The Girlbossification of Female Main Characters in Books

18/11/2025 11 min

Listen "The Girlbossification of Female Main Characters in Books"

Episode Synopsis

Female main characters have gone through quite an evolution, from damsels in distress to strong, independent characters who are considered badass. This shift was needed, and celebrated. But lately, it's starting to feel a bit problematic. Especially in Romantasy (a genre beloved by BookTok), where I feel like these female main characters are going through girlbossification. While the introduction of strong female characters involved truly great representations of powerful women , this portrayal is now starting to feel, less authentic, less empowering and even demeaning toward women and femininity. In this video, I’m doing a deep analysis of how female main characters are currently written in modern media, particularly in Romantasy books. We’ll look at what’s causing the decline in character development, the rise of repetitive tropes, why it's problematic, and how writers can do better. I’ll also share writing tips, writing advice, and insights from literary analysis to help improve how female characters are portrayed in stories.Of course, these are just my opinions, we all have different preferences, I hope you enjoy this video!📌 Subscribe for more deep dives, character/storytelling analysis, and videos on music, movies, and books!