The Wilde Side
One of my favorite kinds of heroines isn’t fearless. She’s determined. She knows she’s in over her head…
…and she keeps going anyway.
Because courage isn’t the absence of fear. It’s deciding something else matters more.
Readers (and non-readers!) often equate strength with:
- winning every fight
- never asking for help
- never making mistakes
- even: acting like a b1+ch.
But that’s not strength.
Real strength is:
- asking difficult questions
- refusing to look away
- trusting the right people
- accepting help without surrendering agency
- Knowing when to ask for help
I don’t write women who need someone to save them.
I write women who refuse to stop fighting.
Sometimes, they simply need someone willing to fight beside them.
That’s exactly where I found Sloane, the heroine of Viper Strike.
She’s an investigative journalist who uncovers a story that’s far bigger—and far more dangerous—than she ever imagined.
She doesn’t go looking for Phoenix Shield because she wants someone else to solve the problem.
She goes because she still intends to expose the truth. She just wants to live long enough to publish it. She has the courage, just not the expertise.
Today’s survey: What’s your favorite quality in a fictional heroine?
More soon,
~ Jena
