page 3 of 4)

Females in YA: Part 5 Strong Female Characters

October 28, 2013 / Katie L. Carroll

There’s no shortage of strong females characters in YA, and the likes of Katniss from The Hunger Games, Tris from Divergent, and Katsa from Graceling come to mind. Strong female characters are equated with physical strength. And a physically strong character is a nice change from the damsel in distress that has been so prevalent in literature and movies.

But why stop at physical strength? Dictionary.com does have physical strength as the first definition, but definition 3 is “mentally powerful or vigorous”; definition 4 is “especially able, competent, or powerful in a specific field or respect”; and definition 5 is “of great moral power, firmness, or courage.”

I’m not the first to pose this question. An article called “I Hate Strong Female Characters” by Sophia McDougall (though more about film and TV than books) states, “No one ever asks if a male character is ‘strong’. Nor if he’s ‘feisty,’ or ‘kick-ass’ come to that.” She argues that male characters are often assumed to be strong, so there’s no need to label them as strong. The label of strong female character means that these characters are not the norm, she uses the word anomalous, meaning females are assumed to be the weaker sex.

So what does Ms. McDougall want instead of strong? She says, “I want a wealth of complex female protagonists who can be either strong or weak or both or neither, because they are more than strength or weakness.” Amen to that!

Several bloggers wrote their own posts in response to this article. YA Confidential had a roundtable discussion on the topic. A somewhat lengthy discussion, but worth the read as they cover topics from double standards, love triangles, the Harry Potter books, and George R. R. Martin’s characters. One person mentions Melina Marchetta’s Lumatere Chronicles (fabulous books b.t.w.!) and how her female characters “aren’t just strong; they have depth, emotions, motivation, feelings… they represent what actual people (women in this case) would be like.”

In a post by the YA Guy, he takes issue with Katniss “unwittingly” starting a revolution. In an astute observation about Katniss, he points out, “Strong as she is, Katniss both relies on and is manipulated by the male characters who surround her… While she’s running around kicking butt…it’s the men who are plotting behind the scenes, whether they’re coaching her through her televised interview, figuring out a strategy to survive the Games, or attempting to double-cross her. She’s strong. But they’re smart.”

Katniss’ ignorance of the stirring revolution and her role in it was the answer to the question that had been bothering me throughout the whole series. While I was reading, it was more of a feeling, and it wasn’t until I read the YA Guy’s post that I was able to put words to it.

Another post worth reading is Rebecca Rogers Maher’s “Flawed Heroines and the Likeability Standard.”

Over at YALSA‘s The Hub (article appears to no longer be available), Molly Wetta offers some alternatives to the typical “strong” female character in her post “What We Talk About When We Talk About ‘Strong’ Heroines in Young Adult Fiction.” She asks that we “celebrate the quiet(er) strength of realistic characters as well as the dramatic, death-defying strength of sci-fi, action/adventure, and fantasy heroines. Strength is more than physical prowess or fighting skills.”

During my Elixir Bound blog tour, I offered my own thoughts on strong female characters. Seems I’m preaching to the choir when I ask readers and writers to think of more than just physical strength when considering whether or not a female character is strong. Because, for me, a strong female character is one who is strong in character. Whether that be a physical strength, an emotional strength, or an intellectual strength. And hopefully we see more female characters who exhibit several types of strengths, and shows some weaknesses as well.

Scott R. Caseley Author of Isosceles on Females in YA

October 7, 2013 / Katie L. Carroll

A special treat today as another male author weighs in on the Females in YA series on the blog. Returning guest poster Scott R. Caseley, author of the YA mystery Isosceles, discusses the voices in his head (c’mon, writers, you all know we have ’em!). Welcome back, Scott!

“Following A Female Voice”

Written by Scott R. Caseley

When going on a road trip, a GPS device sits on my windshield directing me how to get to the destination. I imagine that this faceless individual is a person that’s been there before and knows how to lead the way. This has a direct correlation to all the great stories that have been or have yet to be written. Choosing the right voice to tell the story is key. The difference between GPS technology and literature is, you have a set number of voices to choose from on the former.

Thankfully, when writing a book, you can select from a limitless amount of voices to guide your story along. In my own experience, I don’t know right off the bat whether it will be told from a male or female point of view, I just end up going with whichever character not gender will serve the plot best. No matter which person ends up being the voice telling the story, including as narrator in some cases, I always aspire to make them complex, flawed, and as human as possible.

