Women in fantasy - part one

Diversity is an important value

Diversity is one of the most powerful engines to improve society and business. There are plenty of studies that show the positive effects of diversity.

With this in mind (and since I am a woman), it has become increasingly important to me to provide a space for women in fantasy. Yes, I know it is specifically gender diversity and it is where I want to start.

So let’s dive into this specific corner of fantasy and let’s make is a recurring item! So feel free to suggest and recommend authors that we should all experience.

The tentative plan

There is no good way to present these wonderful authors. Or, better, there are plenty of ways to present them and it feels complicated.

I curated a preliminary list of authors that I either read already or want to read or know that they write in fantasy.

This list serves also another purpose. It is not only important to know that there are women in fantasy but it is increasingly important to read their stories! And so this list serves also as a guiding tool for me to make space in my schedule; I would love to eventually spend equal amount of time on men and women in fantasy.

With that said, let’s start with the first women on my list!

Part one - the grandmother of fantasy

While we usually refer to J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis as the grandfathers of modern fantasy, it is only apt to refer to Ursula K. LeGuin as the grandmother of modern fantasy.

She has been a very prolific author, spanning both in fantasy and in sci-fi providing great story with great depth. The ability that she has to deliver complex series and complex world building is remarkable. Also, she has done a lot of work also with modern topics, such as inclusion and environmentalism.

Part one - established authors

N.K. Jemisin is one of the most interesting authors writing fantasy. She is able to channel great characters in her pages, complicated world building and fantastic perspective.

Not only I loved her The Broken Earth series, a book that revolutionised the way fantasy is told, with a strong sci-fi vibe too. It is also the only series (and books) told in second person. I did not think it was possible and she does an outstanding work in this respect.

N.K. Jemisin is also a prolific author, focusing on women as main characters and providing flawed, relatable and strong women as leads. I do not think there is another author that can provide this level of strength in fragility.

She also has recently written the comics for D.C. focusing on a Green Lantern with limited abilities, with the title Far Sector. I loved the art - by incredible artist Jamal Campbell - and the story overall. The main character, Sojourner Mullein is the essential representation of N.K. Jemisin’s heroines and I truly enjoyed the author’s ability to convey the same powerful woman in a different media!

Part one - new voice in fantasy

Andrea Stewart is a new voice in fantasy with a completed trilogy under her belt, called The Drowning Empire. So new and experienced at the same time. It is not easy to come up with the entire plot of a trilogy and be able to pull it off!

She wrote an interesting story about an empire (which is based on islands) that needs to deal with threats that were not supposed to be problematic any longer. And she needs to stop a process that is unpopular, to say the least, in her people. There are multiple magic systems in the mix and there are the most intriguing animals that join the story (and Mephi is one of my favorite pets - assuming he can even be called a pet - of all fantasy!).

I found myself sucked in this story and I read the entire trilogy this year; the review for these books are here: The Bone Shard Daughter, The Bone Shard Emperor and The Bone Shard War.

Part one - indie author

L.L. MacRae is an indie author I first experienced when I started looking for indie published books and her series came to my attention. Not to mention that I enjoyed the world building and the uniqueness of the world.

I was able to connect with her when I wrote to her on IG and I thanked her for the wonderful experience her story provided me. She shared with me that her story is heavily inspired by Ghibli movies and it shows, with the use of spirits as in the Shintō religion. I also enjoyed her characters and her world building. And the very first chapter of the The Iron Crown is unique (my review here)!

I will be reading the second book in Dragon Spirits soon and I cannot wait where we will be going with this story!

Conclusion

This is the first post of many! I plan to have it as a recurring topic on this blog; if you have any suggestions on women that should be featured, please drop the name, the series and a comment as to what you enjoyed in this author’s work!