List of French women writers
This is a list of women writers born in France or whose writings are closely associated with France.
A
- Geneviève Aclocque (1884–1967), historian
- Juliette Adam (1836–1936), novelist, non-fiction writer and magazine editor
- Marie d'Agoult, pen name Daniel Stern (1805–1876), novelist, essayist and history writer
- Anne-Marie Albiach (1937–2012), poet and translator
- Hortense Allart (1801–1879), feminist writer and essayist
- Almucs de Castelnau (12th c.), troubadour poet writing in Occitan
- Catherine d'Amboise (1475–1550), semi-autobiographical novelist and poet
- Virginie Ancelot (1792–1875), painter and playwright
- Christine Angot (born 1959), novelist and playwright
- Azalaïs d'Arbaud (1834–1917), Occitan-language writer
- Sophie d'Arbouville (1810–1850), poet and short story writer
- Catherine Arley, pen name of Pierrette Pernot (born 1924), novelist and actress
- Marie Célestine Amélie d'Armaillé (1830–1918), writer, biographer and historian
- Angélique Arnaud (1799–1884), novelist, essayist and feminist
- Madeleine de l’Aubespine (1546–1596), poet, literary patron, and one of the earliest female erotic poets
- Gwenaëlle Aubry (born 1971), novelist, philosopher and non-fiction writer
- Colette Audry (1906–1990), novelist, screenwriter and critic
- Marie-Catherine d'Aulnoy (c. 1650–1705), writer of fairy tales and historical novels
- Félicie d'Ayzac (1801–1881), poet, art historian
- Azalais de Porcairagues (12th century), Occitan-language troubadour
B
- Victoire Babois (1760–1839), writer of elegies.[1]
- Marie-Claire Bancquart (1932–2019), poet, essayist, critic and educator
- Tristane Banon (born 1979), novelist, journalist and television presenter
- Arvède Barine (1840–1908), non-fiction writer, historian and literary critic
- Natalie Clifford Barney (1876–1972), American-born poet, playwright and novelist, who wrote mainly in French
- Lauren Bastide (born 1981), French journalist
- Sophie Bawr (1773–1860), playwright, non-fiction writer
- Fanny de Beauharnais (1737–1813), poet, novelist, playwright and salonist
- Simone de Beauvoir (1908–1986), novelist, essayist, existentialist philosopher and feminist
- Béatrix Beck (1914–2008), novelist, short story writer and poet of Belgian origin
- Alice Becker-Ho (born 1941), poet and non-fiction writer
- Claude de Bectoz (1490–1547), poet and letter writer
- Géraldine Beigbeder, novelist, screen-writer
- Maud de Belleroche (1922–2017), bestselling novelist, memoirist and biographer
- Loleh Bellon (1925–1999), actress and playwright
- Yannick Bellon (1924–2019), film director and screenwriter
- Juliette Benzoni (1920–2016), novelist
- Catherine Bernard (1662–1712), poet, playwright and novelist
- Paulette Bernège (1896–1973), journalist, housework specialist and prolific non-fiction writer
- Emmanuèle Bernheim (1955–2017), novelist and screenwriter
- Carmen Bernos de Gasztold (1919–1995), poet
- Louise Bertin (1805–1877), composer and poet
- Mireille Best (1943–2005), novelist, often featuring lesbian characters
- Nella Bielski (1930s – 2020), Ukrainian-born French novelist and actress
- Gisèle Bienne (born 1946), novelist and writer for young adults
- Raphaële Billetdoux (born 1951), novelist
- Augustine-Malvina Blanchecotte (1830–1897), poet
- Marie Bonaparte-Wyse (1831–1902), novelist, playwright
- Louise de Bossigny (died 1700), fairy tale writer
- Laurence Bougault (1970–2018), poet, essayist and travel writer
- Catherine de Bourbon (1559–1604), princess, poet and letter writer
- Louise Bourbonnaud (c. 1847–1915), writer, explorer and philanthropist
- Jeanne Bouvier (1865–1964), feminist and trade unionist
