tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post4608580217957250528..comments2024-03-23T12:38:46.260+00:00Comments on The History Girls: Women, History and Publishing by Imogen RobertsonMary Hoffmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06241989732624913706noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-21262602235381592342016-01-25T09:09:07.374+00:002016-01-25T09:09:07.374+00:00My friend Dr Daisy Dunn launched her first two boo...My friend Dr Daisy Dunn launched her first two books together last week, a translation of the poems of the Roman Catallus, and a biography of the poet. Her female editor introduced her saying she had caught attention due to 'her writing style, her wit and her beauty', while the Evening Standard added a piece describing her as 'the comely classicist'. When will this end?Clare Mulleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11592100764046914574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-4046800664625017682016-01-22T08:08:59.777+00:002016-01-22T08:08:59.777+00:00Just after Malefice came out, I was asked to do a ...Just after Malefice came out, I was asked to do a slot in some Quaker event and the person who was writing the blurb for it described me as 'a writer of romantic fiction.' I have great respect for many writers in that genre, but the fact remains that when I pointed out that the description was inaccurate, the person who had written the programme more or less admitted that she (yes!) assumed I was because I was female. Admittedly this was in the 90s, but it wasn't what I'd expect from a Quaker. It taught me to check such things carefully.Leslie Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15105465949970430998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-73335920832958024502016-01-22T06:55:27.146+00:002016-01-22T06:55:27.146+00:00Thank you for this post. It was very timely and th...Thank you for this post. It was very timely and there's a bunch of stuff happening in the science fiction world that echoes it. We're dealing with broad cultural patterns and it's a real pain.<br /><br />Carol - it doesn't help when one is a tad too academic and writing novels, either. I often get a "But your fiction is lovely - I didn't think you could do that and have PhDs." People find reasons to argue and to be surprised and to try to fit the complex peg into the simple round hole when women don't fit their stereotypes (it happens to men, too, but it's happened to the vast majority of female authors I know and only the small minority of male). One thing I love about the History Girls is that there is such intelligence and such thought and such amazing writing, and yet we all come from such different backgrounds. I think the bottom line is that we need to keep reminding readers to judge the writing, not the stereotype. And that we celebrate all the different aspects of ourselves. <br /><br />If we celebrate enough, maybe in a generation's time, historians will have something else to worry about for women's voices will be properly heard.Gillian Polackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07113321985223288302noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-81378070068311891752016-01-21T17:42:34.452+00:002016-01-21T17:42:34.452+00:00You are indeed! I do feel for them - it's very...You are indeed! I do feel for them - it's very hard to get attention for any book with fewer and fewer reviews appearing in newspapers and the publishers under pressure to cut costs to the bone in the age of the Amazon discount. There must be a way to do something though with a bit of imagination and co-ordination between publishers. The Books are My Bag campaign seems to have done very well, and World Book Night - though it's been controversial as well with its all white list. Perhaps there's something to be built on those examples? Male celebs recommending books by women and vice versa... turn it into a twitter campaign... Thanks for visiting us.Imogenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08925800621947616280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-59612843621346855252016-01-21T17:28:09.842+00:002016-01-21T17:28:09.842+00:00I am so glad I visited The History Girls today. Ex...I am so glad I visited The History Girls today. Excellent writing on a gnarly topic. Write on History Girls! It seems to me the writing is fine and what needs attention, though I have no idea what form that would take, is for PR and marketing people to combine the goal of high sales figures with the goal of improving the image of female authors. After all, I think most of those PR and marketing people are women, am I right?Judy Kruegerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11632346091869688862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-52926246271334937792016-01-21T17:16:12.248+00:002016-01-21T17:16:12.248+00:00Yes, I can imagine that having been in such a well...Yes, I can imagine that having been in such a well-loved series must be a bit of a double edged sword at best! I think you're right - most important thing is to keep talking about it and challenging the assumptions about books, writers, actresses and all. Imogenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08925800621947616280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-48075030487053706652016-01-21T15:19:02.101+00:002016-01-21T15:19:02.101+00:00Well said, Imogen. I agree with Leslie and with yo...Well said, Imogen. I agree with Leslie and with your post. We need to be aware and keep a public voice about this matter. I suffer in two senses, I sometimes feel.I am female and I am an actress who has turned to writing books and no matter how hard I try I always seem to get pushed back towards commercial fiction - and I have nothing against commercial fiction. I am about to publish a novel that I am very proud of - but I also feel that I am taken less seriously because I am 'an actress'. Carol Drinkwaterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05837854482139736944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-59108074678760738522016-01-21T13:47:53.842+00:002016-01-21T13:47:53.842+00:00That's really fascinating, Leslie, thank you.That's really fascinating, Leslie, thank you.Imogenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08925800621947616280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-48131607372885532972016-01-21T11:43:13.429+00:002016-01-21T11:43:13.429+00:00When Hilary Mantel's excellent and intensively...When Hilary Mantel's excellent and intensively-researched A Place of Greater Safety came out, some critics panned it because a woman had dared to write a book with such a big focus and about the men of the French Revolution (about some women, too, but that didn't assuage the wrath). One critic said it was the little 'domestic' details that she was best at; the executioner Sanson talking about the wear and tear on blades for the guillotine, and the cost of straw. That was darkly hilarious. However, the book survived these cavils, and has always done very well indeed, largely because the public loved it. Let's face it, the fiction-reading public is more female than male, yet that doesn't mitigate the problem woman novelists have in being taken seriously. I'm really glad you wrote this blog, Imogen; these are issues that woman writers need to make a noise about.Leslie Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15105465949970430998noreply@blogger.com