--- title: Shonda Rhimes on Writing Strong Female Characters description: Find out why Shonda Rhimes told TIME for FIRSTS about being asked about how she writes strong female characters. canonical: https://time.com/4934116/shonda-rhimes-female-characters-firsts/ author: Entertainment Weekly article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-09-09T11:00:43.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:44:50.400Z og:title: Shonda Rhimes Hates Being Asked How She Writes Strong Female Characters og:description: 'I find it appalling because it suggests that there are stupid, weak women' og:url: https://time.com/4934116/shonda-rhimes-female-characters-firsts/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt95cfb778cf715983/6988dcef096a942b2d69f7df/shonda-rhimes_luisa-dorr-time-firsts-2017_fb.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2405 og:image:height: 1353 og:image:alt: Shonda-Rhimes_luisa-dorr-time-firsts-2017_FB og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Shonda Rhimes Hates Being Asked How She Writes Strong Female Characters twitter:description: 'I find it appalling because it suggests that there are stupid, weak women' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt95cfb778cf715983/6988dcef096a942b2d69f7df/shonda-rhimes_luisa-dorr-time-firsts-2017_fb.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Shonda Rhimes Hates Being Asked How She Writes Strong Female Characters > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=fa7a1b8e-b319-45e1-9f99-0ba357bca697&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: FIRSTS Shonda Rhimes [Watch (HLS stream): FIRSTS Shonda Rhimes](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/00ANn7Md.m3u8) (3:11)  _Published 2017-09-02. Shonda Rhimes is the FIRST woman to create three hit shows with more than 100 episodes each._ by [Ruth Kinane / Entertainment Weekly](https://time.com/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Ruth Kinane / Entertainment Weekly Sep 9, 2017 11:00 AM UTC  by [Ruth Kinane / Entertainment Weekly](https://time.com/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Ruth Kinane / Entertainment Weekly Sep 9, 2017 11:00 AM UTC Shonda Rhimes is known for her feisty female characters, but if there’s one thing she hates being asked about is where the inspiration for them originated. Rhimes, the first woman to create three hit shows with more than 100 episodes each, sat down to discuss her experience of being a woman in the television industry for [TIME _Firsts_](http://ew.com/tv/2017/08/17/watch-the-trailer-for-firsts-times-new-video-series-on-45-groundbreaking-women/) — a Time Inc. multimedia initiative that champions female accomplishment through candid interviews with groundbreaking women, including Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Aretha Franklin and, of course, Rhimes herself. “Every time someone says, ‘How do you write such smart, strong women?’ I find it appalling because it suggests that there are stupid, weak women and that’s who is generally out there,” says the creator of _Grey’s Anatomy_, _Scandal_, and _How to Get Away With Murder_. The uber-producer goes on to describe her experience in what she coins the “old white men room” where she and her producing partner, Betsy Beers, were warned no one would like the lead characters of _Grey’s_ because they weren’t “nice” and because “no one is going to like a woman who sleeps with a man right before her first day at work,” à la Meredith in the series’ pilot episode. “I hear a lot that what’s great about the characters is that they’re unapologetic,” says Rhimes. “I think that women are raised to believe that they’re supposed to want certain things and so you feel like you’re supposed to apologize when you don’t want those things.” For Rhimes, the key difference between men and women is a confident attitude. “Men will do anything,” regardless of their qualifications, she says, while women are more hesitant and thoughtful. “I don’t necessarily know if there’s anything wrong with being more cautious and careful, but I also know that we’re not going to feel any wiser or any more ready in 10 years than we did 10 years ago, so we might as well just leap.” Watch the clip above. _Rhimes’ interview is part of_ [_TIME Firsts_](http://time.com/firsts)_, a multimedia project featuring 46 groundbreaking women. Watch the rest of the videos at_ [_Time.com/Firsts_](http://time.com/Firsts)_. Buy the book at the_ [_TIME Shop_](https://shop.time.com/storefront/?utm%5Fmedium=email&utm%5Fsource=ew.com&utm%5Fcampaign=time-firsts&link=1032687&fpa%5Foc=TIME+Shop+Promotion)_._ ## Transcript People will look at you and they'll try and define you, whether you're a woman, whether you're young. They'll try and cabin off what you are able to do. But people can only do that if you let them. And so I always viewed my job as defining myself. If we are in a meeting we're there for a reason, not to just sit there and absorb. If you are only there, not speaking, you kind of create the impression that you're not prepared to be there. You need to participate and you need to know what you're talking about. You can ask a man to do a job that he's never been qualified to do and he will raise his hand and say absolutely, I will do that job. Women always say, I'm not sure if I'm ready yet More experienced. I don't wanna say that there's anything wrong with being more cautious and careful. I mean, why have we come to decide that being brash and overly aggressive should be the way we are? But, we should also know that we're not going to feel any wiser or any more ready in ten years than we did ten years ago. So we might as well just leap. There is a lot of perception of, my gosh, it's really hard because of the gender. What are you gonna do about that, just not do it? If you wanna do something, you just do it and then hope that people catch up to you. For girls that are going to be playing Little League, anything could happen. You can be up by ten runs and you can lose the game. So stay focused, make sure you play as a team. And hopefully you hit a home run, cuz no girl has ever hit a home run. And I'll be cheering for you. You'll never make everyone happy, so you just have to be exactly it is that you are, and at least know that you've been true to yourself. It's about attitude, aptitude, and opportunity. Who knew I would be here? But it all started with folks that thought I had a good attitude. That put me in places that challenged me, and then provided me opportunities because I met and exceeded the standard. You often don't realize, people want you to succeed, and they often have very good solutions both practical and thinking of opportunities for you. And the other thing is, I think it's not too bad To have periods of great intensity doing one thing or the other. Meryl Streep once said every successful woman's life has its ebbs and flows. Know your power. Know the power of your intellect, of your values and your commitments, the courage you have, and don't let anybody trivialize How you have spent your years. All of them have contributed to making a naked very special person. Just take joy. Don't let anyone discourage you from that thing that you love the most. It's more about making life. Than making a living. That's what matters. 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