Alter-cover by the fabulous Gillian Berry
I’m shaking as I write this, because I’m both sad and angry. I guess in some parts of the world they call this “frustrated.” Or “sangry.”
I’m sad that as a culture, we’re still divided this way: that some books are girly books, and some books are guy books.
I’m also angry that people still try to pretend like it’s not a problem. That’s it’s not a problem we have to have separate “women-only” book awards, because female authors get so little recognition in mainstream awards (3:10 female to male winners for the Booker). That it’s no biggie when a female author gets slut-shamed while her books get ignored. Or that books by female authors tend to get fluffy, jazzy covers; that female authors have to use pen names to supposedly be marketable to boy audiences (J.K. Rowling?).
Somehow, all this is not a “gendered” problem.
@kiersi Most authors don’t get the success they want. Or get reviewed in the Times. Plenty hate their covers.These problems aren’t gendered.
— Brendan Halpin (@bhalpin) May 7, 2013
Author Maureen Johnson did a pretty neat piece recently of books written by male authors, with the covers re-imagined as if the author was of the opposite sex or gender queer (also see the top image on this post). And boy, is it fascinating to look at. (more…)