Rooted in Connection, Rising in Power

Shaping Stories with the Heroine’s Journey

The heroine’s journey offers a storytelling arc built on strength through support, leadership through love, and triumph through unity.

Every story has a story arc. A well-written, well-told story will have a beginning, middle, climax, and ending. Whether you’re writing fiction or creative nonfiction, choosing the right storytelling structure shapes everything—tone, theme, and emotional resonance. And for many women, intuitive creatives, and spiritual seekers, the heroine’s journey storytelling structure offers a more empowering, authentic path.

An inciting incident will occur that jars the character out of their normal, everyday life. They will go on some sort of journey, whether that is an adventure, one of self-discovery, or something in between. There will be trials and challenges. The character will make mistakes and experience victories. Each one leads them closer to the climax, the main character’s ah-ha moment, the battle or confrontation with the protagonist, or if it’s a romance, finally coming together. The story will wind down, with the character integrating the experience.

Why Story Structure Matters (Even in Nonfiction and Memoir)

Having a story arc is important, even when you write nonfiction. It makes your book enjoyable to read and takes the reader on a journey with you. Storytelling allows you to better express your core message or theme without being preachy. A storytelling structure, like the heroine’s journey, can help you take readers on a meaningful emotional path, especially in genres like memoir, creative nonfiction, or spiritual writing.

Hero vs. Heroine: Two Narrative Paths

The hero’s journey emphasizes solitary achievement, often ending in isolation. But the heroine’s journey, in contrast, is rooted in collaboration, connection, and shared power.

The hero’s journey can be summed up as one person starting the journey and relying on themselves to solve the problem or defeat the antagonist. He may receive some help along the way, usually a wise male mentor, and a woman tempts him to stray from his path. At the end, the hero has changed so much that he can no longer live in the world, and he rides off—alone and regretful—into the sunset.

This story structure focuses on individuality, revenge, the white knight complex, the inability to ask for help or receive it, and achieving success alone. This journey has been applauded as the ultimate story structure, and even extolled as a role model for your personal journey.

Core Elements of the Heroine’s Journey

However, there’s another journey, another story structure that is as valid and effective. It’s the heroine’s journey.

We find this story structure in feminine-centric stories, such as romances, heists, cozies—mystery or fantasy—and comedies. Stories following the heroine’s journey structure often highlight found family, leadership through collaboration, and emotional or spiritual transformation. Too often, this type of story is dismissed, belittled, and trivialized. Mostly because it is written by and consumed by women.

In this type of story, the heroine (any gender) must fight for and save those they love or fight for a greater purpose. She might start off alone, possibly estranged or belittled by her birth family.

Rather than going it alone as in the hero’s journey, the heroine gathers people around her to help her solve the problem or defeat the villain. Her leadership isn’t charging into the battle alone. Instead, she is the general directing her group, acknowledging and utilizing her people’s gifts and talents.

At the end, the heroine has a found family that supports and loves her. Together, they are ready to take on any challenge. This story structure focuses on connection, asking and giving help, working together, and community.

Why This Storytelling Model Resonates with Women

For most women—and many intuitive creators—this structure mirrors our lived experiences. We lead in community, we grow through support, and we value emotional depth. The heroine’s journey reflects these truths in both life and story.

For most women, I dare say, our lives follow the patterns and themes of the heroine’s journey. We rarely move through life alone. We constantly seek relationships, connections, and are creating and forming community with found family.

Women leaders acknowledge the gifts and talents of their community, and want to give them opportunities to grow and excel. Women don’t see power as hoarding information and resources, but rather as directing those resources to where they need to go. We prefer to empower each other.

How I Use the Heroine’s Journey in My Writing

When I discovered the heroine’s journey, I realized my fantasy, Legends of Lairheim, followed that structure. It utilizes the core components of found family, creating a community, solving problems and defeating the enemy by using the combined gifts of the main characters.

I invite you, whether you write fiction or nonfiction, to examine the story structure you’re using for your book. If you’re a woman, you may discover, as I did, that you naturally write more of a heroine’s journey than a hero’s journey story.

Does this story structure intrigue you? Have you explored the heroine’s journey storytelling structure in your writing?

Recommended Resources for Deeper Exploration

Ready to dive deeper into this empowering storytelling model? These are some of my favorite resources for understanding and applying the heroine’s journey in your creative work.

To learn more about the Heroine’s Journey as a story structure, I highly recommend the book, The Heroine’s Journey: For Writers, Readers, and Fans of Pop Culture by Gail Carriger.

The book series, Forty Proof Series by Shannon Mayer, starting with Midlife Bounty Hunter, is a good example of this if you like urban, contemporary fantasy.

The movie, The 355, starring Jessica Chastain, is another example of this story structure. Well, until the ending, which they tacked on a hero’s journey ending of riding off alone.

The Netflix series, The Warrior Nun, follows the heroine’s journey. The book series, Harry Potter, is actually a heroine’s journey, with Harry as the heroine. He only defeats Lord Voldemort with the help of his found family.