Today, on this 90th anniversary of Women’s Right To Vote (yes, folks, it’s less than 100 years old!), let’s take a moment to look at how far we still have to go.
Jodi Picoult
The past week sparked controversy as Jonathan Franzen’s latest book approaches release and the critics work themselves into a frenzy over it. Why do the “white male literary darlings,” as New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult puts it, get so much praise while writers of commercial fiction are largely ignored? Picoult and Jennifer Weiner, also a #1 New York Times bestselling author of women’s fiction have been tweeting (check out their twitters here and here) and commenting to the press that critics’ acknowledgment is completely uneven. Today, they were interviewed by Jason Pinter on The Huffington Post. Weiner notes:
If you write romance, forget about it. You’ll be lucky if they spell your name right on the bestseller list.
Jennifer Weiner
It’s a very good read. Both women’s comments are intelligent and witty and not at all whiny, as it is so easy to be when getting into this subject.
For related reading, please check out my blog post from last summer, when Eloisa James and Julia Quinn were extensively featured in USA Today. Such focus, though richly deserved, is still very rarely given.
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