THE
HEROINE’S
ALCHEMY
Where Story Becomes Strength
IT BEGAN WITH A STORY.
A girl who accidentally sells her soul online — for likes.
My debut novel, I Accidentally Sold My Soul on Etsy, began as fiction. But somewhere between the pages, I saw something true: the pressure girls and young women feel to be perfect, to be seen, to be liked.
The story revealed the pattern, and it made me realise how much was at stake.
But what if fiction could help girls feel braver? What if story could guide us back to what is real? What if we could rewrite the narratives that keep us small?
That’s where The Heroine’s Alchemy began:
a fictional warning that became a real-world call to action.
The Heroine’s Alchemy was born from a story.
But every day, girls are being written out of their own.
Scrolling has replaced seeing.
Filters have replaced feeling.
And girls are paying the price.
Here’s what today’s girls are up against.
What if every girl had a way to rewrite her story?
What if every girl had a way to rewrite her story?
THE HEROINE’S PATH
A journey in three acts
Heroines aren’t born… they’re made.
A heroine’s story doesn’t begin with confidence.
It begins with pressure, comparison, and overwhelm…
the quiet ache of scrolling through perfect lives and wondering why yours feels so different.
This is where the real story starts.
ACT I: THE FALL
The story begins in the moments you don’t post:
the late-night scrolling,
the quiet spirals,
the overwhelm you think you should “handle.”
But even here—something shifts.
A spark.
A whisper.
A tiny voice that says:
I can’t keep pretending.
That voice is the beginning.
You’ve had enough. Something needs to change.
ACT 2: THE FIGHT
The messy middle, where heroines are actually made.
Not the dramatic kind, the ordinary fight.
The getting-up-and-getting-stuff-done-when-you-don’t-feel-like-it fight.
The asking-for-help fight.
The showing-up-for-yourself-in-small-ways fight.
Tiny choices that don’t look heroic…
but change everything.
You still feel scared.
But you keep trying anyway, page by page, breath by breath.
That’s what fighting looks like in real life.
ACT 3: THE RISE
The ending that is really the beginning.
It’s the moment you realise you didn’t vanish, you changed.
You stretched.
You softened and sharpened in all the places you needed to.
And slowly, you see it:
The girl you were waiting for…
the one you thought would swoop in and save you…
was you the whole time.
The strength you needed? Already there.
The courage? Hiding under the fear.
The magic? Never gone, just buried under everyone else’s expectations.
This is where the pretending ends.
This is where the becoming begins.
You stop shrinking.
You start choosing.
You stop chasing their version of your life —
and start writing your own.
This is the rise.
Ready to see how this becomes a real, 18-month creative journey?
THE STORY IN MOTION
An 18-month creative arc that blends storytelling, art, and community.
ACT I:
THE STORY
Writing the novel and building the foundation
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• Complete the full 90,000-word manuscript of I Accidentally Sold My Soul on Etsy
• Work with developmental editor Charlotte Maslen for three editorial rounds + full-manuscript report
• Research YA themes around girlhood, identity, digital culture and confidence
• Develop my narrative craft, worldbuilding and voice
• Share parts of the writing journey through my website and early social content
• Begin early audience insight through polls, prompts and Q&As
• Step confidently into my role as a YA author -
Act I is the creative heartbeat of the project. The novel shapes the ideas, characters and themes that flow into the illustrations, the Hub, the Journal, the Challenge and the workshops. By building a strong, emotionally resonant story foundation, I ensure that everything that follows is rooted in depth, quality and meaning. This phase strengthens my craft as a YA author and prepares the artistic world the rest of the project will grow from.
ACT II:
THE CREATIVE FOUNDATION
Building the world the story will grow from.
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• Commission and collaborate with a UK illustrator to produce manhwa-style character art and sample panels
• Develop the visual identity through a creative lifestyle photoshoot with Jonathan Self
• Build my author website and The Heroine’s Hub, with a refinement phase from designer/author Charlotte Duckworth
• Create The Heroine’s Journal — a free downloadable workbook with story-led wellbeing tools
• Set up STAN to host resources, interactive prompts and support the Challenge
• Share early visuals, manhwa teasers, journal pages and templates for audience insight
• Create free Heroine Era Downloadable Templates (mobile wallpapers, affirmation cards, journalling sheets)
• Record and launch a free “Step Into Your Heroine Era” webinar via STAN as the main lead magnet
•Draft a short companion story set in the Soul on Etsy world to be released later in Act III
• Consider accessibility needs across all digital and printed materials
• Build my skills in creative direction, visual storytelling and content strategy
• Conduct light audience testing to shape tone, pacing and accessibility -
Act II transforms ideas into a visual and interactive world. The illustrations, photoshoot, Journal, Hub and digital resources form the ecosystem that young people will eventually step into. This phase ensures everything feels inspiring, accessible and rooted in the needs of the audience. It sets the stage for community participation and allows the project to grow into a cohesive artistic experience.
ACT III:
THE COMMUNITY
Where the story meets the world and becomes a shared experience
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• Launch The Heroine’s Hub as a digital space for creativity, confidence + connection
• Publish The Heroine’s Habits weekly newsletter
• Release The Heroine’s Journal and short story as free downloads
• Launch the free 21-Day Heroine Habits Challenge with emails, voice notes + video prompts
• Run influencer and YA author outreach to widen reach and participation
• Deliver creative workshops with Girlguiding and Eynsham Library
• Guide young people in writing letters to their future selves through workshops and digital prompts
• Invite YA authors to contribute “letters to my past self” for a growing intergenerational archive
• Publish these letters on the Hub as a shared story space
• Use STAN, analytics and participant feedback to refine the Hub and future content
• Create accessible social storytelling content that reframes the heroine’s journey for everyday life
• Follow safeguarding and accessibility guidelines to ensure safe, inclusive participation
• Make all activities free and open, removing financial and digital barriers
• Conduct final reflection, evaluation and audience insight review -
Act III is where the creative world becomes a living, shared space. The Hub, the Challenge, the Journal, the workshops and the letters initiative weave together to offer young people tools for confidence, identity, imagination and emotional literacy. This phase brings story and wellbeing together through community and connection, building a foundation for long-term, scalable impact far beyond the project’s end.
