Girls* to the Front: Trends in Contemporary German-Language Writing by Women and Non-Binary Authors

Earlier this year, Martina Läubli, arts editor for the Neue Zürcher Zeitung, published an exposé on gender in the German literary industry and declared “Die Frauen haben die Macht übernommen.”[1] Indeed, in recent years, women (queer and non-queer) as well as non-binary authors and their writings have received increasing attention, including appearing on more short lists for book prizes and occupying high rankings on bestseller lists. However, many of these authors still do not attain the consideration they deserve within the industry. For example, Kim de l’Horizon won the German Book Award in 2022 for Blutbuch and the translation into English is advertised for 2025, but it has become rather quiet around them more recently. Others, such as Antje Rávic Strubel, who won the same award for her novel Blaue Frau in 2021, has seen only one of her novels translated into English. While a selection of the poetry of award-winning author Ulrike Draesner is available in English, only one of her numerous novels has been translated into English (Kanalschwimmer/Channel Swimmer, slated to appear early 2025). Other writers who warrant more scholarly attention include Julia Franck, who won the German Book Award for Mittagsfrau in 2007 (translated into English as The Blindness of the Heart, 2009); Jenny Erpenbeck, whose four novels have been translated into English; Sasha Marianna Salzmann, whose two novels Außer sich (2017) and Im Menschen muss alles herrlich sein (2021) have been translated into English as Beside Myself (2020) and Glorious People (2024) respectively; Mithu Sanyal, whose novel Identitti (2021) has been translated into English under the same title; Ronya Othmann, whose debut novel Die Sommer (2020) was translated into English (The Summers) rather quickly (2023); Birgit Weyhe, whose collaboration with Priscilla Layne on the graphic novel Rude Girl (2022) has opened new avenues of dialogue about representation and authorship; and Fatma Aydemir, whose debut novel Ellbogen (2020) has made it into film (2024, director Asli Özarslan) and whose novel Dschinns (2022) is now available in English translation. These are only a few examples, the list could continue.

We therefore welcome proposals that engage with contemporary writings in the German language by self-identified female or non-binary authors. There are no limitations with regards to topics or genre, and we encourage papers that (also) engage with aspects of teaching these books (in the original language or in English translation) and/or aspects of inclusion in the canon. 

Please submit a 200 to 300-word abstract and a short bio (about 200 words) to Sonja Klocke (sklocke@wisc.edu),Necia Chronister (nchroni@ksu.edu), and Lars Richter (lars.richter@umanitoba.ca) by January 15, 2025. 

Timeline

January 15, 2025: submit title, abstract, and bio

February 15, 2025 – editors will notify contributors of acceptance

July 15, 2025 – manuscripts due to editors (6000-9000 words) in MLA style

Publication anticipated fall 2026. This volume already has strong interest from publishers.

[1] https://www.nzz.ch/feuilleton/frauen-im-literaturbetrieb-ld.1814558