The Victorian era is known for its suffocating societal rules, restrictive clothing, and the limited rights it afforded women. Writing independent female characters who exist authentically in this space can be challenging. There’s a temptation to simply substitute contemporary characters in historical costume—ladies who speak, think, and act no differently from women in our modern world. For my own novels, however, I love writing Victorian heroines who assert their independence, push social boundaries, and take their romantic fates into their own hands, all while remaining true to the era.
In The Belle of Belgrave Square, socially-anxious Victorian beauty Julia Wychwood doesn’t look much like a contemporary romance heroine. Constrained by the rigid rules of fashionable society (and by the oppressive expectations of her overbearing parents), she’d rather stay home in bed, eating chocolates and reading novels, than navigate her way through the perilous London social season. Nevertheless, Julia still finds way to assert herself, often to dramatic effect.
Julia’s choice of reading material is, initially, her biggest act of rebellion. Novels were frowned upon in the mid-Victorian era. Some believed that reading them was hazardous to a lady’s health. Novels, it was said, had the same intoxicating effect as drugs or alcohol, overstimulating the imagination and polluting the mind. These concerns don’t prevent Julia from reading what she pleases. During the course of the story, she binge reads during a ball, patronizes independent bookstores, and discusses her favorite romance novels with the beastly, battle-scarred war hero Captain Jasper Blunt.
When not reading novels, Julia enjoys riding her horse, Cossack, in Hyde Park’s Rotten Row. Horseback riding was one of the few athletic pursuits available to well-to-do young ladies. Like everything else in fashionable society, it was governed by strict rules of decorum. Ladies were expected to ride at a sedate pace on suitably gentle mounts, making it less of a sport and more of an exercise in displaying the gracefulness of their figures. A gifted horsewoman, Julia refuses to hide her skill to suit society. She rides with passion, often galloping in the Row with her friends, despite the risk of creating a scandal.
Reading novels and riding horses may not seem like the most daring of activities, but in each of them, Julia asserts her right to mental and physical liberty. These small acts of independence help her to gain confidence such that, when a crisis occurs, she’s able to rise to the occasion by performing her most audacious act yet—proposing marriage to Captain Blunt
Writing historically accurate Victorian heroines doesn’t mean confining oneself to insipid and unrelatable characters. On the contrary. History shows us that Victorian society was full of women who refused to abide by its restrictive rules. Young women like Julia who asserted themselves in ways both large and small, pushing up against the boundaries of their world until that world expanded to accommodate the full scope of their individuality. I never tire of writing their stories!
USA Today bestselling author Mimi Matthews writes both historical nonfiction and award-winning proper Victorian romances. Her novels have received starred reviews in Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus, and her articles have been featured on the Victorian Web, the Journal of Victorian Culture, and in syndication at BUST Magazine. In her other life, Mimi is an attorney. She resides in California with her family, which includes a retired Andalusian dressage horse, a Sheltie, and two Siamese cats.