On social media, I see lots of young writers wanting more soft heroines, more female characters who like dresses and pretty things, more gentle and loving girls.
And I wanted that too.
So I wrote one: Evelina Fairchild, the female main character in my upcoming Sleeping Beauty retelling, These Lying Dreams.
Evelina’s story explores both the strengths and weaknesses of being soft. Because she sees herself as weak, she allows others to take charge of her life, putting herself in a dangerous situation.
David, the main point of view character, is also “soft” in his own way. He too is kind, takes responsibility for those around him (maybe too much at times), and is a steady, reliable friend.
But he also is strong. His “soft” traits aren’t an abdication from life, but a courageous acceptance.
Not all of Evelina’s traits are bad – she’s the kind of person that I’d enjoy being friends with in real life – but she does have to learn the difference between a good softness and a bad softness.
And in the end, her softness becomes strength. She remains gentle and kind, the kind of girl who would rather stay at home and play the piano or reread her favorite books, but she also takes responsibility for her life. She accepts that, as an adult, she has to make decisions and use her own judgment, rather than blindly allowing someone else to decide everything for her.
Being soft is not a refusal of life, but its acceptance. It’s continuing to be kind in a harsh world. It’s forgiving when instinct says to avenge. It’s holding on to hope in the darkness.
Those things aren’t weakness, but strength. It takes courage to stand up and stand out, not for your own sake always, but for someone else and for what is right.
And that is exactly what choosing forgiveness and hope and love means. The world around us can be cruel and dark, but we don’t have to be. We can be more than our circumstances, our upbringing, our fears. We can be a light in the darkness, a candle lit by Christ to shine for Him. He is the One Who gives us the courage to be both soft and strong, whatever that looks like in your life.
For all the soft girls out there: love bravely in this cruel world.
You are stronger and braver than you know.
These Lying Dreams is a historical suspense novelette retelling of Sleeping Beauty with cozy Gothic vibes and strong “soft” characters. It is now available on Amazon.
Emma Donovan dreams of someday tumbling through a rabbit hole to 1920s England, her own personal wonderland, but until then, she writes about it instead. When she’s not writing, she can be found of a cup of Earl Grey tea in one hand and a classic novel in the other.