Have you noticed how most stories you read or watch have fewer women than men? Does it bother you that in a world where women actually outnumber men (OK, by a small margin) most stories treat them as a by-the-way minority? How do our stories suffer when we tell them in a world nearly devoid of solid women characters?

This is a pet peeve of mine, not because we need to do a quota check on each story, or because I don’t appreciate that some stories will naturally default to having more of one sex or the other. Incidentally, on that last point, how many stories do you see that naturally ended up with more women than men? I bet if you do the math, the ones with more guys come out ahead by a wide score. Yes, this bothers me because it feels like someone is taking the easy way out.

Bring on the women because that’s the way the world works

The absence of women in story-telling or their relegation to secondary roles bothers me because, well, it’s not the way the world works. I don’t know about you, but my life is filled with strong women. I can’t go through a day without bumping into one. Shouldn’t my stories naturally flow along the same lines?

I would go as far as to say that you can’t understand male characters unless you understand and at least to some extent portray the women in their lives. Why? Because that’s the way the world works. Ever wonder why every football player will say “hi mom” when the camera points in their direction? It might have something to do with the influence that one particular woman had in his life. Women are essential, influential agents in our lives. How can we portray characters and the world around them without showing this one critical component? Maybe we can short-change it, but not without coming away with something that feels incomplete.

Bring on the women because they add rich texture and dimension to a story

Men can be very interesting characters. No doubt about that. Women can be very interesting, too, often in different ways that add wonderful texture to a story. Having one woman character for every five males in the show may spice things up, but think how much spicier things get when more women characters join the fray.

I have learned the hard way that a diversity of characters makes for a richer story fabric — a stronger one that will not easily tear. Of course, implied and not so implied in all this is the understanding that women characters, like any other characters must come across as fully drawn, non-flat individuals. This shouldn’t be a challenge if you put in the work to people-watch and listen, then mix in some of your imagination and insight. In fact, when I’ve found it difficult to have fully realized women characters, I’ve looked around to discover my male characters weren’t doing much better.

Bring on the women because they bring the fun with them

Above all, I say bring on the women because stories with strong, real women are just more fun to read, watch and write. They’re funny. They’re smart. They’re sassy. Yes, they’re sexy. And I love the way they talk back and put a guy in his place. The world is a more colorful, funner place with women in it. Let’s enjoy story-telling that puts them where they belong, front and center, in all their God-given glory.

For samples of my work (with lots of female characters!), visit my Amazon author page.