Dara Marks, Ph.D., is the author of Inside Story: The Power of the Transformational Arc and an alumnus of Pacifica’s Mythological Studies program. Dara will be presenting a workshop, “Beyond the Hero’s Journey: Her Side of the Story,” at PEIS Goddess-makers in an Age of Autocrats: The Power of the Creative Feminine to Re-Shape the World. This is an Arts-based Research Conference, August 29-31, 2025. I’m delighted to speak with Dara about her work and the upcoming conference.
Angela Wood: How will “Beyond the Hero’s Journey: Her Side of the Story” explore “the mythic and psychological framework of the Feminine realm—not as a gendered concept, but as an archetypal force of transformation, renewal, and interconnectedness”?
Dara Marks: While it’s vitally important to see women more fully represented across all media, the Feminine Heroic goes beyond gender. It speaks to a missing dimension in our storytelling: the archetypal feminine. This represents the journey inward – a path of transformation through vulnerability, surrender, and descent.
Where the Hero’s Journey reflects the essential drive to establish the Self in the world – to discover, defend, and define one’s place – the Feminine Heroic charts a different kind of achievement: the capacity for communion, connection, and deep relatedness with the Other. Her strength is not measured by conquest or physical prowess, but by her willingness to enter the dark, hidden places within – the places where loss, longing, and buried truth reside and to return with something essential that gives life meaning.
When this inner pattern, once central to ancient myths and rites of renewal, is missing or underdeveloped in our stories, we may still celebrate external victories – but they can leave us with a hollow sense of self. By restoring—re-storying—the Feminine Heroic, we honor a fuller human experience. We remember that we live not only in an outer world that demands action, but in an inner one that longs for meaning, empathy and connection.
Angela: How do you perceive the “The Feminine Heroic” in relation to the Hero’s Journey and what do you mean when you suggest that it has the power to “re-story our world”?
Dara: The world is in need of connecting to a greater, more interconnected and compassionate story. But to fully open up that narrative, we must move beyond tales of conquest and reclaim the inner pathways of transformation that myth has long held but modern storytelling often overlooks. When narratives focus predominantly on the masculine heroic ideal – conquest, status, strength – they tend to leave the rest of us out. Even if we admire the hero’s courage or wit, there’s often little inner change to which we can truly relate. These stories imply that heroes are born, not made – that bravery is innate, strength is fixed, and love is something to win.
But real life doesn’t work that way. We don’t grow just by vanquishing outer foes, but by facing what lies within: fear, grief, longing, the need to be seen and to connect.
This is the realm of the Feminine Heroic. Her stories are not a rejection of the Hero’s Journey, but too often they are it’s missing partner. While the classic hero’s quest turns outward toward conquest, the feminine path turns inward toward vulnerability, self-revelation, and integration of the soul.
We see this encoded in a myth like Eros and Psyche, where Psyche’s trials are not about domination, but about humility, devotion, and awakening inner sight – qualities that restore both love and soul. In The Odyssey, Odysseus’s return is not just physical, but spiritual; he must remember who he is, not just as a warrior, but as a man capable of tenderness and reunion.
These are not passive tales. They show us that true heroism isn’t only what we achieve, but what we awaken within. Yet our modern tales often strip these deeper currents away. We remember the battles but forget the becoming.
When we re-center these archetypal truths in our stories – across all genres and forms – we rebalance the way we see ourselves and each other. This is what will forge stronger bonds of connection, reminding us all that the real journey isn’t what lies out there, but it’s what we discover within.
Angela: What kind of format does your workshop have and what are you most looking forward to in interacting with people who attend?
Dara: I’m especially honored to share my exploration of the Feminine Heroic with the Pacifica community at this extraordinary event. The workshop will explore mythic and psychological frameworks drawn from feminine epic traditions, focusing on how these archetypal patterns live within our creative processes and life journeys.
The format blends presentation, reflection, and guided discussion. We’ll look closely at ancient myths and feminine descent narratives – stories that invite us inward to confront shadow and return with something essential. The Feminine Heroic expands the storytelling framework by guiding writers, artists, and change-makers into the inner landscapes where meaning, emotion, and mythic resonance take root.
What I most look forward to is the shared discovery that happens when people recognize themselves in the story and in one another. This work centers on the universality of human experience, and when we share that experience, it deepens empathy and expands our capacity to truly connect.
Angela: Following your workshop you’re on a panel with Corinne Bordeau. It’s called, The Rise of the Feminine in Media – Re-Story the World.” Can you please describe what it will be like?
Dara: I’m looking forward to joining the panel discussion that will follow my workshop. Hosted by Corinne Bordeau, President and founder of the boutique entertainment firm 360 Degree Communications, the goal of this panel is to open up a dynamic conversation about how the Feminine can inspire our narratives, creating stories that not only transform the media we consume but influence the culture we collectively create.
