--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Long before I became a feminist in any…" description: "\"Long before I became a feminist in any explicit way, I had turned from writing love stories about women in which women were losers, and adventure stori..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d6/joanna-russ-7942_adventure_long-before-i-became-a-feminist-in-any-e_2271286.jpg" --- # Long before I became a feminist in any explicit way, I had… ![“Long before I became a feminist in any explicit way, I had turned from writing love stories about women in which women were losers, and adventure stories about men in which the men were winners, to writing adventure stories about a woman in which the woman won. It was one of the hardest things I…” quote by Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d6/joanna-russ-7942_adventure_long-before-i-became-a-feminist-in-any-e_2271286.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d6/joanna-russ-7942_adventure_long-before-i-became-a-feminist-in-any-e_2271286.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d6/joanna-russ-7942_adventure_long-before-i-became-a-feminist-in-any-e_2271286.jpg) > “Long before I became a feminist in any explicit way, I had turned from writing love stories about women in which women were losers, and adventure stories about men in which the men were winners, to writing adventure stories about a woman in which the woman won. It was one of the hardest things I ever did in my life.” [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She rewrote genre norms to center women as protagonists, confronting gender bias in storytelling **In simple terms:** She changed stories so women win instead of lose Key Takeaway Write narratives that empower marginalized voices Themes feminism genre empowerment Mood inspirational critical Type manifesto personal When to use this quote - publishing - screenwriting - teaching - activism Key Concepts narrative revision gender politics Questions to Reflect On - How can writers challenge dominant narratives? - What obstacles arise when redefining genre roles? A Different Perspective Changing entrenched stereotypes can face industry resistance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adventure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) [Explicit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/explicit/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Feminist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminist/) [Feminist Explicit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminist-explicit-5264757/) [Hardest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardest/) [Hardest thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardest-thing/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Loser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loser/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-story/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-woman-4384084/) [Stories Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-women/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Winner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winner/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Adventure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-adventure-1191965/) [Writing love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-love/) ## Related quotes > [As a filmgoer and a filmmaker, I want to participate and tell stories of woman and man that will move us forward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmila-zbanic/as-a-filmgoer-and-a-filmmaker-i-want-to-participate-and-tell-stories/) [Jasmila Zbanic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmila-zbanic/) > [I think the city of Atlanta has a lot of stories from the woman's perspective.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-glover/i-think-the-city-of-atlanta-has-a-lot-of-stories-from-the-woman-s/) [Stephen Glover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-glover/) > [Writing is an adventure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/writing-is-an-adventure/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [“Writing is an adventure. There is no way to know where it will take you, and what you will find. You could find success.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-kirin/writing-is-an-adventure-there-is-no-way-to-know-where-it-will-take/) [M. Kirin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-kirin/) > [Writing should be an adventure, shrouded in mystery and uncertainty, blessed with amazing grace. In theory, of course](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd-field/writing-should-be-an-adventure-shrouded-in-mystery-and-uncertainty/) [Syd Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd-field/) > [I'd hate to be writing 'Adventure Time' comics and not be excited about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-north/i-d-hate-to-be-writing-adventure-time-comics-and-not-be-excited-about/) [Ryan North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-north/) > [“By the time I got to high school, I had learned to be more cautious about revealing my dreams. I was reading—and therefore writing—adventure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/by-the-time-i-got-to-high-school-i-had-learned-to-be-more-cautious/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [It's really hard to get stories made that are about women. Not just women being obsessed with men, or supporting men. And it's really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-wilde/it-s-really-hard-to-get-stories-made-that-are-about-women-not-just/) [Olivia Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-wilde/) > [It was not until Web comics that I saw stories about women and stories by women and things that were aimed specifically at female…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noelle-stevenson/it-was-not-until-web-comics-that-i-saw-stories-about-women-and/) [Noelle Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noelle-stevenson/) > [Somebody asked me earlier if I thought it was really important to tell stories about women's struggles. And I said yes, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diablo-cody/somebody-asked-me-earlier-if-i-thought-it-was-really-important-to/) [Diablo Cody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diablo-cody/) > [I think we need to have stories about women that don't necessarily fit the trope of the classic woman, because they do exist. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristela-alonzo/i-think-we-need-to-have-stories-about-women-that-don-t-necessarily/) [Cristela Alonzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristela-alonzo/) > [These kinds of scripts telling the stories of women are very rare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shin-min-a/these-kinds-of-scripts-telling-the-stories-of-women-are-very-rare/) [Shin Min-a](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shin-min-a/) > [There's not a lot of stories for women told by women in a very real, true voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-graham/there-s-not-a-lot-of-stories-for-women-told-by-women-in-a-very-real/) [Heather Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-graham/) > [When you see stories about women that aren't being told by women, it can make you feel like you don't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petra-collins/when-you-see-stories-about-women-that-aren-t-being-told-by-women-it/) [Petra Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petra-collins/) > [I love stories about women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/i-love-stories-about-women/) [Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/) ## More by Joanna Russ > [“Thus in the bad days, in the dark swampy times.