In the last six years, three of the five Pulitzer Fiction Prize winners have been women, the latest of which, earlier in 2014 broke records by reaching the New York Times bestsellers list in the first week of her book’s release.
Donna Tartt, famous for being a prolific author, often taking many years to complete a single book (her Pulitzer Prizewinning book “The Goldfinch, having taken around 11 years) is the latest in a long list of successful and innovative women in the field of literature, and there is a whole host of women whose work deserves to be taken seriously in 2014 and beyond.
Emma Donoghue
This Irish-born author and playwright has recently found international fame with her Bestseller ‘Room’, which tells the story of a five year old buy who has been imprisoned in a room with his mother for his entire life. Her latest book ‘Frog Music’was released earlier in 2014, and has earned her a place on Time’s list of female authors to watch in 2014.
Zadie Smith
In 2000, Smith was lauded as one of the brightest young novelists of the 21st century, and though it was early days, her first book called ‘White Teeth’earned a spot on Time’s 100 Best English Language Novels of the last 100 years, and has seen her compared to Charles Dickens and John Irving.
Penelope Fitzgerald
Winner of the Booker Prize for her final novel titled ‘Blue Flower’, and widely regarded as one of the best English writers of the last century, Fitzgerald has incredible power and the imagery and context crammed into her often short novels will make any reader feel like they've gotten more than their money’s worth.
Isabel Wilkerson
Another Pulitzer Prize winner for her critically acclaimed non-fiction work ‘The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration’tells the real life story of the individuals who lived through the migration.
Lionel Shriver
In 2005, Shriver’s novel ‘We Need to Talk About Kevin’won the famed Orange Prize for Fiction, and was later adapted into a feature film starring the likes of Tilda Swinton and John C. Reilly. She has since released four novels and remains active as an award winning journalist.
Written by Wesley Geyer
Creative Writer
