The existence of “women’s literature” implies the existence of “men’s literature”. For years, literary works written by men have been set as the default for educating our society, and even reading for pleasure outside the classroom. In the publishing industry, female authors are often treated as secondary characters whereas male authors are the primary.
When female authors are seen and only seen through this lens, it perpetuates the notion that literature written by women has no literary value. For so long, women’s stories have been silenced and cast aside due to gender inequality in the literary world.
To defy this absurd idea, literary organizations like the Women’s Prize For Fiction set the record straight by recognizing brilliant literary fiction written by women. The goal of this organization is to amplify and celebrate women’s voices in the publishing industry.
How The Prize Began
The organization was founded by bestselling novelist and playwright Kate Mosse in January 1992. The idea started when literary colleagues all gathered in an apartment in London to share and discuss their outrage towards The Booker Prize shortlist in 1991. The issue was that none of the authors included in the shortlist were women, which has happened in the past.
A group of writers started this organization with the goal of amplifying novels written by all kinds of women. To ensure this, the organization helps make their books accessible to read by providing free sources on their site and through bookstores and public libraries. They also host the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast where they spotlight women in the literary world and discuss their experiences as writers and publishers.
The Judges
This year, the chair for the Women’s Prize is Booker Prize winner Bernadine Evaristo. Alongside Evaristo are a panel of five female judges: Nesrine Malik, Elizabeth Day, Vick Hope, and Sarah-Jane Mee. All of the judges come from diverse backgrounds and are the best in their fields. The judges choose a winner based on the following criteria: “accessibility, originality, and excellence in writing by women”.
The 2021 Shortlist
Their job is to select fiction books for the longlist and from the longlist, the judges narrow their selection down to a shortlist. The 2021 Shortlist includes the following:
- The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennet
- Piranese by Susanna Clarke
- Unsettled Ground by Clare Fuller
- Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
- How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House by Cherie Jones
- No One is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
And The Bessie Goes To…
On September 8, 2021, the judges announced this year’s winner of the 2021 Women’s Prize: Piranese by Susanna Clarke. The announcement occurred at the awards ceremony in Bedford Square Gardens, London. At the ceremony, Clarke was awarded a £30,000 prize and the ‘Bessie’.
Piranese tells the fantastical story of Piranese who lives in an infinite building called the House and embarks on a journey to discover the truth about the world beyond the labyrinth. The novel, as Evaristo describes, is “a truly original, unexpected flight of fancy which melds genres and challenges preconceptions about what books should be”.
Women’s Voices Matter
Women’s fiction is important and should be read in order to understand women’s experiences. It provides visibility and an accurate representation of women in fiction and in real life. Most importantly, it highlights our humanity and individuality.
The purpose of fiction is to step into a character’s shoe and empathize with what they’re going through. And when fiction is written by a woman, it gives voice to what women encounter in their lives and why their stories matter.
Let us know what female authors you love reading by tagging us @HerCampusSJSU!