“Chick lit is dead”
“Should we mourn the end of chick-lit?”
The headlines keep coming along with the stereotypes.
Exactly what is chick lit?
No, you don’t have to spell it out to me but do we need this term?
Many authors have been labelled as “chick lit” just because they are women.
Does it matter?
I suppose it depends how you view yourself.
I for one do not like stereotypes. I write women’s fiction, i.e. stories that will mainly appeal to women. Still, it doesn’t mean men don’t like reading my stories.
Many women authors have been blighted by “pink covers” or ones adorned by stilettos and such. This reflects a lack of imagination from publishing houses. Let’s not forget many authors have no say when it comes to choosing the artwork which is meant to sell their books.
Here’s an article I read in the Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/oct/02/death-of-chick-lit-debate
And here is the comment I left:
As I keep saying women’s fiction does not equal chick lit.
Let people read what they want without attaching patronising labels.
I’m glad to report I write women’s fiction and no pink cover is associated to my name.
Unfortunately authors do not always have a say when it comes to their book covers.
We can try and make our voices heard though.
Let’s focus on writing good stories, ones readers want to read and let’s get rid of stereotypes.
Related articles
- Monday Musings: Stop Calling It “Chick Lit” (katjevanloon.com)
- Chick-lit may be staggering on its heels, but it will survive (telegraph.co.uk)
- In defence of chick lit (doctordolittle.wordpress.com)
- Have we fallen out of love with chick lit? (independent.co.uk)
- Guess which celeb is entering the world of chick-lit? (heatworld.com)
- No frills please: don’t chick-lit my books just because I’m a woman | Polly Courtney (guardian.co.uk)
- Novelist ditches publisher at book launch (guardian.co.uk)
- The sneering ‘chick lit’ label that dogs female authors (guardian.co.uk)
I like and share your views.
Thank you!
I love your views too. Why should we all be thrown in the same melting pot?
I love the fact you never shy away from what you believe in.
Thanks, it sometimes gets me into trouble, lol.
Absolutely, what a great comment!
Thank you
My debut novel is one that appeals mostly to women, in that sense I will accept the category Women’s Fiction, but in no way is it Chick Lit. The problem is that far too many people hear or read Women’s Fiction and think Chick Lit. My objection is that well meaning articles like the one you cited make that same mistake.
At least for now, labels for marketing purposes are unavoidable, but what I want is clarification and standardization of those labels. Chick Lit and Women’s Fiction should NOT be interchangeable terms!
So glad to read your comment on Google. Like you said, labels whether you like them or not are unavoidable. This doesn’t mean we have to accept the wrong one.
I’m not dismissive of chick lit, it’s everybody to their own taste. I certainly don’t want to read the same thing all the time and like to cross genres.
As far as I’m concerned neither chick lit nor women’s fiction are appropriate terms. We don’t have a genre label “men’s fiction” either do we? Both labels are exclusive. There are plenty of men who are interested in love stories or family issues and there are lots of women who enjoy thrillers. Why can’t we make genre labels gender neutral? General Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Thrillers, Love Stories, Crime Fiction, etc.?
Good point, I completely agree.
I don’t like labels even if they are sometimes necessary.
Let people read what they want, we don’t need gender stereotypes.
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