Female Protagonists in Epic Fantasy by Female Authors

Among the vast array of fantasy sub-genres, epic fantasy is possibly the oldest and widest read, even today.

Female Protagonists in Epic Fantasy by Male Authors

Many of these classic adventure stories have been written by male authors, from J.R.R. Tolkien to Terry Brooks, Robert Jordan, and Brandon Sanderson (to name but a few). Some male authors include strong female characters (more often in recent years, as in Sanderson’s novels, for example). Fewer still have female characters as the protagonist, the main character who carries the narrative and drives the main plot (Sanderson’s Mistborn fits this category too).

Female Protagonists in Epic Fantasy by Female Authors

History has also known some great epic fantasy by female authors like Ursula Le Quin, Mercedes Lackey, Janny Wurts, Patricia A. McKillip, Robin Hobb, and N.K. Jemisin. Some female authors craft tales where the protagonist is male (e.g. Le Guin’s Earthsea Cycle or Hobb’s Farseer trilogy). Others feature female protagonists, as in Wurts’ Daughters of the Empire or Jemison’s Broken Earth trilogy.

Among epic fantasy novels, many are better categorized as teen or young adult epic fantasy. Quite often, that means a “strong” female lead, who is often a badass who could be female, male, or any gender variant. The growing spectrum of characters (as well as authors) who follow this popular trope is too broad for one little blog post (not to mention being beyond this author’s expertise).

But does a “strong” female lead need to be skilled assassin? Does she need to behave as a male character would, or is there something uniquely different that she brings to the story?

To be clear, I write this as a male reader and writer, but I think broadening my perspective is important, not to help me emulate a female reader and writer (which I cannot do), but to learn from and be inspired by female epic fantasy authors who have so much to add to my understanding of what it means to be human.

To me, that understanding is one of the great benefits of the epic fantasy genre.

So, to provide a narrower list, I’m highlighting a short list with these qualifications:

• Epic fantasy
• Adult (e.g. not targeted to teens)
• Female author
• Female protagonist
• Published within the last 15 years

That’s a mouthful. But hopefully this will provide a short, focused checklist for readers.

What other epic fantasy by female authors would you recommend that fit this list? Comment below and we might add it.

Thanks for reading!