For centuries, women with different talents have been leaving their mark on the world. One of the earliest females to leave a mark in history would certainly be Mary, Jesus’s mother, and her calling from God to carry His Son. Fast forward to the Hundred Years’ War and we meet Joan of Arc. She said she received visions from God, instructing her to support Charles VII and recover France from English domination. Lastly, in 1928, Amelia Earhart was the first female pilot to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. So many pioneering women have created such a legacy for those who come up after them. You might be asking yourself, “Why hasn’t she mentioned female writers?” It would be amiss to forget notable female writers, so let’s get right to it, shall we?
Around the 19th century, female writers were no longer an anomaly in a sea of male writers. Louisa May Alcott, Margaret Atwood, Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Kate Chopin, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Virginia Woolf and so many other females began to emerge in a world that had been predominantly male. Those women were able to unlock the door to a world that had never invited them in. What was it about their books? For the first time, a female author was writing toward a female audience. Men of course, would include female characters in their storylines, but they were always an accessory of sorts—never a multi-dimensional character, and never the main protagonist. When you have a female author, however, writing toward a female audience, there is this instant and genuine connection that takes place, and it transpires through books as well.
Just like Mary, Joan of Arc and Emily Bronte, you have all changed the world on some scale. Mother, pastor or pastor’s wife, doctor, teacher, missionary; the list goes on and on. You’ve done something to change this world, and that’s the most important story to share. You all have a legacy to leave — it’s your story.
Looking for more female inspiration? Check out the blogs we’ve got coming your way this month:
Man of Her Word: Female Using Male Pseudonyms Part 1
Call Her George: Female Using Male Pseudonyms Part 2
A Woman Author by Trade, A Woman Author by Heart
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Verses Versus Verses
Love this post Erika. Inspiring.