3 inspirational female authors

I've realised recently that I have a bit of a fascination with strong, female writers. All throughout university, I did everything I could to avoid having to study 'feminism' or 'women in literature' - not because I didn't enjoy it, or identify with it, but because it was always the same old story and I wanted to try something different. However, left to my own devices I have discovered why this area is so fascinating. In light of this discovery, I wanted to share with you 3 female authors who inspire me.

J. K. Rowling

This woman has grit. True grit. She has spoken very publicly about the desperately hard times she endured before Harry Potter was born from her imagination. That she overcame these hard times shows an incredible strength of character; that she is very vocal and supportive of other people's problems is another. Even in Harry Potter, arguably just a fantasy children's series, she manages to successfully represent real world problems such as depression and orphaned children, which is what makes it so subtly relevant to so many people.. Since becoming a global celebrity and driven business woman, Rowling hasn't lost site of what's important to her, and for this I admire her most. She remains grounded and committed to her values. 

Daphne Du Maurier

If you read my blog regularly, you'll know that from what I've read so far, Du Maurier's novels are some of my absolute favourites. I think there's only so much skill you can learn when trying to be a great writer; the rest is reliant on talent. And this lady had a lot of that! If I could meet her, I'd want to know her top 10 (or maybe 20) tips on how to write a great novel; where to start, how to piece it together and how to keep it fresh are all things I really struggle with. Her ability to craft with the English language in a way that is eloquent yet simple, perpetual and poignant is a talent I can only aspire to match.

Beatrix Potter

I'd like to understand nature and the appreciate the world like Beatrix Potter did. Though I'm not an animal lover, I do love the countryside - especially the Lake District where Beatrix lived for many years. I admire her imagination as it's something I feel I have grown out of, and I absolutely love the idea of giving voices to animals, imagining what their conversations could be beyond the realms of human ears. She embraced her passion and imagination, and possessed great strength and courage which allowed her to publish books in her own name at a time when this wasn't respectable for women to do so. Growing up with the likes of Peter Rabbit, Benjamin Bunny and Tom Thumb has given this lady a special place in my heart, but as I've matured, I've learnt to respect her for more reasons than her children's stories.

As I've been writing this, it's become clear to me that these three women are all an inspiration to me because they all have character traits I'd like to develop. They embody what I aspire to become as a person, a career woman and a writer. 

I'd love to know your thoughts on this as its something a little different to my usual posts and reviews. Are there any strong female authors you're inspired by?

Thanks for reading x