women in fantasy

Oh, did you think we were done championing women in different genres? Well, almost. I have one more for you - fantasy, which is near and dear to my heart.

Kate Forsyth (1966 - present)

Mixing historical fiction with the fantastical, this OG and current writer has workshops and writing retreats to help other writers realize their dreams.

Notable works:

• Psykhe

• The Crimson Thread

• Bitter Greens

R.F. Kuang (1996 - present)

A contemporary idol, queen. I loved the Poppy War so much when we read it for book club. Another author who takes history and makes it fantastical. She was a history-major and debate team enthusiast. She is smart, even attending Cambridge for her doctorate and she is imaginative. I am excited to dive into more of her work.

Notable works (other than Poppy War)

• Babel

• Yellowface

• The Necessity of Violence

Naomi Novik (1973 - present)

Listen, dragons and speculative fiction? We love. Awards aplenty and TV deals. Novik also helped organize the Organization for Transformative Works (OTW), a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of fan-media including fan fiction, fan videos, and real-person fiction. She was a co-founder of Archive of Our Own (AO3), a project of OTW that began in 2007 to create an online archive of fan fiction. We love a supportive author.

Notable works

• Temeraire series (His Majesty's Dragon)

• Scholomance

• Uprooted

Robin Hobb (1952 - present)

Another OG whose actual name is Margaret Astrid Lindholm. She resides on a small farm in Washington after growing up in California. Moving to Alaska in-between now and then has influenced her writing. I have one of her books, and will report back, but honestly, she seems legit.

Notable works:

• The Realm of Elderlings

• Farseer Trilogy

• The Fitz and the Fool Trilogy

Diana Wynne Jones (1934 - 2011)

I knew Howl's Moving Castle through the movie. It was a surprise to me to find out that is just one piece of a woman-written story. She is credited as being inspiration for numerous authors such as Terry Pratchett and Philip Pullman. A hint of realism and some speculative-ness enters her novels, she writes mostly for children and young adults

Notable works:

• Changeover (adult)

• The Moving Castle

• Charmed Life

S.A. Chakraborty (1985 - present)

A fellow Jersey girl, she began writing around 2008. She called he writing "historical fan fiction," and aren't we glad that she decided to share it with us all! She writes mostly based on the middle east and brings the stories of that region to places that may not have heard about their lore. She is continuing to publish and write and I can't see what is in store.

Notable works:

• Daevabad Trilogy

• The Adventures of Anima al-Sirafi

Rebecca Yarros (1981 - present)

A contemporary romance writer decided to dabble into "romantasy," and I am so glad she did. With the Empyrean series, she created a relatable character with the same chronic condition Yarros has in a warring world of magic and dragons. Just goes to show you never have to stick to a niche and you should try new things.

Notable works (that are not dragons):

• The Things We Leave Unfinished

• In the Likely Event

• Variation

Tamsyn Muir (1985 - present)

Horror, fantasy, and science-fiction dwell in her brain and thankfully she shares it with us. She's been nominated and won a few awards. She is still writing, and hopefully continues to dazzle us with inclusive stories.

Notable works:

• Gideon the Ninth (LGBT horror)

• The Locked Tomb

Tanith Lee (1947-2015)

Author and wrote for the BBC, Lee graced us with 90 novels and 300 short stories in the science-fiction and fantasy realms.

Notable works:

• The Dragon Hoard

• Companions on the Road

• The Birthgrave

I have some reading to do as I have not read from everyone on this list, but I already have them locked and loaded in the TBR. Have any additions?