The Obscurity of the Label: Women’s Fiction, Episode 25

In 2022, Publisher’s Marketplace announced its decision to retire the term “Women’s Fiction” as a genre because they “aim not to presume or define a book’s audience, or categorize books, by gender.” In this episode, we’ll take a look at the effects of their decision, its implications and the status of “Women’s Fiction” as a genre today.

SHOW NOTES:

Women’s Fiction Writers Association definition of Women’s Fiction: “layered stories in which the plot is driven by the main character’s emotional journey.”

How we define Women’s Fiction as writers

Criticism of “Women’s Fiction”:

“Arbitrary” “Sexist” “Limited” “Perpetuates stereotypes” “Too Broad”

Gender stereotyping

Marginalizing women

The problem with retiring “Women’s Fiction”

Genre Characteristics:

Audience

Issues

Authors