Helen, the Hermit

Favourite Heroine: Marya Morevna. She might not swing swords, but she has more agency than 99% of action girls. She lives her life according to her own wishes. She doesn't have any great qualities, but neither does she have any crippling flaws. She is just a person.

Favourite Guilty Pleasure Heroine: Sookie Stackhouse. Sure, she follows a certain template, but she stands out from other UF heroines, at least for me. She has personality. Yes, she makes mistakes, but I'd like to see you in her place. While I get how she might not be everyone's cup of tea, some of the hatred frankly baffles me. Particularly since it seems to be based on stuff like "her atrocious taste in clothes", and often pleasantries are skipped and we get to the bottom line: "white trash". So? Classist much?

Favourite Antiheroine: Esmerelda Weatherwax, a powerful witch and the voice of common sense. She is so good at psychological manipulations (headology), she barely even needs to use any magic.

Favourite Villainess: Dolores Umbridge. Seldom has there been a character so loathed. I think someone is more likely to write a fanfic about how Hitler was misunderstood than about how Dolores Umbridge was misunderstood. Many put Voldemort on their villain list, but I was never too impressed. Voldemort is so over the top, he could exist only in fictiion. Umbridges are in your governments, drafting laws that will hurt you.

Favourite Classical Character: I love all female characters of One Hundred Years of Solitude, but if I had to pick one, I'd pick Amaranta. Why? Well, I was born a forty-plus spinster and have already developed enough cynicism in my early teens, when I read the book, to see myself in the virgin until death.