Rewriting Women into the History of Literature

For centuries, it seemed that books were written exclusively by men. Even when women did write, many felt compelled to use male pen names to ensure they were taken seriously. As a result, the history of literature is very male-dominated. We're here to help put things right.

Violet Paget was born in France in 1856. She was particularly interested in supernatural themes and wrote a number of short stories about hauntings, possessions and ghosts. A friend of author Henry James, she was, like Oscar Wilde, a follower of the Aesthetic movement.

Violet Paget wrote under the male pen name Vernon Lee. She also wore men’s clothing regularly in public. At the time, her work was considered by many to be in a category of its own. Her most famous stories were published in a collection called Hauntings in 1890.

Better known as science fiction writer James Tiptree, Jr. Alice Bradley Sheldon already enjoyed a career as a graphic designer before becoming an author. Born in 1915, she was introduced to science fiction in 1924 when she read a copy of the American pulp magazine Weird Tales.

Bradley Sheldon chose a male name because she believed it would help her blend in. She said ‘I had the feeling that a man would slip by less observed. I’ve had too many experiences in my life of being the first woman in some damned occupation.’

Born in 1912, June Tarpé Mills was a talented artist who studied at the prestigious Pratt Institute in New York before working as an illustrator. She discovered the world of comic books in the 1930s, and by the end of the decade had started creating characters of her own.

Some of her most famous characters include Daredevil Barry Finn and The Purple Zombie. In 1941, she created Miss Fury, the first female comic book superhero invented by a female writer.  Today, she's remembered as a comic book pioneer and one of the best cartoonists of her time.

Much better known as George Sand, her male pen name, Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin was born in Paris in 1804. One of the most popular writers in Europe in her lifetime, her tales of love and social class captivated 19th-century readers and earned critical acclaim.

Like many female authors at the time, Dupin chose to write under a man’s name to boost her chances of getting published and being taken seriously. Her efforts were a success, and her male persona took over. In fact, few would recognize her by her original, female name today.

Learn more about female authors and other women pioneers in culture here.