- Sarah Bouyain (born 1968), novelist and film director
- Nina Bouraoui (born 1967), novelist
- Dounia Bouzar (born 1964), anthropologist and writer
- Brada (1847–1938), novelist, biographer, memoirist, scriptwriter
- Marie-Anne de Bovet (1855 – unknown date), novelist and journalist
- Anne-Sophie Brasme (born 1984), novelist
- Geneviève Brisac (born 1951), novelist, short-story writer, children's writer, critic and screenwriter
- Josette Bruce (1920–1996), Polish-born novelist
- Andrée Brunin (1937–1993), poet, many of whose works have been set to music
C
- Claude Cahun(1894–1954), poet, novelist, photograph, essayist, translator and résistante
- Nina de Callias (1843–1884), poet and salonnière
- Amélie-Julie Candeille (1767–1834), composer, librettist and playwright
- Marcelle Capy (1891–1962), novelist, journalist and pacifist
- Marie Cardinal (1929–2001), novelist
- Pauline Cassin Caro (1828/34/35–1901), novelist
- Castelloza (13th century), troubadour poet
- Claire Castillon (born 1975), novelist and playwright
- Anne-Marie Cazalis (1920–1988), journalist, poet, essayist, novelist and actress
- Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force (1654–1724), successful novelist, poet and memoirist
- Rosine de Chabaud-Latour (1794–1860), translator.[2]
- Françoise Chandernagor (born 1945), novelist and playwright
- Edmonde Charles-Roux (1920–2016), novelist, journalist and photographer
- Noëlle Châtelet (born 1944), essayist, novelist, short story writer and educator
- Chantal Chawaf (born 1943), novelist and essayist
- Madeleine Chapsal (born 1925), novelist, poet and critic
- Charlotte Saumaise de Chazan (1619–1684), poet and salon attendent
- Élisabeth Sophie Chéron (1648–1711), painter, poet and translator
- Maryse Choisy (1903–1979), philosopher, novelist and non-fiction writer
- Hélène Cixous (born 1937), Algerian-born French novelist, poet, playwright, philosopher, critic and feminist writer
- Catherine Clément (born 1939), philosopher, novelist, feminist and critic
- Gabrielle de Coignard (1550–1586), religious poet
- Louise Colet (1810–1876), poet, novelist, salonist
- Colette (1873–1954), novelist, author of Gigi
- Henriette de Coligny de La Suze (1618–1673), poet
- Anne-Hyacinthe de Colleville (1761–1824), novelist and playwright
- Danielle Collobert (1940–1978), poet, novelist, short story writer and journalist
- Rose Combe (1883–1932), novelist[3]
- Sophie Ristaud Cottin (1770–1807), novelist, including several historical novels
- Hélisenne de Crenne (1510–1552), novelist, epistolary writer and translator
- Pauline Marie Armande Craven (1808–1891), non-fiction writer
D
- Jocelyne Dakhlia (born 1959), French historian, anthropologist and academic
- Gilberte H. Dallas, pen name of Gilberte Herschtel (1918–1960), poet, important member of the poètes maudits
- Gerty Dambury (born 1957), poet, playwright and theatre director from Guadeloupe
- Marie Darrieussecq (born 1969), novelist
- Countess Dash, pen name of Gabrielle Anne Cisterne de Courtiras, vicomtesse de Saint-Mars (1804–1872), novelist
- Régine Deforges (1935–2014), novelist, short story writer, essayist and playwright
- Alix Delaporte (born 1969), film director and screenwriter
- Lucie Delarue-Mardrus (1874–1945), poet, novelist, journalist and sculptor
- Florence Delay (born 1941), novelist, essayist, playwright, translator and actress
- Sylvie Denis (born 1963), novelist, magazine editor and translator
- Maria Deraismes (1828–1894), playwright, essayist and women's rights activist
- Marceline Desbordes-Valmore (1786–1859), poet and novelist
- Antoinette Des Houlières (1638–1694), poet
- Marie-Anne Desmarest (1904–1973), novelist
