Women and literature - this special relationship has always fascinated you? The woman as muse, reader, and author of literature. But: Why do the author and the muse form a fatal alliance? Why do the author and the reader seem made for each other? Why is literature by women often referred to as "women's literature," while that by men is simply considered literature? Is the genius author therefore male? Do female crime writers receive fewer awards than their male counterparts? These and other questions reveal the various mechanisms that inscribe women into literary processes and make it clear that gender dictates the rules. This must change - and this vivid book contributes to that in a way that is both insightful and entertaining.