If you’ve followed my reviews for any length of time, you may have noticed (consciously or subconsciously) that I mostly review books by female authors.
This isn’t altogether surprising.
I mostly read Christian fiction, and Christian fiction authors tend to be women—perhaps because the genre is dominated by romance authors, and romance authors tend to be female. Look at photographs from a romance writer’s conference, or a Christian writer’s conference. Both are dominated by women.
Yet many of the original trendsetters and stalwarts of the Christian fiction genre were men: James Scott Bell, Jack Cavanaugh, Frank Peretti, Gilbert Morris, and Michael Phillips.
There are some male authors I consistently read and enjoy. These include James L Rubart (speculative fiction), Charles Martin (women’s fiction), and Richard Mabry (medical thrillers). I’ve read and enjoyed science fiction from Randy Ingermanson and Adam David Collings.
But I’ve recently picked up books by some new-to-me male authors, and been less than impressed. They were in a genre I usually enjoy, but I couldn’t get into these books. I didn’t make an emotional connection with any of the characters, and I ended up leaving them unread. Twice. Yes, I tried each book twice, but never made it more than a third of the way in before I gave up and went to do something more fun, like clean the bathroom.
That’s not to say I enjoy all books by female authors.
I’ve had a handful of did-not-finish titles from new-to-me female authors in the last few months as well. I’ve also read a few books I won’t be reviewing, simply because I didn’t connect emotionally with the characters. But I have noticed this is less likely to happen in a book by a female author—it’s as though women are more likely to focus on character and emotion.
So I guess I prefer books by female authors.
What about you? Do you prefer books by male authors? Do you prefer female authors?
Former free spirit Zoe Collins swore she’d never again set foot in Copper Creek or speak to the man who broke her heart. But return she must when her beloved Granny dies, leaving the family legacy to Zoe—a peach orchard nestled at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Courtney Walsh is a novelist, artist, theater director, and playwright. Change of Heart is her fifth novel and is set in the same town as Paper Hearts. Her debut novel, A Sweethaven Summer, hit the New York Times and USA Today e-book bestseller lists and was a Carol Award finalist in the debut author category. She has written two additional books in the Sweethaven series, as well as two craft books and several full-length musicals. Courtney lives in Illinois where she and her husband own a performing and visual arts studio. They have three children.
Bethany Turner has been writing since the second grade, when she won her first writing award for her essay explaining why, if she could have lunch with any person throughout history, she would choose John Stamos. Do-gooders all around her chose Reagan, Thatcher and Gorbachev, but it was Bethany’s ode to Uncle Jesse which walked away with the prize. More than 25 years later, her writing is still infused with pop culture and off-the-beaten-track ideas.
Carolyn Miller lives in the beautiful Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia. She is married, with four gorgeous children, who all love to read (and write!).