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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Writing female villains - how to do it without looking misogynistic?

31 replies

ThisFunnyGreenCritic · 16/10/2025 04:13

She will be the fictional daughter of John Blunt, mastermind behind the South Sea Bubble that crashed the English Economy for years.

Her goal is to find buried treasure to save her and her father’s name. The bad news is, she’s as unscrupulous as her daddy and is okay with turning on people (which she will unsuccessfully try doing to the hero).

At first, the hero has a thing for her… though he goes for a different woman when he learns how manipulative she is.

I don’t want this to make it look like I view all women as scheming harpies, but I also feel like it’s unfair if we say women can’t be evil like this. Advice?

OP posts:
99bottlesofkombucha · 16/10/2025 05:00

ThisFunnyGreenCritic · 16/10/2025 04:21

There’s already 3. One sadly dies.

Like 3 whole entire women? Wow!

99bottlesofkombucha · 16/10/2025 05:00

Read some Sue Grafton.

GarlicPound · 16/10/2025 04:45

ThisFunnyGreenCritic · 16/10/2025 04:21

There’s already 3. One sadly dies.

You didn't click on Vashta's link, did you. Martin's reply to the question of how he manages to write such interesting female characters was "You know, I've always considered women to be people."

Yardbird · 16/10/2025 04:39

My advice is that this is not the right board for you, and I’m sure there are many creative writing forums (possibly some on mumsnet) where you can explore this. We tend to have more serious chats on this board.

In general, though, if helpful - writing a few long paragraphs and then going ‘Advice?’ at the end probably won’t get you the reaction you want from any woman, ever.

Lastly - scheming harpie? You should wash your mouth out. Bless you. I would actually love to have a link to your book when it’s finished! I’ll certainly make sure it’s the book of the month for our book club. Sounds excellent.

ThisFunnyGreenCritic · 16/10/2025 04:21

VashtaNerada · 16/10/2025 04:19

Just include other female characters. Ironically I think it’s a man who put it best: www.indy100.com/celebrities/george-rr-martin-writing-female-women-characters-game-of-thrones-author-7639311

There’s already 3. One sadly dies.

OP posts:
VashtaNerada · 16/10/2025 04:19

Just include other female characters. Ironically I think it’s a man who put it best: www.indy100.com/celebrities/george-rr-martin-writing-female-women-characters-game-of-thrones-author-7639311