Empowerment

Early Tuesday morning, before the sun was up, I was waving a placard and walking a picket line with parents, teachers and support staff for a local school district. (That's me in the middle!) It was a peaceful protest of the educational policies in New York State. Lately, educators in the state are feeling as if they are losing control of their classes, their curriculum, and the school budgets. They are losing their voice. The protest allowed us to take back some of that control. We felt we were doing something.

Our chant was, “This is what democracy looks like.” And it was. It was a show of Americans using their constitutional right to voice their opinion. I don’t mean to get political here. I'm writing about it because the experience lit a fire under me. I felt empowered. Sometimes when we feel like we lack control of a situation, we need to find a way – any way -- to make something happen.

Two things dawned on me that day.

First, I prefer to write about young female protagonists, and this is how I want them to feel. I want my characters to be empowered, to find the strength to make a difference. I don’t like reading books where I have to suffer through a plot where things keep happening to the female character and she is given no ability to change things. In Relic, my protagonist gains the courage to speak for someone who doesn't have a voice.

Secondly, I have always been a person who likes to find ways to make things happen. A writer friend of mine is self-publishing, and I am pretty impressed with the product. As I wait for agents to respond to queries, and as I line up more agents, I have a nagging thought. I believe in Relic. I want it to be read. Perhaps self-publishing is a road I will travel as well. I refuse to be a female character who waits for things to happen!