Romance Novels Taught Me That Women Make Amazing Leaders

Really! This Is True

Photo by Cristian Newman on Unsplash

I began my writing career by writing romance fiction. As a teen, I loved reading romance novels and gravitated toward writing them as well.

There’s no doubt that what I loved most about them was . . . no, not the sex scenes . . . the strong, kick-ass heroines.

Even the early romances where women seemed weak, they were strong in their own way. Occasionally, I still read older romances from the 1970s or 1980s and the heroines irritate me because I’m looking at them with today’s eyes. But back then, I remember thinking that they were in control. It didn’t matter if the hero was rude or domineering (and many were back then) she still found a way to bring him to his knees and she got her way. Her perceived weakness was her strength.

As we entered the 1990s and 2000s, fictional women in romance novels changed to reflect the times. The roles of women in the novels evolved and the heroines became even more spectacular. They were now FBI agents and bounty hunters and corporate CEOs instead of governesses or cooks at a ranch full of sexy cowboys.

Romance novels and other women’s fiction get easily dismissed as just fluff or as female fantasy. They’re just about sex or relationships people believe, but they fail to see that these books are so much more. They show the evolution of women over time, and they inspire women to see themselves as the stronger, not the weaker sex.

I’m kind of saddened that younger women don’t seem to read romances as much as my generation did. Younger women seem to be more cynical or “realistic” about love and that’s too bad. But it’s not only bad because they dismiss romance, but because they don’t get to read about how powerful women really are.

Here is what romance novels have taught me about why women are strong and make great leaders:

1. Women know their flaws and admit it.

Many novels portray men as arrogant and “in charge” but sometimes the overconfidence becomes a negative in romance novels. Women are allowed to admit their vulnerabilities and insecurities, and this makes them able to solve problems or understand a situation better than their male counterparts. Heroines…