For my novel, Isosceles, there were three main characters to choose from; Sean, Madeline, and Trey. I thought of Trey and Madeline as being strong-willed individuals who had judgments on everything who wanted to tell me this story about him dying and what affect it had on her and their mutual best friend Sean’s life. However, as quickly as I thought of using them, I discarded the idea. With her opinionated personality I decided she would be too much in everyone’s way including her own to tell the story the way I felt would be best. Additionally, I decided I didn’t want to end the story with his death, as would certainly be the course of action I would take if Trey were narrating. I ultimately chose to tell it from Sean’s point of view, because I felt that the story needed to have a more observational bent to it to make it most objective.

However, Madeline’s voice lingered on my mind during the whole writing process as determined women have always been a joy to create, as I have known many of them in my life and stories featuring them like The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and Bridge To Terabithia are favorites of mine. Though, I also know a number of shy women who like to hide out in the background and rather enjoy some famous shy female characters too. Still, when I create my female characters, I’m not basing any of them exclusively on the real and fictitious women on my mind who have either trait. If I based something on someone entirely, it would not serve the story, unless the story was just about that particular person. I find creating hybrids between real and imagined much more fascinating for the stories I have already done.

Moreover, no character in any of my stories has been based on people solely of their gender. I find traits most interesting when they can be found in both sexes. Taking a character off the stereotypical path of being a guy, or being a gal, is a bit like choosing an alternate route on your GPS. You’ll still get where you want to at the end, but what you’ll experience or see along the way may be much more interesting then just sticking to the main roads, or the most common routes you feel everyone has gone down before.

Madeline, my aforementioned character in Isosceles is in love with Trey, and friends with Sean, but she’s got a lot more to her than that. She doesn’t aspire to be popular in school, and prefers to do her own thing. She’d much rather be a ‘floater’ in all the cliques and help those in need, counsel them, etc. She also lives life on her own terms, and doesn’t wait around for a guy to lead her on her way, she just goes forward and takes the chances. She excels in school and even graduates valedictorian. With all these strengths, she does have her share of weaknesses. I’ll let you read the book to decide for yourself what you think they are.

For all my efforts, I had critics who lauded and others who loathed her. This inspired me to want to tell a future story at least in part from a female point of view. I feel confidence in the ‘voice’ I gave Madeline, and will give my readers more female options to choose from on the next journeys my pen takes them on. Who knows maybe someone with her traits may be the narrator sometime. All I ask of you, my readers is to not be alarmed when the route takes you off the main road, just sit back and enjoy the ride, because if I do my job right, my female characters will always bring you to the proper destination.

Isosceles blurb:

When he finds his best friend Trey Goodsby dead and almost completely submerged in a bathtub filled with bloody water, Sean McIntyre is determined to find out if it was an accident or suicide. If it was suicide, why did he do it? And, did his death accidental or intentional have anything to do with Madeline Edwards, the woman who came between them constantly through their thirteen-year friendship? Isosceles, a coming-of-age mystery romance begins with the death of Trey Goodsby, and explores his relationships with family, friends, his romances, and which of the circumstances he found himself in that led to the tragic event, and the repercussions for those he left behind.

Isosceles can be purchased at the MuseItUp bookstore, Amazon.com, Amazon UK, Bookstrand, Coffee Time Romance, and other ebook retailers.

About the Author:

Scott R. Caseley was born in Nashua, New Hampshire. He gained an interest in writing in elementary school in nearby Hudson. Growing up, he carried a small notebook or pen on family trips making observations and frequently turned them into poems or short stories. While attending Franklin Pierce University, he co-wrote and co-directed a student film. After graduating, he wrote and directed a dramatic feature, co-wrote and directed a documentary and conducted interviews for an online magazine. He’s also passionate about acting, and he’s enjoyed performing on stage, in bit parts on film, and is also a trained voice actor. In addition to his creative pursuits, he is passionate about healthy living. He follows a fitness regimen consisting of several activities such as; weight training, walking, swimming, yoga, and Zumba. He complements this by cooking several nutritious examples of international and American cuisine. Last, but certainly not least he also enjoys just spending time with family and friends until the early morning hours with plenty of laughter and coffee. You can find more about Scott on Facebook, Twitter (@scottrcaseley), Amazon, and his website.

Females in YA: Part 4 Boys

August 27, 2013 / Katie L. Carroll

So far we’ve talked about my experience growing up a female, females in my writing, females in current YA, and even a guest post from a guy about females. Could there be anything left to this discussion? Of course…let’s talk about boys!

“Huh?” you might be asking. “What do boys have to do with females in YA?” And to that I say, “It’s about how teen girls in books are looking at boys that interests me.” (And then you promptly tell your screen you’re sick of reading about females in YA and go check out that video of Miley Cyrus at the VMAs…I’m so not giving you a link to that garbage here!)

