Female characters meme

[snorkackcatcher]

Via magnetic_pole and a_t_rain -- not sure I should be doing this one, but whatever!


I tend to write male and female characters about equally -- as I like to ring the changes on subject matter -- so by now there are a reasonable number to pick from. Here we go:

Not Given Up Yet (PG-13, 2250 words). A sketch of Millicent Bulstrode's time at Hogwarts. I hadn't planned to write her, but the theme arose from desperately brainstorming on my prompt for the 2005 femgenficathon. As a character she turned out to be a bit different from the type I usually write -- not clever, not dumb, rather inarticulate, prone to be in search of acceptance from her leading housemates until she finally sees them for what they are, rather scathing of them nonetheless.

Toujours Pur (PG, 3800 words). Walburga Black sitting in her private box at the Quidditch stadium, reflecting on Black family values, her unsatisfactory sons, and Troy the Chaser whom she has an old woman's crush on ... The sort of plot bunny that pretty much only occurs when you do something like the FAP OTP challenge and have to incorporate a random sentence like "Mrs Black fancies Troy" into a story. Again, I'd never planned to write her, but having the mad old bat musing about Black family pride and the merits of pure blood while semi-consciously leching over Troy worked out unexpectedly well (it was Niffled, in fact).

That's What Friends Are For (PG, 2200 words). This was a pinch-hit written for the 2006 hp_holidaygen exchange for someone who wanted Ravenclaw fluff, which gave me the chance to write a positive story about Cho Chang -- a character I always rather liked, but who comes in for a huge amount of flak, most of it probably shipping-inspired. Hopefully this portrays her as just an ordinary teenage girl who's had some tough times, not a horrible person!

Blood Lines (PG, 2200 words). Griselda Marchbanks making a speech about wizarding history and pure-blood politics, and how the pure-bloods only had themselves to blame for the revulsion at their credo following the end of the second war. From the way she talks, it's intended to be clear that she herself isn't as free of prejudice as she thinks she is. Written for the 2006 femgenficathon for a quote that strongly suggested this sort of treatment -- I originally planned to use Andromeda and then Augusta Longbottom, but in the end went with an even longer perspective from someone not directly involved with the central characters.

And of course ... Nymphadora Tonks and the Liquor of Jacmel (PG-13, novel-length, complete). My long Tonks's First Case story, with a wide variety of characters of both sexes, and including females strong, weak, and middling. Tonks hopefully falls into the first category here, and during the writing of the fic she moved from "convenient viewpoint character for a mystery fic" to "one of my favourite characters" -- which is suppose is natural after spending so much time writing scenes through her eyes.



For a change, I won't pick from the list of those I've Niffled. Try these instead (all on LJ):

No Easy Answers by ciela_night. Set at the end of CoS. Penelope Clearwater finds Justin outside while on her Prefect rounds, and talks to him about their shared experiences of being Petrified.

Looking Ahead by cinnamon_sakaki. A little story about Hermione before Hogwarts, really well characterised.

A Fitting Reward by aerama. Comedy this time -- Madam Pince is told she must have an assistant, and is forced to interview applicants for the position. She sets out to scare them off, but one proves difficult ...

Not knowing by hibernater. How Petunia read Dumbledore's letter asking her to take charge of Harry -- very well written and effective with a real kick to it.

Moonshine by thunderemerald (aka Pirate Perian). Luna approaches Remus after a second-year DADA class to ask what would happen if you put a werewolf on the moon. Great Luna characterisation, fluffy and amusing.