Female Archetypes - Page 2
© Suzanne James
Knowing your own personality may explain why your books lack strength. If you are the Amazon type, but write about characters who are nurturing, you'll only be able to write two dimensional characters. Especially if you haven't studied human nature. This doesn't mean you need to spend weeks reading psychology books. There are many good character books on the market. Some deal with archetypes and others deal with personality types. Each one breaks the characters down by their wants, desires, needs, fears, and typical goals. They explain how a character will react in certain situations, and some even suggest at the types of men this woman will be attracted to.
Some of the female archetypes are listed here, and with a brief explanation of how they will move a romance forward. I've also given a brief explanation of the types of man that they will fall instantly in-love with.
The Seducer is not an immoral woman, although conflict can arise when others see her this way. She is a strong woman who won't let others tell her what she wants and needs. She enjoys life and makes the most out of everything. She is never the beauty who doesn't know it in a novel. This woman would have experimented until she found her own beauty. She won't be the little mouse who wastes years of her life in a corner either. She is the problem solver, who sees all of life's problems as mere bumps in the road.
She needs a man, a connection to fill her life, but is so afraid of ending up with the wrong one that she gets won't make a commitment. She isn't callous. She's a healer. Society may now slander her, but her heart is true, and she will shine in the end. So, if you want your heroine to fall in love at first sight then don't choose this heroine.
When creating this character think of the girl who flirted with all the boys, was the president of all the 'cool' clubs, and ended up as the homecoming queen. At the school reunion she is still single, but lacks the trodden down look of defeat we think she should wear.
To challenge this woman, and cause conflicts, you might want to pull the rug out from under her. She hasn't planned for the future, so she will be unprepared. She works with others, so is a typical con artist's victim. She often, impulsively, gets into situations she later regrets. When all is said and done, she needs to be loved, and she needs to stop using other people as a gauge to measure her own worth. If you are thinking of a Taming of the Shrew story, then pick a man who is today's ideal of a loving nurturer, and you just might have a hit.
The copyright of the article Female Archetypes - Page 2 in Write a Romance Novel is owned by Suzanne James. Permission to republish Female Archetypes - Page 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