- Catherine Des Roches (1542–1587), Renaissance poet, daughter of Madelaine Des Roches
- Madeleine Des Roches (c.1520–1587), Renaissance poet, mother of Catherine Des Roches
- Madeleine Desroseaux (1873–1939), Breton poet, novelist, playwright and short story writer
- Jeanne Deroin (1805–1894), journalist and women's activist after the Revolution
- Dominique Desanti (1920–2011), journalist, novelist, biographer and educator
- Agnès Desarthe (born 1966), children's writer and novelist
- Marceline Desbordes-Valmore (1786–1859), poet
- Maryline Desbiolles (born 1959), novelist
- Anne Desclos (1907–1998), journalist, novelist and translator, known under pen-names Pauline Réage and Dominique Aury
- Madeleine Desroseaux (1873–1939), Breton-language poet and novelist
- Régine Deforges (1935–2014) best-selling novelist, editor, director and playwright, known for her erotic works
- Antoinette Deshoulières (1638–1694), poet
- Virginie Despentes (born 1969), novelist and autobiographer
- Marie Desplechin (born 1959), novelist and children's writer
- Jane Dieulafoy (1851–1916), archaeologist, novelist and journalist
- Louisa Emily Dobrée (fl. ca. 1877–1917), novelist, short story writer, children's writer, non-fiction writer
- Geneviève Dormann (1933–2015), journalist and novelist
- Pernette Du Guillet (c.1520–1545), Renaissance poet
- Caroline Dubois (born 1960), poet
- Charlotte Dubreuil (born 1940), novelist, filmmaker and screenwriter
- Catherine Dufour (born 1966), novelist
- Claire de Duras (1777–1828), novelist, author of Ourika
- Marguerite Duras (1914–1996), novelist, playwright and screenwriter of Hiroshima mon amour
- Vanessa Duriès (1972–1993), novelist author of The Ties That Bind
- Yvette Duval (1931–2006), Moroccan-born French historian specializing in ancient North Africa
E
- Françoise d'Eaubonne (1920–2005), feminist essayist and science fiction novelist
- Alexandrine des Écherolles (1779–1850), memoirist
- Catherine Enjolet, French novelist and essayist
- Annie Ernaux (born 1940), autobiographical novelist
- Claire Etcherelli (born 1934), novelist
F
- Geneviève Fauconnier (1886–1969), novelist
- Madame de La Fayette (1634–1693), novelist author of La Princesse de Clèves
- Amanda Filipacchi (born 1967), French-born American novelist
- Adelaide Filleul (1761–1836), novelist
- Clara Filleul (1822–1878), painter and children's writer
- Zénaïde Fleuriot (1829–1890), prolific novelist writing for young women
- Pierrette Fleutiaux (1941–2019), novelist and short story writer
- Brigitte Fontaine (born 1939), singer, novelist, playwright and poet
- Viviane Forrester (1925–2013), essayist, novelist and critic
- Jeanne-Justine Fouqueau de Pussy (1786–1863), author of children's and educational works
- Jocelyne François (born 1933), lesbian novelist, poet and diarist
G
- Marie-Louise Gagneur (1832–1902), essayist, novelist and feminist
- Jeanne Galzy (1883–1977), novelist and biographer
- Anne-Marie Garat (born 1946), novelist
- Delphine Gardey (born 1967), non-fiction writer
- Anne F. Garréta (born 1962), novelist
- Judith Gautier (1845–1917), poet, historical novelist, playwright, translator and music critic
- Anna Gavalda (born 1970), best-selling novelist, short story writer and works widely translated
- Sophie Gay (1776–1852), novelist, playwright and librettist
- Stéphanie Félicité, comtesse de Genlis (1746–1830), novelist, playwright and children's writer
- Rosemonde Gérard (1871–1953), poet and playwright
- Sylvie Germain (born 1954), novelist, essayist and biographer
- Amélie Gex (1835–1883), poet, who also wrote in Franco-Provençal
- Delphine de Girardin (1804–1855), essayist, poet and novelist
