A statement regarding eligibility for the Women's Prize for Fiction

[HecatesCat]

Well it's 'In our terms and conditions the word 'woman' equates to a cis woman, transgender woman or anyone who is legally defined as a woman or of the female sex'

It is absolutely appalling.

The female judges should hang their stupid, empty heads in shame.

I am so angry with them-and other woman involved in this- but I am stopping myself from exploding by recalling that anyone so half witted is more to be pitied than laughed at.

As for "promoting women in literature" - Really? There are plenty of women writing and being published. There's no need for a special prize for that

That is the exact reason that the prize was set up - it’s on their website. It is the stated aim of the charity as listed on the Charities Register and if they have changed their aim they need to update their entry

Oh come off it. This prize was set up because there were no female Booker winners. Its purpose was to give women a chance to win a prize without having to compete with men. There was no need then or now to have a prize encouraging women to write. There were and are gazillions of published women.

They have to say something vacuous like "promoting women writers" as the real aim - "it's not fair women don't win the Booker" just looks silly.

It would be better to do away with the Women's Prize for Fiction and just have it The Fiction Prize because when a man wins it, as he will, then it just reinforces the point that a man can be a woman.

He cannot.

Far better to do away with the prize than wait for a man to win it

It's in the DM, quite prominently:

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8806971/Womens-Prize-Fiction-opens-award-writer-legally-identifying-female.html

However, the DM does not understand "cis". They define it as straight women:

It has now decided that it will receive for submission full-length novels 'by all women' – including 'cis' (heterosexual) women, transgender women and 'anyone who is legally defined as a woman'.

I guess that definition of "cis" will ruffle a few trans feathers!

They have to say something vacuous like "promoting women writers" as the real aim - "it's not fair women don't win the Booker" just looks silly.

Weird take. The purpose of all these prizes is to promote books and writers. They don't exist because people really like getting medals. The Booker was failing to do its job well, it wasn't promoting the best books because great female writers were being overlooked.

This prize was set up to do the job the Booker wasn't doing, and it's had the bonus effect of causing the Booker to step up its act. Now it's likely that job won't be done any more, not that it matters much because the publishing industry is dying on its arse.

Dido, while the pedant in me tends to agree on female only prizes, I would suggest having a look at the VIDA count. While it is true that women are over represented in publishing, they are still curiously under represented in criticism, prizes and - basically- their writing is judged to be lesser than that of males.

not that it matters much because the publishing industry is dying on its arse.

Really? What makes you think that?

There needs to be a rule that trans people with a GRC must wait a set period of time (say 3 years) before being eligible for these types of things.

A bit of lived experience as a woman should surely be essential before receiving a women's prize.

The author Lissa Evans had asked her publishers not to submit her novel for this prize.

Going to buy some of her books in solidarity

the publishing industry is dying on its arse.

I think it is, but it's turning out to be a long, protracted and painful death.

I think this is my straw (camel's back etc).

Tory rejection of self ID aside, women and girls the world over are not allowed anything for themselves. Their very identity must be shared with men.

Women's prizes exist because of a structural inequity - see VIDA - and have a role, regardless of whether you like the winning work.

Opening the prize because there is data showing the inequity in reviews and prizes by sex is resolved is one thing. Opening it when women's work, regardless of merit, received less career boosting attention than men's? It's a wholesale acceptance and promotion of sexism - the idea that women are worth less - in the literary world.

a poorly written statement, especially as it is from a literary organisation.

Yes. I'll feel better if I know that the irony klaxon has been sounded loud and clear on this thread.

This is an organisation judging people's ability to communicate in writing

The bad, breast-obsessed writing about women that is found in much male writing is replicated in work by trans women. Do we really need to encourage this?

Even if we were to allow for someone feeling like a woman (i.e. identifying with a cluster of gender-based stereotypes), and feeling uncomfortable being treated as a man for much of their life, that doesn't make that treatment less preferential.

The disadvantages that women face in the literary world are due to their sex, and are different to those experienced by trans or non-binary individuals. This award was set up to remedy the former issue.

To have an award (OK, a big award; I know there are smaller ones out there) that specifically focuses on trans and non-binary writers would include trans men, who get quite a raw deal from this, and mean that every year a trans writer would be highlighted, instead of being a possible winner of an award for women.

The unwillingness to create trans-specific anything and instead demand entrance into women's hard-won spaces of all kinds is so dysfunctional and unpleasant.

@notyourhandmaid I think trans specific spaces/ awards etc are rejected as not ‘validating’. Many (not all) want full validation of their imaginary status as women/ men. There is that Jessica Kingsley Writing prize - but as someone further up has stated, anyone could enter. In fact, I think people should self-ID as non-binary and enter it.

The author Lissa Evans had asked her publishers not to submit her novel for this prize.

Good. Lissa (who used to produce Father Ted - so, all the best people etc) is a wonderful novelist. Please do buy her books. You won't regret it. The latest one, V for Victory, is part of a trilogy (The others are Crooked Heart and Old Baggage) and is a fantastic read.

Oh, I haven't read any Lissa Evans - thanks for the tip! I'll put the first one on my reading list. Just began the first Robert Galbraith Cormoran Strike late last night, so I can flit between series if I like the Evans, too.

I miss PD James so much and Susan Hill seems to have come to a standstill with the Seraillier series, so it's great to find new (to me) women writers.

I must say I'd like to read a novel by a transwoman though, just to get a glimpse into the world view and creative process of someone whose life has undergone a seismic shift.

Whether or not you agree with literary prizes or any sort of awards restricted to women, if that's the purpose they are set up for, they need to stick to it or be open about altering their reason for existing, not waffle on about the meaning of the word woman not being static, like the Australian lot. Sheesh!

How come men are nice and static and women are the ones being redefined all over the place without consultation or consent?!

I would welcome and support a writing prize exclusively for trans authors, which would actually be a better way of promoting trans authors than this nonsense.

@ArabellaScott

the publishing industry is dying on its arse.

I think it is, but it's turning out to be a long, protracted and painful death.

Kantastic has not replied to the same statement. Why do YOU think so?

...because I think it's the exact opposite. These prizes do not really affect the industry. Readers aren't particularly interested, and it's readers who drive the industry.

Clarification via The Bookseller:

The prize emphasised it seeks to celebrate "the experience of being a woman in all its varied forms". However, organisers confirmed that "anyone who wishes to enter must also be legally defined as a woman or of the female sex to be able to do so". The two key documents required to demonstrate this are birth certificate or a gender recognition certificate.

The policy means transgender women who have yet to legally change their gender would not be able to enter. In 2018, the government revealed that only 4,910 people had legally changed their gender since the Gender Recognition Act came into force in 2004. Individuals who identify as non-binary would only be able to enter if legally their gender is female.

That’s good to know Abs - I wonder if they’ll stick to it....

Some sectors are doing well - cookbooks and ghost written memoirs. I think various factors are putting so much pressure on litfic in particular that it's probably not sustainable as an art form. I've seen advances cut and cut and cut and then scrapped, many friends leave the writing world as they just can't justify what has become effectively a hobby. Copywriting, even, has been so undercut by globalisation that other income streams for writers have also dried up. It's been an ongoing downward spiral since the net book deal was scrapped and supermarket books took over. Authors used to write a book every couple of years, are now pressured to put out two or three a year. For those reasons! I mean, people are producing books in huge quantities, but it'd be interesting to look at who is and how - increasingly I suspect it's more and more wealthy people who can afford to or 'celebs' with a name in another field. Author is not a vocation/profession like it used to be.

• sorry, that was a response to Malahaha.