Is it me or do we have two kinds of heroine in today’s market? There’s the super kick ass, gets on my last nerve, can’t admit she ever needs help heroine. And there’s the tstl couldn’t fight her way out of a paper bag heroine. Maybe I’m reading the wrong books? Seems to me the end goal of a romance should be partnership. Which implies equality.
Maybe it’s a reflection of my own personality? I mean, in Army personal defense training they don’t teach you to lie down and die ’cause you’re female, kwim? I know a couple of women who I’d trust at my back more than 90% of the men I know. And they don’t even all have my kind of background. So what gives? Why do we have these books that say loud and clear, hey you’re a woman and you might have something to contribute, but leave the rough stuff to us? What is up with that!?
I find the other kind just as awful to read. I was an MP. MP’s work in four man teams. Hell, so does every other specialized branch of the military. Why? Cause Rambo is a freaking myth. Hey, I think women can kick ass. Don’t believe me, come visit and I’ll show you. 
I’m writing a character like this now and she’s getting on my last nerve. I write a lot of characters like this. I want them to evolve, to learn that they are not little armies all to their own, that teamwork and partnership are good things. If they find love on the way, more the better. But getting her there? Man, this heroine of mine is gonna have one hell of a rough ride. Cause she’s pissing me off.
So the question today is a two parter. First, which kind of heroine do you prefer? Honestly now cause those tstl heroines sell really well. And second, do your main characters ever get on your nerves? Puleaze tell me I’m not alone here lol!
July 22nd, 2006 at 12:02 am
Good question. I guess I’ve written heroines that are tstl. *Sigh*. The truth is that I’m one of those women who DON’T kick ass. I mean, I can defend myself if I must, but if I was in the situation my heroines get into, I’d be batting my eyes like mad to get them to save my a**.
My current heroine is emotionally strong, but being shot at freaks her out. I do make the hero a tad more agressive than the heroine. Good news is that my heroine isn’t getting on my nerves. LOL.
July 22nd, 2006 at 4:16 am
I like kiss-ass heroines too. In my September release, my heroine is the one with the knife and the gun. But the hero is right there with her. She doesn’t half want him to be, but he’s there. I just don’t like wimpy female..I’m sorry. I’m not a wimp by any means, so I don’t write them. I’d kick anybody’s ass in a minute if they “f” with my family. Or my mama. Sorry..got a bit emotional there. teeheehee
July 22nd, 2006 at 1:30 pm
I LOVE strong heroines–they don’t necessarily have to be “kick ass” but they do have to be smart.
I’ve dealt with the heroine that gets on my nerves. SHe wasn’t kick-ass just a bitch. I did not like her; I did not care about her. I’ve also written heroines that I loved and everyone hated. Sometimes as writers what we understand, what we SEE, we haven’t laid out well for the reader to see–make sense?
The key is to find their soft underbelly because EVERYONE male or female has one.
July 22nd, 2006 at 2:00 pm
I can’t stand TSTL heroines. And I mean the truthfully TSTL ones — not the type that are just not physically able to fight, like the heroine in Lover Eternal who had advanced cancer.
At the same point, I don’t much like the completely gung-ho, kick-ass women who are arrogant enough to make the average male ego look teensy. (No offense to the males out there.) Honestly, I think it’s a contrivance to create conflict between the hero and heroine — and there’s much deeper ways to do so than to make the heroine a control freak.
I prefer characters who are middle ground — strong enough to stand on their own, and strong enough to accept the help they need. But you don’t see many of them. (Which is why I try to write them.)
Of the two though, I’m more likely to pick up a book with a kick-ass heroine and hope she doesn’t break the hero’s balls along the way.
July 22nd, 2006 at 4:12 pm
I agree with Amie. I like strong heroines. They don’t have to be ass kicking. I can’t stand the heroine who is a doormat. I want at least a little bit of spunk in my heroines.
July 22nd, 2006 at 4:19 pm
Yep, I’m right there with you, Amie and Kelley. And I agree with what you said about the gung-ho, kick-ass heroine, Nonny. I like a strong heroine and hero, each bringing different strengths to the party.
July 22nd, 2006 at 4:59 pm
I don’t like dishrag heroines who flutter and simper their way through a story. If they have legitimate reasons not to fight, that’s one thing. Just being too girly to do it drives me nuts.
But I also agree that there are a lot of heroines who are too macho. I liked Xena, but there were times when I was like, you know, not all men need to be kicked in the nuts, back off.
So the happy middle ground is good for me. Make her throw a punch when necessary, but it’s okay for her to get scared or duck sometimes too.
July 22nd, 2006 at 8:08 pm
um…another wimp chiming in…
I’ve never seen a gun. Never. (Lori’s going to be my educational resource on this one)
I’m a wimp. I read about superheroines, the ones who’ve never really had to work a day in their lives, and they react to death threats and dead bodies with a ‘ho hum’ kind of attitude that just pisses me off.
I don’t want tstl, either. If there’s scary-ass noises coming from the attic…WHY, for the love of all that’s sane, would you go up there? Sheesh.
And yeah, I’ve hated the characters I’m working with…but…more often, I’m loving characters that other people see as completely irredeemable, which means going back and giving them some warm-fuzziness early on.
July 23rd, 2006 at 9:26 pm
Gimme the kickass heroine that plays well with others any day.
And as for annoying? Yeah, I seriously almost killed off the main charcaters in my last book. And it sold, so I guess it’s good I let them live, huh?