A woman utilizing "feminine" skills

I say don't sweat it. Having her 'save the day' in an unconventional fashion actually sounds cool. That person's criticism relies on the assumption that sewing is a feminine activity, so I would simply avoid reinforcing that idea in your story. And then there's the obvious stuff: give her a complete arc, make her complex, etc. You're fine.

 

That's just a dumb complaint. Sewing isn't to be belittled, sewing is practical for men too. In fact a male career warrior (I know your MC isn't that) who doesn't know how to sew wounds would be lacking in an important skill, also sewing to fix clothing/gear is useful lol.

There are some reader comments that are stupid enough to dismiss offhand, this is one of them.

 

Sounds like an original way for her to save the day. If kicking butt is contrary to her character then I wouldn't be quick to add it in.

It's hard to tell without much detail, but it possibly sounded like originally she wasn't the cause of the villain's demise and was just tidying up loose ends. I think the heroine needs to be the one to defeat the villain (not necessarily by being the one killing him) but by being the cause of his demise, whether that be through sewing or punching.

 

Throw me into the ignore that comment camp.

Characters need to do what is real to the situation. Bugger the critique.

 

I agree with the sentiments of the other people who've answered. There's no need for the heroine to display punching feats at the end of the story.

I have a few questions though. What is the heroine's overall goal in the novel, and how does it relate to the villain? I.e. is he her antagonist, or someone else's? Because if he is the one standing in the way of her goal, she needs to do something to subvert or circumvent his barriers. E.g. if she unlocks the door that allows the grudge-guy to kill the villain, that's proactively stopping the villain, even though she didn't actually attack him.

Another question: What effect did saving the victim have? I.e. did it lead to the heroine achieving her goal? If not, then perhaps your critiquer was not worried about the sewing as a feminine skill, but rather that someone else solved the heroine's problem.

 

I always enjoy a creative or different way to solve the problem. Sewing would work just fine for me.

 

It seems to me the problem might be that the MC doesn't sound like she's making any difficult choices. I think being proactive in a story isn't just about making choices but about making difficult choices. Yes she makes the choice to try to escape, but if she doesn't succeed what's going to happen to her? Would her disobedience land her some terrible punishment or would her failure just land her right back where she started? You state she uses violence only in self-defense which is a fine, but it does take away the option of her making the choice of what exactly the villain deserves. She saves the king and he in turn lets her and her family go, but from the way you phrased it it sounds as though if he'd died she would've faced consequences from that. Wouldn't it be more powerful if letting the king die would secure her freedom but she chooses to save him anyways or if during the story she has a chance to destroy the villain but chooses not to because it would require her to violate her morals and she doesn't believe the end justifies the means.

Alright so I don't know that I've fraised that very well, but I hope you get what I'm trying to say.

 

This is fine then, since her making the choice to save the king even though it might not be in her best interest is actually important to the outcome to the story instead of just a nice thing to do. So yeah, seems like you know how to write a good story, you should disregard the criticism of sewing being "stereotypical feminine". I think that was just one person's opinion, and not necessarily reflective of a problem with the story.

By the way, I've read a lot of your posts you've made about this story, and it sounds exiting. I really want to read it someday.

 

I see nothing wrong with it at all, personally. If it works, use it.

 

I wonder the why of this post. Every question answered with practiced ease, every plot fault squandered. You have an MC in a relationship yet give every reason for them not to be.

Is there a core need to romance in your novel, and if so why not highlight it.

 

I've been lurking in the writing forums for quite a while now, but this is my first post, so, here goes.

There's nothing wrong at all with having a female character use a skill that someone might say is stereotypically feminine. I might even question whether being able to sew, especially stitch up a wound, is "feminine" at all. It's a very useful skill for both men and women to have, and i'm not sure but I doubt that men didn't learn to sew. There would be too much potential practical application. Certainly a medic/doctor would know how. But that's a tangent. I'd say it's not worth worrying about. In fact, being able to stitch up a wound says that your character is competent and skilled, which is a good thing.

Also, there is absolutely nothing wrong with having a female character be feminine. I have read many books where the main character is "feminine", but is also strong, competent and proactive, even despite the fact that she can't fight and doesn't have any "masculine" skills at all.

As for whether she should be the one to beat up the villain: Characters are going to have different skills and play different roles. You need characters who will beat up the orcs, trolls and goblins, but you need characters to patch those characters up after they do the beating up of orcs, trolls and goblins. Not all characters have to solve the story's problems through fighting. And characters who aren't fighters are not less important than those that do. (This is why the action girl trope drives me bonkers.) However, I suspect that, since the comment was made in the first place, and since you seem to be concerned about it, that both you and your critiquer are sensing and underlying problem with the story. If defeating the villain is the main goal of the story, and the main character doesn't defeat the villain, there's a problem. If the villain is the main character's main problem, and this seems to be the case, she can't sit by and let someone else defeat him.

So, i think your problem is not that she uses sewing to solve a problem, but that the problem she solves isn't the main problem of the story, the one she, as the main character, is meant to be solving.

But, i could be wrong. It's your story, I haven't read it, and you know best.

 

Okay, you're welcome! I'd say don't worry about it, then. I've taken well-intentioned advice too much to heart in the past, and really hurt my stories in the process.

 

Each character to their own! If she is a tailor, then sew away. If she is a butt-kicker, then kick away.
A reader should either fall in love with the characters attributes or relate to them.
I was told I better get thick skin before I allow people to read my stuff. So I am getting ready.