This panel brings together a fabulous group of women who are actively working to reshape the cultural landscape through storytelling. We’ll discuss where the Feminine remains overlooked in the media, and what we can do – practically and imaginatively – to encourage and strengthen her presence. With Corinne’s deep background in films and cultural change, the conversation will be both visionary and grounded, weaving together big ideas with concrete steps to reshape the stories we must tell in order to build a better world.
Angela: You are not only the author of Inside Story: The Power of the Transformational Arc, but you are also a top script consultant in Hollywood. How does the Feminine Heroic guide or impact your work in the film industry?
Dara: When I first started out in Hollywood as a story consultant, most development work centered on plot – how to escalate conflict, build suspense, and land the payoff. But what really intrigued me wasn’t just the external conflict of the plot, but how that conflict created the necessity for internal growth in the development of character. When it’s present, this deeper shift of consciousness, aimed at psychological growth, is what gives a story its real power.
Over time, I began mapping this internal shift and saw that it mirrored the very human process of inner growth – what Jung called individuation. That observation led me to Pacifica and became the foundation of my book, Inside Story: The Power of the Transformational Arc.
I entered the Mythological Studies program not to study myth as ancient tales, but as a living blueprint of the soul. What I discovered there – particularly in stories of descent and renewal like Inanna and Demeter and Persephone – was another dimension of heroism. One that did not center on conquest, but on integration, surrender, and deep relatedness.
This became the foundation of my current work on the Feminine Heroic. Through years of teaching seminars and leading retreats around the world, I’ve seen how engaging these deeper patterns not only strengthens our narratives, but helps writers come into greater alignment with their own story and with themselves. That’s the power that connects story to all of life.
Angela: Can you share what led you to the Mythological Studies program at Pacifica, what the experience gave you, and what guidance you might offer to someone just beginning their own journey into this field?
Dara: I came to Pacifica for fairly pragmatic reasons. My work as a writer, teacher and story consultant was gaining recognition and I wanted to deepen my understanding of depth psychology and archetypal theory. I also thought that having a PhD. would add some professional credibility.
But once I was in the program, I realized I was gaining a lot more than a doctorate degree. The experience reshaped my understanding of story, psyche, and what it means to live a truly examined life. Myth, through the lens of depth psychology, became something alive – a journey of the soul’s unfolding.
Looking back, I believe most of us are called to this kind of work without fully knowing why. It’s not just a career move, it’s something deeper. And I encourage anyone who hears this call to answer it.
Angela: Please tell us about your forthcoming book and any other projects that are in the works.
Dara: I’m excited to share the launch of my new online course based on my book, Inside Story. It’s the result of many years spent working alongside writers, helping them to not only shape their stories, but to learn to listen more deeply to what their stories are trying to communicate. Our online course offers a way to track the inner arc of a character’s evolution in tandem with the outer events of the plot, so that story becomes not just a series of actions, but a living reflection of the human journey.
Also in the works is my (very) long-gestating book on The Feminine Heroic, which is finally nearing completion. The book explores how true transformation requires not just forward momentum, but descent – an encounter with shadow, uncertainty, and the unconscious. We’re collectively living through a moment now where much is being exposed, undone, and reexamined. And while this can feel destabilizing, I believe it’s also clearing a path for something essential to emerge.
Using mythic storytelling, The Feminine Heroic offers an archetypal framework for transformation – one that doesn’t bypass difficulty but reveals how upheaval and uncertainty are part of the passage. These are the thresholds we must cross to reach higher ground. My book offers encouragement for those who can glimpse the horizon of what’s rising – to respond to the call, stay steady, stay conscious, and move toward it with clarity and commitment.
Angela: Thank you so much for your time in speaking with me.
For more information and to register for Goddess-makers in an Age of Autocrats: The Power of the Creative Feminine to Re-Shape the World, visit us here.
Dara Marks, Ph.D., is an internationally renowned speaker, story consultant, and author of the bestselling book and online course Inside Story: The Power of the Transformational Arc. Named one of the top script consultants in the industry by Creative Screenwriting Magazine, her work has guided major Hollywood studios as well as independent writers, producers, and directors. A graduate of Pacifica’s Mythological Studies program, Dara has spent the last few decades leading global workshops and retreats on the Feminine Heroic, the subject of her forthcoming book. Her pioneering work explores how mythic patterns – especially the Feminine Heroic – shape human consciousness and creative expression, helping reimagine narrative as a force for cultural renewal.
Angela Wood is a writer for Pacifica Graduate Institute, as well as the editor of the Santa Barbara Literary Journal. Her work has been published in Food & Home, Peregrine, Hurricanes & Swan Songs, Delirium Corridor, Still Arts Quarterly, Danse Macabre, and is forthcoming in The Tertiary Lodger and Running Wild Anthology of Stories, Vol. 5.
