fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2291 ]

[ SECRET POST #2291 ]

⌈ Secret Post #2291 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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I'm a writer working on an original work with a lot of male and female characters (shit I have a ton of characters in general).

I'd like to know, for those of you who enjoy female characters or are attracted to the female gender...what would make a female character "squee-worthy" to you? Or an awesome female character? I'd like to know. I'd like to write a story where both genders can have some awesome characters and there's no obvious preference of male over female.

So thoughts and suggestions?

(also sorry OP again. I just thought this seemed like a good place to get some answers)

I think this might be better in the GC. But I'll answer anyway.

For me it's if they have an interesting or entertaining personality. As long as they have a well-developed personality I'll probably like the character, but I only get really squee-ish if the personality is... unique in some way.

Like, a really cunning con artist where every once-in-a-while you think she's about to repent of her wrongdoings but then it turns out to be another trick. Or, a girl who is loud and brazen and tough and reckless but also incredibly eccentric and nerdy. And I tend to squee over "tough with a hidden soft side" in general A LOT, but only if the character is well-developed beyond that archetype, especially if they have some kind of internal conflict about expressing their feelings. And, uh... basically any really bizarre character makes me squee.

I also tend to like characters more when they're part of a really close-knit friendship duo or trio. And also tragic backstories. Those always get to me.

Edited 2013-04-12 03:38 (UTC)

You like tragic backstories? Oh whew. Wonderful because this work has a truck load of them :)

In this work I have two huuuge and very dysfunctional families so..yeah. Also...I sorta liked the idea of giving a lot of the characters a skeleton or two in their closet , so the protagonists are least likely to appear "special" for it. You know...avoiding the whole "special snowflake" thing.
(also the mechanics of a dysfunctional family are just...oddly compelling and fascinating for me to write about.)

But *ahem* I enjoy toughies with a hidden soft spot as well, or just what I consider 'reasonably controlled tsunderes'. I'm wary of Tsundere types because of how I've seen them played out in other media, sometimes so much to the point where the stop seeming like Tsunderes and start just seeming like "female abusers". But I like a good tsundere. The one I wrote in my work is more verbal snark than physical rage, because in her lifetime she's seen a few examples of what wonton violence can do (friends with abusive parents). But there are a few occasions where she dishes out some punches. Like challenging a guy to fight her because she found out he had been a bully to a younger guy because he had a grudge against the younger guy's parents (also did I mention she something of a street fighter...yeah).

There's another character who I put in because it seemed interesting to me, a double agent sort of girl -who's also quite a lady and somewhat 'feminine'. She puts on an act as a shy sensitive girl in public with her 'family' but is really good at masking her emotions. She also is a protective sister-for her older brother who has a habit of dating tough, pushy, and abusive women.

I can be wary of tsunderes, too. In some cases I like them, but when it's overdone (even without physical violence and just yelling) it's kind of like... geez, quit being a jerk for no reason. When I say "tough with a hidden soft side" I meant more like... tough against enemies and not taking anyone's crap, but when it comes to the targets of their (not necessarily romantic) affection, it's more like... they don't really show their affection in blatant ways, but don't go out of their way to be mean all the time, either. And when they do act mean (since everyone does, sometimes) they should actually feel guilty about it.

Anyway, your characters sound cool. Good luck with your story. :D

Ahh Okay.

Thanks!

Underdogs are always a fan favorite, because I love rooting for the little people. I love it when I see a woman who picks herself up out of the dirt, spits out her loose tooth, and then goes swinging back into the game! >:D I enjoy aggressive, sly women (for I myself am an aggressive woman, although I'm as clueless as a box of rocks so I'd never be sly) who take charge and action in their lives.

(Think Lara Croft + Molly Weasely + Granny Weatherwax. Marvel at their squee-worthy awesomesauce!)

Underdogs are fun.

also perseverance is admirable. One of my fave characters is a girl who punches her father/creator after he tries to double cross her, survives against odds and tries to do whatever she can to keep going until she gets the help she needs. Did I mention she's a one/two year old clone in the body of a twelve year old girl? Yeah. Badass.

I like quiet, unassuming, and smart ladies who are hidden bad-arses, because there's that element of surprise in there. They don't need to be sexy, nor cute.

Like, they just go on about their business, they know how to handle themselves and avoid trouble because they don't want the headaches that follow, and then they get thrust into this tough situation, and they're like "fuck, okay, so it's come to this?", all the while just maintaining grace under pressure. And then it's BAM! They pull out all the stops without so much as breaking a sweat. At the end of it, they're simply brushing the dirt off their hands and then continue on with their daily lives.

So yeah, I like ladies (actually, any character, male or female or anything in between), who can keep their cool under pressure, are calm, are intelligent, and when the going gets tough, they know how to think on their feet so that they're always one step or two way from danger. And if they do happen to hit rock bottom, their first thought would usually be along the lines of figuring a way to get out of it. All the while maintaining their composure.