I am so, so, so tired of reading books where the girl POV character first sees the boy (who will inevitably be the love interest) and talks about how hot he is. His purposefully messy but sexy hair. The way he walked into a room with a strut that said, “I’m hot and I know it.” His piercing green eyes that took in her curves.

Girls, is that really that first thing you think about when describing a guy? How hot he is? (This is the point where I frantically go back into Elixir Bound and check how Katora first describes Hirsten…and blow a sigh of relief to see the first thing she thinks about–though with a blush when his name is mentioned–is his work ethic. Though, she does comment on his gorgeous eyelashes quickly after that!)

And maybe it’s just me, but when I first meet a guy (even in my days when I wasn’t married), I don’t immediately assess his hotness. Sure there are those guys you see and are like, “Whoa! He’s a hottie!” But then are just boys you meet. Maybe they have a nice smile or they say something that interests you, and that’s what you notice about them. Not how awesome he might look naked.

I’m not saying looks don’t matter, especially with first impressions, but every guy worth meeting, dating, or loving isn’t going to be drop-dead-gorgeous hot. I can tell you from experience, it’s often not the hottest (in that superficial meaning of what makes a person attractive) boy who is going to make the best boyfriend.

And one of the best things about falling in love with someone is finding them more attractive as you fall more deeply in love with them. So even if the hottest guy on the planet (for argument’s sake let’s say Ryan Gosling) wanted to take you out, you’d say no because you already have the most perfect guy for you, and he’s way hotter than any other guy in the world because of that!

I’m not sure I even remember the first time I saw my husband (we met working in a hardware store while we were in high school). I had a boyfriend at the time, so I wasn’t looking at every boy in a is-he-a-potential-boyfriend way. But once I got to know him (and was single), seeing him from across the store did give my heart a thump. And, yes, I did think he was a hottie (and still do)! But I didn’t fall in love with him for his looks (well, maybe a little because I was envious of his gorgeous, long eyelashes!).

What are some books that you think have memorable first descriptions of boy characters?

Stuart R. West Author of the Tex, The Witch Boy Series Weighs in on Females in YA

August 12, 2013 / Katie L. Carroll

Stuart R. West, whose second book in his Tex, The Witch Boy series Tex, And the Gangs of Suburbia released last month, is guesting on the blog today. He was inspired by my Females in YA posts and decided to add his voice to the discussion. Welcome, Stuart!

$Tex and the Gangs of Suburbia 200x300$ Katie’s been going on at great lengths about strong feminist characters. Bravo.

Here’s a new perspective.

I’m a guy. And a writer. My young adult series, Tex, The Witch Boy, has a male protagonist, told from his narrative viewpoint. I actually set out to write a YA series of books that teen boys could enjoy. I know I would have liked them back in high school, but then again I’m slightly biased.

Here’s the deal, however. The series turned into something different from what I first envisioned. They’re still cool for guys, but…another writer, a female, told me I’m a highly feminist writer.

I said, “What?” She told me the strongest characters in all of my books are female (she’s read all of my books, YA and adult thrillers). Huh. Set me to thinking (and that’s a dangerous thing).

After much contemplation, naval-gazing and fear, I thought about it. She’s right. All of the female characters in my books are the strongest personalities.

In “Tex, The Witch Boy,” my protagonist is a teen male witch. But he’s sorta’ introspective, rarely ready to take action unless forced into it. Slacker. He’s almost the “damsel in distress.” The female characters carry the action.

Tex’s friend (potential girl-friend), Olivia is a warrior. Small and fiery, she single-handedly takes down the scariest bully at Clearwell High. And when the principal and police start questioning people about the murder of a school bully, she’s mighty angry she’s not considered a suspect. Sexist, she rants!

There’s Mickey, Tex’s witch mentor. Stereotypically a daffy ol’ woman on the outside, she has moves that would frighten the whiskers off of a mouse. Hm. Think she does that, maybe.

In the second book, Tex And The Gangs Of Suburbia (just out!), I introduce my favorite character yet. Elspeth. I’m not going to give away who (or “what”) she is. But she takes no prisoners, stands up for her rights against sexist idiots, puts people in their places. She sorta’ threatened to derail the second and third Tex book ‘cause she’s so strong. Being no fool (and frankly, a little afraid of her), I listened. She gets her own follow-up book next year.

Just finished an adult thriller set alternately in 1935 and 1969. My female writing mentor told me one of the major characters is a role model for early feminism.

