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 a developmental editor and mentor for structural and developmental revisions
• Carry out research into YA themes, girlhood, identity, and digital culture
• Develop my narrative craft, voice, and worldbuilding
• Share parts of the writing journey through my website and social storytelling
• Step into my role as a writer with clarity and confidence -
Act I is where everything begins. The novel is the spark that sets the whole project in motion, the place where the characters, ideas, and themes of The Heroine’s Alchemy first come to life.
By giving this book the time and attention it needs, I am laying a creative foundation that the illustrations, the journal, the workshops, and the community can grow from. Spending time inside the story helps me refine my artistic voice and develop the craft and confidence needed for the rest of the project.
This stage ensures that the work I bring to young girls and women later, through the Challenge, the Hub, and the creative sessions, is rooted in a strong story, meaningful themes, and high quality creative practice.
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 create a manhwa-style visual excerpt of my novel, shaped through community feedback and shared on my website and social platforms
• Develop the visual identity of the project through a creative lifestyle photoshoot that captures the atmosphere, emotion, and magic of real life and creative work
• Work with a website designer to build my author website as the central home for The Heroine’s Hub
• Create The Heroine’s Journal, a free downloadable workbook filled with wellbeing practices, creative prompts, guided reflections, and storytelling exercises
• Set up STAN to support guided conversations and accessible digital resources for girls and young women
• Seek early feedback on the website and creative materials from Fern Tolley, a senior brand and marketing specialist, and review analytics, comments, and user behaviour together to understand what resonates and what needs refining
• Carry out light-touch audience insight by sharing early visuals and journal prompts with young readers, collecting informal feedback through social polls, comments, and small group testing
• Consider accessibility needs when designing all creative materials, ensuring that the journal, visuals, and digital content feel welcoming and usable for a wide range of young people
• Develop my own creative direction skills and confidence as a visual storyteller, learning to shape a cohesive artistic world that reflects the themes of my novel -
Act II is where the project begins to take shape in the world. The illustrations, the photoshoot, the journal, the website, and the digital tools start to form the visual and creative language of The Heroine’s Alchemy. This stage transforms ideas into something young people can see, feel, and step into.
By developing this creative foundation now, I am preparing the home that The Heroine’s Hub will grow from, a place where young people can come for creativity, confidence, imagination, and connection. Audience insight gathered during this stage helps ensure that the materials feel inspiring and relevant, and that the work remains accessible and shaped by the needs of the people it is made for.
Act II strengthens the artistic quality of the project and creates the visual world that Act III will build upon when the community begins to gather and participate.
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, and connection
• Publish The Heroine’s Habits weekly newsletter and release the free Heroine’s Journal workbook
• Run the 21-Day Heroine Habits Challenge, a free email-based experience with videos, daily prompts, and voice notes that use storytelling and simple wellbeing science to build creative confidence and resilience
• Create accessible social storytelling content that reframes the heroine’s journey for everyday life, meeting young people where they already spend time
• Deliver creative workshops with Girlguiding and Eynsham Library, using story and journalling to support wellbeing through creativity
• Guide young people in writing letters to their future selves during workshops, the Challenge, and digital activities, helping them build reflection, confidence, and emotional literacy
• Invite YA authors to write letters to their past selves, offering honest advice, encouragement, and solidarity to young readers
• Publish these letters as a shared and growing collection on The Heroine’s Hub, creating an intergenerational archive where young people and authors connect through story
• Use STAN, website analytics, and participant feedback to understand what themes and content resonate with young readers, expand reach, and refine storytelling based on audience needs
• Gather simple reflections from workshop participants and use social polls, comments, and quiet feedback channels to understand impact and make improvements
• Collaborate with Fern Tolley to shape the social storytelling, user experience, and launch plan for the Hub, and schedule a follow up evaluation meeting a few months after launch to review analytics, audience insight, and impact so we can refine what is working well and improve what is not
• Ensure all community spaces and materials are welcoming and accessible, including captioned videos, mobile friendly content, printable prompts, and options suited to neurodiverse young people
• Follow safeguarding guidance for online and in person work to create spaces that feel safe, moderated, and age appropriate for young participants
• Make all elements free and open access so that young people can take part regardless of background or circumstance -
Act III is where the project steps out into the world and begins to breathe. The Heroine’s Hub becomes a gathering place where girls and young women can explore creativity, identity, and courage in ways that feel fun, familiar, and real. The tools and resources created earlier become shared experiences, conversations, and moments of growth.
This work is designed for young people who may feel pressure to perform online, struggle with confidence, or lack access to creative spaces that feel safe, welcoming, and meaningful. The letters initiative creates an intergenerational space for honesty, encouragement, and solidarity. The workshops and digital tools support emotional literacy, creative confidence, and personal expression.
This stage brings the story to life through community, connection, and collective imagination. It completes this phase of the project and creates a strong platform for future workshops, new digital resources, and my ongoing artistic development beyond the funding period.