Personally, I wish I would be more like that kind of character as well.

Hm... that kinda sounds like Anamaria (the ladylike double agent with invisibility powers.) Her brother is the one to be impulsive and reactive while she's almost always calm and cool.

That sounds like an admirable quality. I confess while I try to be polite online I can be an impatient hothead when alone at home. So that's a good goal.

This goes for both genders but I really love the Jerk with the heart of gold trope. Also unapologetically cunning women who are fighting for a good cause.

Oh I do too. :) Jerk With a Heart Of Gold can be a very difficult balance to strike but when done well it's awesome.

I like characters that come across as silly/friendly but really they're just hiding the fact that they're sly individuals who are secretly planning something. My favorite kind of villain.

Also have a soft spot for characters who underestimate themselves but are actually quite capable when they put their mind to it and it just awes everyone.

Finally I always love the classy stone-cold woman who doesn't take shit from anyone because she worked to be in the position that she's in and because she's been through too many things. She knows how the system works, etc. but she still has that understanding side of her.

Your last type reminds me of Madeline (from La Femme Nikita) and Joan from Covert Affairs (though I don't love what they've done with the latter in recent episodes).

Those sound good. The second is something I can personally relate to when I was in high school. I second guessed myself, and thought I wasn't as smart when I actually did well on tests. Also figuring something when I wanted it bad enough.

That sounds like a good balance. Not too cold but enough to get things done.

I want a flawed woman. Someone who isn't perfect, with perhaps a "flaw that is not a flaw" like Bella Swan's clumsiness. I want an intelligent woman, either street or book smart. Someone who can go toe-to-toe with others. I want an interesting woman. Someone who has something as part of her personality or her backstory or whatever that intrigues me and makes me want to know more/spend more time with her. I want a woman who is her own person and has agency. Not someone who is a pawn of the men around her. (Obviously she can have a boss or a father or someone she needs to answer to, but so often female characters defer to the male.)

I also am a sucker for women who are tough on the outside to cover up issues on the inside. Like Cara from Legend of the Seeker, Bela from Supernatural, Olivia from Fringe, etc.

I'm kind of iffy on flaws that aren't flaws, but they're okay so long as they're surrounded by flaws that are flaws. Sometimes even virtues that can be flaws.

(not female example but- My protagonist is a guy who is honest and not afraid to speak up in defense of a friend or point out when someone is doing something wrong. But that also causes him to be a very divisive person in universe)

Smarts are important , or at least competence. I find characters who are incompetent and have to be rescued because of it annoying. Thus I give most major characters, including children competence somewhere. Every character has to pull their own load.

I'm kind of iffy on flaws that aren't flaws, but they're okay so long as they're surrounded by flaws that are flaws. Sometimes even virtues that can be flaws.
Oh, sure. I just meant I don't want a flaw that isn't a flaw to be the only one. Because humans are flawed. No one is perfect.

I think competence is a better word than what I said. (I'm miserably sick and exhausted, and I think I was on cold medication at the time too. I'm surprised I was at all coherent. :P ) I don't mind characters having to be rescued on occasion. Everyone has things they aren't good at/can get themselves into bad situations. I just don't want someone who is constantly being shown up or needing rescue or whatever. Sounds like you are okay on that front too. :)

A lot of people have given you great answers. I agree with them. For me, I think I'll just give you a simple answer.

I like it when they're human.

Not human as in "species" but human as in a person. I don't want a plot device, an object, a macguffin, a blank, a cut-out, a goal, a thing. I just want a person. That's all.

Thank you. I always hate when they have female that is defined by her relation to a male as if she has to justify her presence. Females exist, you know? You shouldn't need to justify a female character by giving her a crush on someone.

Also using a relationship with a girl (or anyone really) is a no. If I'm going to have a relationship it's not going to end with "protagonist win's the princess's affections. The relationship always goes two ways, and I explore the relationship between two individuals. Also all characters should be people, the friends, the townspeople, the enemies' mooks, the love interest, the parents.

That always makes for better fiction because it often makes conflicts more meaningful than 'person who is obviously right and great' versus 'person who is horrible and wrong and thus disposable'. You know?

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[ SECRET POST #2291 ]

forgive me OP, for using this to jumpstart a discussion

Re: forgive me OP, for using this to jumpstart a discussion

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Re: forgive me OP, for using this to jumpstart a discussion

Re: forgive me OP, for using this to jumpstart a discussion

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AYRT

Re: forgive me OP, for using this to jumpstart a discussion

AYRT

Re: forgive me OP, for using this to jumpstart a discussion

Re: forgive me OP, for using this to jumpstart a discussion

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