The Rise of Female Authors

The last two Indian writers to have bagged the prestigious Booker prize are both women: Arundhati Roy and Kiran Desai. When it comes to the equally prestigious Pulitzer Prize for literature, the only Indian to have won it is again a woman: Jhumpa Lahiri. The field of literature has ceased to be the sole prerogative of male writers, as it used to be once upon a time. New books by female writers are appearing on Indian bookshelves everyday, and some of these books are absolutely brilliant. However, the rise of female writers is not a phenomenon confined just to India.

The author credited with writing the largest number of international bestsellers happens to be a female, the vastly entertaining Danielle Steel, who has authored a record 26 bestsellers. But the most successful and the richest author ever is, the lady who created Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling. Mary Higgins Clark continues to remain an all time favorite. Then there is Agatha Christie, one of the most popular authors of all times. According to one study, the share of female writers in the international bestsellers pie was 45% in the decade (1995-2004) and in the year 2006 their share surpassed 50%.

If the present trends continue, then it is likely that bestsellers by women will overtake those by men, before going on to make male bestsellers extinct. But there had once been a time when writing was considered to be a masculine business. In those days many female writers would take up male names in order to find a larger audience for their books. There is Mary Ann Evans who wrote her vastly popular books under a masculine penname of George Eliot. Even Pearl S Buck has written a few books under masculine pennames. But these days the trend has reversed. Now it is the male writers who are tempted to acquire feminine pennames in order to achieve popularity.

However, we should also consider the fact that to any reader, the gender of the writer might not be as important as the quality of his book. If the book is well written and it is on a subject of popular interest, then the readers will like it, irrespective of whether the author is a male or female. The rise of female writers around the world must be seen in context of better opportunities for educational and professional advancement that are available to women today.