Women’s voices are integral to the fabric of society. But much like other art forms, the literary world has historically been dominated by male authors, perspectives, and characters. It is a brave feat when female writers pick up the pen to transform this current landscape.
A woman’s journey to becoming an author does not only allow her to break away from the mold but to carve a space where her unique voice and ideas can be heard. More importantly, fellow women who choose to pursue a writing career are influenced to continue telling their stories because they know they have a place on the bookshelves and in the larger world. But it’s not enough that women take the lead in writing stories. We have a collective duty to uplift and support women writers every step of the way. Whether they choose to shed light on women’s issues, create compelling content, or weave a tapestry of their lives and experiences, women have shaped and continue to shape the world as we know it through their writing. Here are four female writers from different backgrounds we can celebrate and take inspiration from.
Born in 1931 in the American Midwest, Toni Morrison is a Nobel laureate in literature whose works helped push the Black American experience to the forefront. She grew up in a culture where myth, storytelling, and folklore were deeply embedded; this in turn animates her prose with a nonlinear, almost dreamlike character. Her critically acclaimed Beloved (1987), for example, explores how the specter of a murdered child can carry the weight of a long and painful history of slavery. Morrison has also penned speeches and essays that chronicle the richness and struggles of Black identity, culture, and community amid an unjust society.
Ursula K. Le Guin
Starting in the early 60s, Ursula K. Le Guin served as a driving force in the genres of science fiction and fantasy. By skillfully straddling the lines between the real and the imaginary in her work, Le Guin tapped into the potential of imaginative literature to tell truths, confront realities, and inspire change. In The Left Hand of Darkness (1969), the journey of lone emissary Genly Ai in a world with no gender prompts us to challenge our own society’s norms and conventions. This radical questioning of how life is lived versus how it ought to be lived is present in her entire body of work, influencing us to stretch the boundaries of our own imagination and freedom.
As a product of both Mexican and American cultures, Sandra Cisneros’ writing resonates among Americans who struggle to find their identity and belonging in this country. Her groundbreaking novel The House on Mango Street (1984) portrays cultural hybridity with its interspersed narratives of Hispanic women defining themselves beyond the roles dictated by family, community, tradition, and media. Female sexuality is also a central theme among Cisneros’ poetry and other works of fiction, resisting the rigid rules of patriarchy by writing about female sexual desires and experiences in a positive yet unapologetic manner.
Amy Tan has blazed the trail for deeply complex and profound works that tackle the Asian American and immigrant experience. She is best known for The Joy Luck Club, a 1989 novel that examines how four Chinese immigrant families in San Francisco are intertwined by grief and loss, cultural expectations, and generational trauma. The 2021 documentary Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir reveals how Tan’s personal challenges are channeled into writing, paving the way for other writers of color to embrace and represent their marginalized identities in their own works.
River Jayla studied creative writing and has spent several years volunteering at a public library. These experiences helped shape her as an advocate for expanding the accessibility of literature and education in general.