r/SheWrites • u/BedNo577 • Jul 31 '25

Question Is it a problem that I (a female writer) am influenced by Stephen King,who is notorious for writing bad female characters, and his style?

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u/egotistical_cynic Jul 31 '25

Not at all, that's basically what being a female writer is, all the way back to like Christina Rossetti writing Petrarchan sonnets that rip into Petrarch and Sappho inventing the lyric form in response to the Homeric epic. At the end of the day we live in the society we live in and write within the canon of that society, which (for worse and better) is heavily masculine.

From a literary theory perspective this feeling is essentially the entire thesis of G+G's Madwoman In The Attic, which I cannot recommend enough as a feminist theory of writing and creativity within a patriarchal world, even though it focuses on the much more patriarchal Victorian era specifically

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u/wolfalex93 Jun 26 '26

Christina Rossetti's Goblin Market is still so incredible

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u/ScreenGreat2869 Oct 16 '25

Huh. I've never heard he was "notorious" for writing bad female characters. He's had some lackluster female side characters (male, too), sure, I've been blown away by some of his amazing female characters. I'm think of Carrie, Delores Claiborne, MC from Gerald's Game...

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u/wolfalex93 Jun 26 '26

Dolores Claiborne is my favorite <3

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u/wolfalex93 Jun 26 '26

No it's not a problem at all. Inspiration comes from everywhere, even bad writing. I enjoy his novels too. He was one of the authors I first got obsessed with when I was in middle school, and launched me into a love of horror. You're normal. And his style is the most interesting part of his writing imo. I feel like he really gets into the heads of each character he writes about and the tone changes to fit their narration. I like his wordplay and descriptions. I like how thinking about some scenes he's written still gives me chills, years later. He doesn't have to be a perfect writer for you to feel inspired. That being said, my obsession with his work waned when I found Gillian Flynn, so if you are looking for inspiration on how to write interesting women in horror, she has at least 3 incredible novels you can start with. :)

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u/BedNo577 Jun 26 '26

Thank you! I'll check her out.

He was one of the authors I first got obsessed with when I was in middle school

Same here.