(Day 11) Guest Post: Kelly Meding

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Hey everyone!  Today we've got the amazing Kelly Meding stopping by to discuss heroines with us.


"I'm an urban fantasy/paranormal author. My debut novel, THREE DAYS TO DEAD, is available now from Dell. Book two, AS LIE THE DEAD, releases July 27, 2010. http://kellymeding.com"

Connect with Kelly:

Website | Blog | Twitter | Goodreads

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Are heroines required to be kick ass or independent in order to be considered a strong lead?

Yes and no.

Both are positive traits that definitely help define a female lead as strong.  However, you can have a strong female lead who is neither kick ass, nor independent—at least, not as a defining trait.  For me, in order to define a heroine as a strong lead, she has show courage and resourcefulness at some point in the story.  If she happens to do a little ass-kicking and show independence in order to get things done, so the much the better.

The vast majority of urban fantasy heroines seem to be both kick-ass and independent, and my own Dreg City series heroine, Evy Stone, certainly has both of those traits.  Two of my favorite heroines in fiction are Kate Daniels (the Magic series, Ilona Andrews) and Cat Crawfield (the Night Huntress series, Jeaniene Frost), and they absolutely have both traits.  They're stubborn warriors who get things done.

And then there's another favorite of mine, Mercy Thompson (Patricia Briggs).  Mercy is fiercely independent and likes doing things her way.  But I wouldn't define her as kick ass.  She's brave, resourceful, loyal, and can handle herself, but she doesn't go out looking for fights and is very good at thinking her way through a problem, rather than punching it into submission.  She is absolutely a strong lead.

Patricia Briggs also gave us a completely different kind of heroine with Anna (Alpha & Omega).  Anna is passive, dependant on others for what she has, and is rarely seen as aggressive.  And yet she's still a strong heroine, because of the situations in which she's put.  She has the inner strength to face her fears, protect the Pack, and fight for her mate.

I love reading about the Kate's and Cat's of the urban fantasy world, but once in a while I also enjoy an Anna.  And there's certainly enough room and readers for both kinds of strong heroines.

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Kelly is offering a signed copy of Three Days to Dead and a signed copy of As Lie the Dead.  That means there will be two lucky winners!

They’ll never see her coming. . . .

When Evangeline Stone wakes up naked and bruised on a cold slab at the morgue—in a stranger’s body, with no memory of who she is and how she got there—her troubles are only just beginning. Before that night she and the two other members of her Triad were the city’s star bounty hunters, mercilessly cleansing the city of the murderous creatures living in the shadows, from vampires to shape-shifters to trolls. Then something terrible happened that not only cost all three of them their lives but also convinced the city’s other Hunters that Evy was a traitor—and she can’t even remember what it was.

Now she’s a fugitive, piecing together her memory, trying to deal some serious justice—and discovering that she has only three days to solve her own murder before the reincarnation spell wears off. Because in three days Evy will die again—but this time there’s no second chance. . . .

Evangeline Stone, a rogue bounty hunter, never asked for a world divided between darkness and light…

…or the power to die and live agai...more Evangeline Stone, a rogue bounty hunter, never asked for a world divided between darkness and light…

…or the power to die and live again in someone else's borrowed body. After a murder plot meant to take her out leaves an entire race of shapeshifters nearly extinct, Evy is gnawed by guilt. So when one of the few survivors of the slaughter enlists her aid, she feels duty-bound to help—even though protecting a frail, pregnant shifter is the last thing Evy needs, especially with the world going to hell around her.

Amid weres, Halfies, gremlins, vamps—and increasingly outgunned humans—a war for supremacy is brewing. With shifters demanding justice, her superiors desperate to control her, and an assassin on her trail, Evy discovers a horrifying conspiracy. And she may be the only person in the world who can stop it—unless, of course, her own side gets her first.

Giveaway Guidelines:

1. Open to US only.
2. Fill out the form below.
3. Giveaway ends 9/4.  Be sure to check back after that and see if you've won!  I will not be emailing winners after they are announced on the blog.  Winners will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is picked.

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