Saturday, March 8, 2025

A to Z Challenge Theme Reveal 2025: Women's Epics A to Z!


Honestly, I already revealed this theme last year, but I am doing it again for good measure (for someone who has changed their theme multiple times every year, this is an accomplishment anyway). 

Also, I have a theme that aligns really well with International Women's Day, so I am announcing a day early :)

This is my 13th year participating! In the past 12 years I've always had a theme:

Weird Princesses (2013)
Tales with Colors (2014)
Epics A to Z (2015)
Diversity A to Z (2016)
WTF - Weird Things in Folktales (2017)
WTF Hungary - Weird Things in Hungarian Folktales (2018)
Fruit Folktales (2019)
Folktales of Endangered Species (2020)
Tarot Tales (2021)
Gemstone Folklore (2022)
Body Folktales (2023)
Romance Tropes in Folklore (2024)

This year's theme came to me last April, just as I was finishing up the challenge. I have always loved epics, and I love reading new ones whenever I can get my hands on them. I started thinking about the epics I have read so far, and stories with women as heroes in general. And so, the theme was born:

WOMEN'S EPICS!

The goal was to read 26 epics with women heroes, and blog about each one for A to Z. It took a full year to schedule the entire series!

A couple of things in advance:

1. By 'epic' I mean traditional epics. Think The Iliad, The Odyssey, Gilgamesh, etc. Stories that have been passed down through centuries and generations, orally told, performed, belonging to a culture's intangible heritage. Not literary works or film. So no, no Hunger Games or Lord of the Rings or Star Wars. Sorry.

2. Sometimes it is hard to define if a story is an epic, a myth, a legend, or something else. Most of the stories I included in the 26 were labeled epics by researchers, collectors, and tradition bearers. Some belong to genres that are the equivalent of what we call "epic" in the Western world (for example, Japanese monogatari). Some I included because they are long narrative poems or prose stories that are based on a larger oral tradition, even if they are not technically epics (see: medieval chivalric romances).

3. All of the stories I included have women heroes. I use "hero" in the sense of traditional stories, as the main protagonist or central figure of the narrative. So no, I did not pick male-led stories and try to prove that "yeah, actually, Penelope is the real hero of the Odyssey!" Nope! I picked stories with women as lead characters. And yes, I found 26. Actually, I found a lot more! But I picked 26 that I could actually read, and fit into the alphabet for A to Z.

4. With that said, epics are a complex genre, with complex characters, and none of them can really be studied divorced from the time and culture it came from. On a practical level this means that you won't equally like all of these women heroes. Some of them do things that are very much questionable to our modern sensibilities, or have character traits we don't like. And that's okay. Odysseus, Gilgamesh, Achilles and the lot are also not exactly Lawful Good.

5. The good news is, the lineup I ended up with is really colorful in terms of origins. The 26 epics represent 4 continents and 21 different cultures!

In the next weeks before April I am going to have a few more posts coming up!

1. A post on epics that did not make the cut. I thought they deserve a shout out even if I did not end up reading them.

2. A post on an online survey I made about how well people generally know epics, and which ones are the most well-known ones. I thought it was a fascinating question to run by the people of the Internet.

I HOPE TO SEE ALL OF YOU HERE IN APRIL! If you are participating in A to Z, make sure to leave a link to your blog in the comments so I can visit back.

I dedicate this series to my epic-telling mentor, Cathryn Fairlee, the creator of Epic Day, an all-around amazing mentor, and a true lover of epics. 

I miss you, Cathryn.

26 comments:

  1. Jamie (jannghi.blogspot.com):
    This sounds fun! Looking forward to seeing what you post.

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  2. Enjoy the challenge! I have decided to take a year off.

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  3. I didn't even know traditional epics ever featured women as leads, never mind over 26 of them!

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  4. Nice theme. Best of luck. I look forward to reading your posts.

    My theme reveal: https://brewingcoffeetwistingwordsbreakingpencils.ca/2025/03/09/subject-of-talk/#comment-8347

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  5. I always look forward to reading your entries. I learn so much from them. My blog: https://www.hdhstory.net/storyblog

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  6. That theme sounds, well, epic. I on the other hand have toned down my theme from years past and will just be posting about aspects of myself ala the ABC's of Me. This way, hopefully Ill be able to do some deep following of other peoples blogs this year. Have fun!

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  7. Finding 26 traditional epics with female leads is impressive. Looking forward to see who you'll be featuring. I wonder if any of them will come up in my list: https://15minuteclassics.blogspot.com/2025/03/back-to-basics-to-z-theme-reveal.html

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  8. This sounds great! I'd find it impossible to find A-Z of epics with women, but I'm sure you'll do it with, if not ease (there are those Xs), without too much effort.

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  9. This is indeed an interesting topic. Spotlighting women heroes in traditional epics is both refreshing and necessary, since a lot of those have been dominated by male protagonists! Looking forward to April to discover these stories.

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  10. You always have such original, fascinating themes and stories!

    My theme reveal: https://carrieannebrownian.wordpress.com/2025/03/10/an-eclectic-and-personal-a-to-z-theme-revealed/

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  11. Sounds like a fun theme, I look forward to your thoughts on the epics you chose
    Debbie

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  12. Zalka - it does not surprise me to see that you are first on the list since your A to Z's are always epic and one of the sites I most consistently visit...
    Andrew from
    https://how-would-you-know.com/2025/03/a-to-z-2025-theme-reveal.html

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  13. Cool theme! It's great that you found so many stories with women in the lead.

    Ronel visiting for Theme Reveal for A to Z Blogging Challenge 2025

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  14. Looking forward to it! I always learn so many interesting new stories.

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  15. Wow, so much energy looking forward to following along during April, I hope I can keep up with you. Thanks for visiting me at https://ancestralresearchjournal.blogspot.com/

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  16. Wow, this sounds... epic, Csenge! I really admire the work you put into your challenges. But I suppose, it's what you like doing :) I'll be back...
    https://jemimapett.com/blog/2025/03/10/a2z-theme-reveal-a2z2025-booksky/

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  17. I look forward to this epic topic! I love 'new to me' stories that have stood the test of time!

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  18. Another stellar theme! Looking forward to following along.

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  19. Hi Zalka. I'm awed by your advance planning and reading. I signed up for A - Z challenge too. I'll be reading you again.

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  20. I love this theme! I so admire your expansive vision and the connections you make across continents and cultures. Preparing for it must have involved a lot of work. Very much looking forward to it.

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  21. Wow you must have done a lot of preparation (and reading) for your theme.

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  22. Awesome topic! I'm looking forward to learning about these heroic women.

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  23. Wow, great theme! It must've been quite the challenge researching everything.

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  24. Great theme - pop on by for a visit! https://thriftshopcommando.blogspot.com/

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  25. Zalka, it’s amazing how much you seem to be able to fit in here! Your theme sounds fascinating, looking forward to reading your posts.

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