VIDA, an organization founded in 2009 to “explore critical and cultural perceptions of writing by women through meaningful conversation and the exchange of ideas among existing and emerging literary communities” has posted The Count, a tally of the women reviewing, being reviewed and being published at various top literary magazines and the like. The numbers are chilling. The Rumpus responds with the question, “Are women submitting as much as men?” In other words, is the solution to encourage women to submit or is it to train editors to unlearn sexism? My guess? Both!
But for the first part, I think women do not submit as often and are easily discouraged by rejection and take it more personally. Using myself as a litmus test is not a large enough sample, to be sure. So tell me about you. Do you identify as a man or a woman? (It’s okay if this is a yes/ no question for some of you.) Do you submit your work? Over and over again? Do you paper your bathroom with rejections as James Joyce did? Do you stab the rejections onto a thick nail, as Steven King did?
I have no doubt that sexism–the illogical preference of men over women, assumptions about male talent and female talent that give great advantage to men–are at work here, and this may be one reason women are discouraged. But the part I know we can do something about today is getting our work out there, in circulation, collecting rejections, being read. Keeping our heads out of ovens and our missives boomaranging out and back until they find homes. At least if we do this, the other glaring part of the equation will have to be acknowledged. The work is in front of the editors (who need to be more evenly male and female, too, yes?), and if the numbers don’t match . . . let the unlearning sexism training begin.
What do you think?
I agree that both are an issue. As with most culturally learned -isms unless a person has explicitly worked on unlearning these mostly subconscious (though for some very conscious) beliefs and attitudes then they are likely perpetuating them without realizing it. And that also goes for editors and writers (ahem) as well.
I do submit some but not as frequently as I could. I certainly don’t hang rejections on a wall. I think it takes a certain kind of person to be motivated by rejection in that “You’ll rue the day you turned down my brilliance!” kind of way.
And I have yet to meet a female writer who has claimed that motivation. I also don’t think the majority of men are like that but there are more like that than women. There are in the corporate world and it certainly seems to help them get ahead.
The best advice I have gotten–and many people have told me this and I agree–is to send enough stuff out over time such that you never have just one query or submission out there. When you are waiting to hear from one pub on one piece it takes on even more significance.
I also remember an Elizabeth Gilbert quote which I will paraphrase: Your job is to write and get your writing out in the world. Don’t reject your work before you send it out, that is someone else’s job.
And a side note: I do wonder how me being female will impact getting a book deal and such since I am writing about football. There are plenty of successful sports books that use the sport to explore issues of a specific time and place. But very few have been written by women. The only one that immediately pops to mind is “Seabiscuit” by Laura Hillenbrand.
Gretchen — This is a wonderfully inspiring comment. I love the Elizabeth Gilbert paraphrase. I hope that being a female writer won’t impact your success with your terrific football book, but you could always follow in the footsteps of the many women who’ve used male pen names or just initials. Isn’t it sad to think that might still be necessary?
As poetry editor for a new magazine, I do see fewer submissions by women than men … not sure if this is the same on the fiction side but I have a feeling that it may be. As a poet and novelist, I also know that far too many of us female writers are afflicted with a kind of humility that holds us back from submitting as often, and as high on the food chain, as perhaps we should.
Valerie — Thank you for sharing this. I think you are right. It’s not the only problem, this humility and misjudgment of our place in, as you say, the food chain, but it’s one we can do something about!
Thank you, Jen. I do hope you’ll write yours. Remember, your writing is your voice. Write is as you would tell a frnied. It feels so good to get it out and connect. Looking forward and thank you.