Okay. Point is I’m a guy writer. But I’d be foolish not to pay tribute to the better sex. Duh. The strongest people in my life are female. My wife’s a brilliant college professor who tolerates no foolishness. My daughter is amazingly adept at reading people. My mother is a master manipulator (not sure if that’s a bonus or not). I can’t count how many female friends I have who give better advice to me, and frankly, can handle stress better than we men.

My dude friends (illiterate, beer-swilling, football watching cro-magnons) don’t even care that I’m writing. And they’d be especially angry that I’m a “feminist” writer. Doesn’t matter. They’ll never read my books, anyway. I’m not afraid to tell the truth. Guys have more physical muscle. But women are the real warriors.

$Tex The Witch Boy 200x300$ Super special AmazeBalls Deal! Act fast, hit up the MuseItUp website, and you can buy both the Tex books for the price of one! My publisher’s going cray-cray! But don’t tell her and buy! Our lil’ secret!

Tex, The Witch Boy on Amazon: (.99 Special!): http://www.amazon.com/Tex-The-Witch-Boy-ebook/dp/B00B3U5OWU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374849079&sr=1-1

Tex And The Gangs Of Suburbia on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Tex-Gangs-Suburbia-Witch-ebook/dp/B00E5RWBGA/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374849134&sr=1-1&keywords=Tex+and+the+gangs+of+suburbia

BLOG: http://stuartrwest.blogspot.com/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/stuartrwestwriter?fref=ts

Females in YA: Part 3 Current YA

July 29, 2013 / Katie L. Carroll

*There may be some spoilers in this post for the following books*

Thirteen Reasons Why Twilight (Twilight, #1) The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1) The Fault in Our Stars

The Book Thief Speak Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1) The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Sisterhood, #1)

So far in my Females in YA series, I’ve discussed my own experiences as a female growing up and the roles females play in my own writing. Since then I’ve come across two more articles about this topic you all might find interesting: That’s Not Very Feminist of You, Bella: Feminism in YA by Chelsea Condren (thanks to Ann Herrick for directing me to this one) and Screw Writing Strong Women by J. Anderson Coats.

For part 3, let’s open things up beyond my experiences and writing and take a look at what has been going on in other YA books. So what are females in YA doing these days? For examples I’m sticking to blockbuster selling books (and ones I’ve actually read) because that seems to be what most teens are reading in large numbers (and it would be hard to intelligently talk about books I haven’t read).

So we’ve got a girl who committed suicide and posthumously leaves tapes for those responsible for her death (Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reason Why); a girl whose sole reason for existence seems to be becoming a vampire so she can spend the rest of her life with the vampire boy she’s been pining after (Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight); a girl who is forced to fight to the death in a reality TV show (Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games); a girl with terminal cancer who meets a boy, who also has cancer, and falls in love (John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars); a book stealing girl whose family is hiding a Jewish boy during WWII (Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief); a girl who is afraid to speak the truth about having been raped at a party (Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak); a girl who has the Grace, or magical talent, of killing (Kristin Cashore’s Graceling); and a group of four girls, with different personality and physical traits, who share a pair of jeans on their first summer away from each other (Ann Brashares’ The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants).

I know that’s a lot of examples, but I really wanted to demonstrate the breadth of what is being covered in YA. There are lots of heavy issues, including suicide, rape, cancer, death, killing, losing one’s virginity, and war. And the books above above seem to be a good sampling of the different genres, with paranormal, contemporary, dystopian, historical, and fantasy represented. There are strong, physically and/or mentally, girls; broken girls; sensitive girls; codependent ones; and numerous other adjectives that could be used to describe these females characters.

Boys do play a prominent role in pretty much all these stories, but romance doesn’t necessarily dominate them all. And in several boys play a very negative role in the narrative. (This list of books I’ve mentioned is certainly not exhaustive, but I found it unwieldy enough with eight so I was reticent to include anymore.)

So it seems (bringing the conversation back to my original post) that the reality of boys not being everything to teen girls is reflected in YA, though boys do factor into most girls’ lives and the popular stories written about them. Also, I believe different types of females are represented in these stories, which I think is a good thing.

One thing I found surprising when compiling this list was how heavy so many of these stories were. I can only speculate, but I imagine teen girls read about these heavy topics so widely because the stories evoke strong emotional responses (at least all these books did so in me).

Before I started this post, I imagined going into more specific details about the female characters in these books, but I think the post has grown longer than I anticipated. Maybe I’ll continue this discussion further and look at some of these characters in depth…I’ll have to think on it (feeling a bit mentally fatigued right now).

I’d love to hear your thoughts and keep this conversation going in the comments. What YA females have resonated with you? What do you think makes these (and other stories you’ve read) so popular with teens? Do you think a variety of females are represented in current YA?