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/thus-in-the-bad-days-in-the-dark-swampy-times/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“An as-yet-unpublished poet in Boulder, Colorado, once said to me that anything worth doing was worth doing badly. I may seem, in the foregoing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/an-as-yet-unpublished-poet-in-boulder-colorado-once-said-to-me-that/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“(Only God can make a tree and She seldom tries, nowadays.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/only-god-can-make-a-tree-and-she-seldom-tries-nowadays/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [ “The trouble with men is that they have limited minds. That's the trouble with women, too." \[ "Existence" (1975)\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/the-trouble-with-men-is-that-they-have-limited-minds-that-s-the/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“Until you learn better, you think that a landscaped world can't hurt you or please you, you needn't bother about its soul, you needn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/until-you-learn-better-you-think-that-a-landscaped-world-can-t-hurt/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [The techniques are all means of dealing with one simple idea: She wrote it. (That is, the "wrong" person--in this case, female--has created the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/the-techniques-are-all-means-of-dealing-with-one-simple-idea-she/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“What future is there for a female child who aspires to being Humpfrey Bogart?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/what-future-is-there-for-a-female-child-who-aspires-to-being-humpfrey/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [Ignorance is not bad faith. But persistence in ignorance is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/ignorance-is-not-bad-faith-but-persistence-in-ignorance-is/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“I had planned to consult with a Black colleague, but when I approached her in the hall she had a crowd of students about,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/i-had-planned-to-consult-with-a-black-colleague-but-when-i-approached/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [There are more whooping cranes in the United States of America than there are women in Congress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/there-are-more-whooping-cranes-in-the-united-states-of-america-than/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“Courage is willful hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/courage-is-willful-hope/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [The trouble with men is that they have limited minds. That's the trouble with women, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/the-trouble-with-men-is-that-they-have-limited-minds-that-s-the-2/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“I cannot get into this swamp or I will never get out; and if I start crying again I'll remember that I have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/i-cannot-get-into-this-swamp-or-i-will-never-get-out-and-if-i-start/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [Science fiction, as I mentioned before, writes about what is neither impossible nor possible; the fact is that, when the question of possibility comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/science-fiction-as-i-mentioned-before-writes-about-what-is-neither/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) > [“Somewhere there is a book that says you ought to cry buckets of tears over yourself and love yourself with a passion and wrap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-russ/somewhere-there-is-a-book-that-says-you-ought-to-cry-buckets-of-tears/) [Joanna Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) [Explore all 84 Joanna Russ quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-russ/) ## More Adventure quotes > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [I painted the words "GREAT ADVENTURE" in Beijing, Dallas, San Francisco, Copenhagen, and Japan. What it means to me is completely different to everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-eine/i-painted-the-words-great-adventure-in-beijing-dallas-san-francisco/) [Ben Eine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-eine/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [I am attracted to looking at the different things language can mean even in one sometimes quite ordinary utterance. Writing is partly about listening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-armantrout/i-am-attracted-to-looking-at-the-different-things-language-can-mean/) [Rae Armantrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-armantrout/) > [What a thrill. You know you've entered new territory when you realise that your outfit cost more than your film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-yu/what-a-thrill-you-know-you-ve-entered-new-territory-when-you-realise/) [Jessica Yu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-yu/) > [“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-supertramp-chris-mccandless/so-many-people-live-within-unhappy-circumstances-and-yet-will-not/) [Alexander Supertramp Chris McCandless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-supertramp-chris-mccandless/) > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [“Exactly. I think the original tantric Buddhists took notice of was some very wise old people who never studied in their youth, but took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-niemczura/exactly-i-think-the-original-tantric-buddhists-took-notice-of-was/) [Joe Niemczura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-niemczura/) > [As an adventurer...I try to protect against the downside. I make sure I have covered as many eventualities as I can. In the end,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/as-an-adventurer-i-try-to-protect-against-the-downside-i-make-sure-i/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [“Love can give you such happiness, then can break the very heart it filled, leaving a hole that can never be fixed or protected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mcleod/love-can-give-you-such-happiness-then-can-break-the-very-heart-it/) [Kevin McLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mcleod/) > [“It always gave Wolf a peculiar thrill thus to tighten his grip upon his stick, thus to wrap himself more closely in his faded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cowper-powys/it-always-gave-wolf-a-peculiar-thrill-thus-to-tighten-his-grip-upon/) [John Cowper Powys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cowper-powys/) > [“It all had to be squeezed and squeezed again, to provide a thrill, to provide enjoyment. What did people mean, with their simply determined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/it-all-had-to-be-squeezed-and-squeezed-again-to-provide-a-thrill-to/) [D.H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [I am not an adventurous person but I am gutsy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahul-vaidya/i-am-not-an-adventurous-person-but-i-am-gutsy/) [Rahul Vaidya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahul-vaidya/) > [Our civilization, bequeathed to us by fierce adventurers, eaters of meat and hunters, is so full of hurry and combat, so busy about many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/our-civilization-bequeathed-to-us-by-fierce-adventurers-eaters-of/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) [Browse all 7,690 Adventure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Long before I became a feminist in any explicit way, I had turned from writing love stories about women in which women were losers, and adventure stories about men in which the men were winners, to writing adventure stories about a woman in which the woman won. 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