Books

10 Essential Books About Writing

An illustration shows a person with brown skin and brown hair with a pencil in their mouth, bookshelves with blue, purple, yellow, and pink book covers behind them, and a laptop in front of them.
by Nylah Burton
April 6, 2022 at 12:07pm
Must-read titles for writers include works by Elena Ferrante, Akwaeke Emezi, Meg Wolitzer, Yoko Ogawa, and more.
Meredith Talusan, an Albino Filipino woman, has blond hair and wears a striped orange t-shirt as she smiles gently.

Without Condition: In “Fairest,” Meredith Talusan Dreams of Freedom from Others’ Perception

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
May 27, 2020 at 4:13pm
“My gender and race reflected on each other like a dizzying hall of distorted mirrors.” Read more »
Megan Campisi, a white author with long, gray hair, smiles for the camera

Eating the Poison: “Sin Eater” Turns Shame into a Superpower

by Evette Dionne
May 27, 2020 at 10:38am
The most important thing is what you think of yourself, even if you’re in a terrible situation; that kind of self-worth is where everything else begins. Read more »
Rachel Wilkerson Miller wears a lilac peacoat and sits on a park bench smiling.

There Is an Art to Showing up—and Rachel Wilkerson Miller Has Mastered It

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
May 26, 2020 at 11:55am
“You have to take care of yourself first. And that doesn’t make you selfish.” Read more »
A black and white photo of Lindsay Sproul, a white woman with short blond hair. She looks off into the distance and wears a linen tank top with a small necklace.

Girl Likes Girl: Lindsay Sproul Queers the Mean Girl in YA

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
May 21, 2020 at 9:02am
Lindsay Sproul spoke to Bitch about crafting a shitty lesbian teen character. Read more »
Alison McGhee, a white writer with short, blond hair, smiles for the camera

Remember and Resolve: Choice Is Central to “The Opposite of Fate”

by Reina Sultan
May 13, 2020 at 12:29pm
Every choice we make is influenced by everything that has come to bear in our own lives and on our own belief systems. Read more »
Porochista Khakpour, an Iranian American writer, poses in a patterned shirt in front of a patterned background

Her Own Terms: “Brown Album” is Porochista Khakpour’s Ode to the Others of Society

by Reina Sultan
May 12, 2020 at 12:02pm
“Brown Album” clarifies who Porochista Khakpour considers her audience to be: those who have been othered in the United States of America. Read more »
a white woman sits outside on a log reading a book

BitchReads: 13 Books Feminists Should Read in May

by Evette Dionne
May 11, 2020 at 1:18pm
It’s difficult to focus on anything, including pop culture, given that we’re in the midst of a life-altering pandemic—and that’s perfectly okay. Read more »
Edward, a very white vampire, leans down to Bella as he saves her from being hit by a car.

More Than Nostalgia: “Twilight” Lovers Are Cautiously Optimistic about “Midnight Sun”

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
May 7, 2020 at 2:50pm
Twilight is not a perfect series. Read more »
a pink and white cartoon illustration from There’s No Manual of a woman holding up a baby

Two Funny Moms Get Real about the Goriness of Having a Baby

by Dara Mathis
May 5, 2020 at 9:00am
“There’s No Manual” informs without scaremongering and advises without judging Read more »
Amy Roost, a white woman with short, curly hair, poses in a white shirt

Incinerating Injustice: Women Are Rightfully Furious Under Trump

by Evette Dionne
April 30, 2020 at 10:42am
All roads lead back to empathy. Read more »

Pages

Best of Bitch

Mock & Awe: Janet Mock on Truth-Telling, Community Building, and Writing the Story She Had Been Waiting for Her Whole Life

Janet Mock, a transgender Hawaiian woman with curly, brown hair, smiles
by Tina Vasquez
Spring 2014 • Maps & Legends
“Redefining Realness” is written with astounding honesty and heart. Read more »

Eat, Pray, Spend: Priv-Lit and the New, Enlightened American Dream

Elizabeth Gilbert, a white woman wearing a navy blue jumpsuit, leans forward and holds hand with and Oprah Winfrey, a Black woman wearing a gray cardigan and jeans
by Joshunda Sanders
Summer 2010 • Action
Even as reports on joblessness, economic recovery, and home foreclosures suggest that no one is immune to risk during this recession, the popularity of women’s wellness media has persisted and, indeed, grown stronger.  Read more »

Hot Under the Bonnet: The Cooptation of Amish Culture in Mass-Market Fiction

a blue and white illustration of a woman in Amish attire standing next to a fan and a chicken
by Audrey deCoursey
Spring 2014 • Maps & Legends
Dubbed “Amish romance novels,” “Amish fiction,” or the more waggish “bonnet rippers,” these novels just one entry point into the varying images of Amish communities in U.S. popular culture. Read more »

Black Girls Hunger for Heroes, Too: A Black Feminist Conversation on Fantasy Fiction for Teens

by Zetta Elliott
December 17, 2013 at 3:19pm
What happens when two great black women fiction writers get together to talk about race in young adult literature? That's exactly what happens... Read more »