Living by the Pen - Women Writers in the Eighteenth Century (Hardcover, New)

Based on a substantial listing of novels, authors and publication details, covering 1696 to 1796, "Living by the Pen" traces the pattern of growth of women's fiction and offers an explanation for the remarkable rise of women writers during this period. Professional novelists are identified and the book explores this aspect of women's writing in relation to the world of publishing. The coverage is broad, taking in 17th-century antecedents, the occupation structure for women, the writers' relationship with their publishers, methods and levels of payment, the readership, access to women's fiction though libraries and magazines, and the writers' use of other genres to support their literary careers.