For various reasons that are beyond the scope of this blog, I've decided to take it easy on myself with this month's post, and give all of you a treat while I'm at it: an audio-recording of a reading I did this past September from my short story 'Creatures of Light'.
'Creatures of Light' is a portrait of Selenia, a brilliant and ruthless woman scientist living in a fantasy Age of Exploration. The audio-recording includes just two scenes from the short story, both featuring some remarkable organisms that Selenia studies. One day this short story will be expanded into a full-length novel; until then I can give you this small taste of what is to come.
Selenia has been mentioned on this blog before; I brought her up in the discussion following our very first post in September (Why Fantasy?) as a possible example of an anti-heroine. And because a week cannot pass on Heroines of Fantasy without a discussion of some kind, I'd like to pull out the topic of anti-heroines once again, and couple that with the topic of villainesses.
Here are my questions for you:
What do you like to see in your anti-heroines, and your villainesses? What makes this kind of character appealing, engaging; a woman we might actually relate to even as we abhor her decisions and actions?
Who are your favorite anti-heroines and villainesses, and why?
What would you like to see in an anti-heroine or villainess that you have not yet seen in your reading?
Do you expect the anti-heroine or the villainess to act in ways that are qualitatively different when compared to the anti-hero and the villain? Why or why not?
You don't have to tackle all these questions in one week, of course. But if you're up for sharing your thoughts on at least one, I'd love to hear them.
While you're mulling over what to write in your comments, here's that audio recording I was talking about. I hope you enjoy Selenia; she's one of my favorite characters to work with.
Posted by Karin Rita Gastreich