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The Heroine's Journey

For Writers, Readers, and Fans of Pop Culture

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The Heroine's Journey

By: Gail Carriger
Narrated by: Starla Huchton
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About this listen

Tired of the hero's journey? Frustrated that funny, romantic, and comforting stories aren't taken seriously? Sad that the books and movies you love never seem to be critically acclaimed, even when they sell like crazy?

The heroine's journey is here to help.

Multiple New York Times best-selling author Gail Carriger presents a clear, concise analysis of the heroine's journey, how it differs from the hero's journey, and how you can use it to improve your writing and your life. Narrated by Starla Huchton.

In this book you'll learn:

  • How to spot the heroine's journey in popular books, movies, and the world around you.
  • The source myths and basic characters, tropes, and archetypes of this narrative.
  • A step-by-step break down of how to successfully write this journey.

What do Agatha Christie, JK Rowling, and Nora Roberts all have in common? They all write the heroine's journey. Read this book to learn all about it.

From Harry Potter to Twilight, from Wonder Woman to Star Wars, you'll never look at pop culture the same way again.

With over a dozen New York Times and USA Today bestsellers, and over a million books in print, popular genre author and former archaeologist Gail Carriger brings her cheeky, comedic tone and over a decade of making her living as a fiction author to this fascinating look at one of the most popular yet neglected narratives of our time.

This is an excellent writing reference for genre fiction authors seeking to improve their craft or for readers and pop culture enthusiasts interested in understanding their own taste. It is the perfect counterpoint to The Hero with a Thousand Faces, not to mention Save the Cat, Women Who Run with the Wolves, and The Breakout Novelist.

©2020 Gail Carriger LLC (P)2020 Gail Carriger LLC
Words, Language & Grammar Writing & Publishing Fiction Funny
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I really enjoyed the book. It's informative and entertaining, and a real eye-opener. I now see the heroine's journey in a lot of my favourite fiction (and my own work) and am looking forward to exploring it more.

If you're a writer, this is definitely worth checking out.

An eye-opener

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as a former hero's journey fanboi this entertaining, informative examination of the heroine's journey was a breath of fresh air

revelatory

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I'm very familiar with numerous screenplay/story templates, including The Hero's Journey. However I'd not come across the Heroine's Journey until a colleague mentioned it, and I thought I'd check it out. It was revelatory. The author does a great job of applying this model to numerous contemporary stories (as well as ancient myths), including such huge hits as the Twilight and Harry Potter series. I thought it provided a fascinating insight into an alternative story paradigm, one that favours building of community, delegation, finding connection/family and seeking compromise, above defeating an enemy (often portrayed as a solo endeavour in The Hero's Journey, and many other single protagonist models). The Heroine's Journey seems especially helpful in certain genre, including drama, romance, comedy, rom-com, YA, fantasy, etc. While I don't personally work in all of these genre, I do work in some of them. I also feel like it's an interesting lens in which to explore a heroine's journey if you're trying to emphasise/prioritise a particular path that differs (because of theme, tone, genre) from a more traditional Hero's Journey. Well worth a read - especially if you're a writer (in any medium) who's interested in these sorts of stories.
NB: One reviewer complained about how slow the narration was. I simply listened at 1.2 speed and found it perfect! :)

Excellent overview of an overlooked story template

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The narration is so bad that I had to give up on this. Shame, because the content was interesting and I’d happily read more from this author. Narration is very slow and like a machine reader. Traumatising to listen to. And since I got the audiobook discounted with the kindle, I can’t return it or get a refund.

Narration is awful

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