- Anne Golon (1921–2017), novelist author of the Angélique series of historical novels
- Mélanie Gouby (active since 2011), journalist
- Olympe de Gouges (1748–1793), playwright and feminist writer, executed after the Revolution
- Marie de Gournay (1585–1645), novelist, essayist and critic
- Françoise de Graffigny (1695–1758), novelist and playwright
- Évelyne Grandjean (born 1939), actress, playwright and screenwriter
- Henry Gréville, pen name of Alice Durand (1842–1902), widely translated novelist
- Benoîte Groult (1920–2016), novelist and feminist
- Claudine Guérin de Tencin (1682–1749), literary patron, novelist and correspondent
- Pernette du Guillet (c. 1520–1545), poet, most of whose works were intended to be set to music
H
- Béatrice Hammer (born 1963), novelist, children's writer and playwright
- Mireille Havet (1898–1932), poet, diarist and novelist
- Nathalie Henneberg (1910–1977), science fiction novelist
- Catherine Hermary-Vieille (born 1943), novelist
- Adèle Hommaire de Hell (1819–1883), explorer and travel writer
- Juliette Heuzey (1865–1952), novelist, biographer
J
- Paula Jacques (born 1949), Egyptian-born French novelist, journalist and radio host
- Gaëlle Josse (born 1960), poet and novelist
K
- Fabienne Kanor (born 1970), journalist, novelist and filmmaker
- Maylis de Kerangal (born 1967), novelist
- Kiyémis (born 1993), poet, Afro-feminist
- Nadia Yala Kisukidi (born 1978), philosopher
- Thérèse Kuoh-Moukouri (born 1938), Cameroon-born French novelist and essayist
L
- Anne de La Roche-Guilhem (1644–1710), novelist, moved to England
- Sylvie Lainé (born 1957), science fiction novelist and short story writer
- Jeanne Lapauze (1860–1920), born Jeanne Loiseau, poet and novelist, who used the pen name Daniel Lesueur [[see: Loiseau at www.daniel-lesueur.com (1854–1921) <<french version>>]]
- Camille Laurens (born 1957), novelist
- Linda Lê (born 1963), Vietnamese-born French novelist
- Simone Le Bargy (1877–1985), actress, novelist and memoirist
- Martine Le Coz (born 1955), novelist, poet and non-fiction writer
- Violette Leduc (1907–1972), novelist and autobiographer
- Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont (1711–1780), novelist and fairy tale writer, author of Beauty and the Beast
M
- Jeanne Marni (1854–1910), novelist, playwright and essayist
- Anne de Marquets (c. 1533–1588), religious poet, nun and author of Les Sonets spirituels
- Agnès Martin-Lugand (born 1979), novelist
- Margaret Maruani (b. 1954), non-fiction writer
- Sophie Massieu (born 1975), journalist
- Renée Massip (1907–2002), novelist, journalist
- Nicole-Claude Mathieu (1937–2014), sociologist specializing in gender studies
- Meavenn, pen name of Francine Rozec (1911–1992), Breton-language poet, novelist and playwright
- Natacha Michel (born 1941), political activist, novelist and critic
- Marijane Minaberri (1926–2017), children's, poet and short story
- Jane Misme (1865–1935), journalist and feminist
- Ursule Molinaro (1916–2000), French-American novelist, playwright and translator, who wrote in French and English
- Kenizé Mourad (born 1939), journalist, non-fiction writer and novelist
N
- Marguerite de Navarre (1492–1549), poet, playwright and short story writer, including the collection Heptaméron
- Marie NDiaye (born 1967), novelist and playwright
- Anna de Noailles (1876–1933), highly acclaimed novelist, poet and autobiographer
- Florence Noiville (born 1961), journalist, children's writer, novelist and non-fiction writer
O
- Véronique Olmi (born 1962), novelist, playwright and short story writer
- Mona Ozouf (born 1931), historian and philosopher
P
- Katherine Pancol (born 1954), novelist, journalist and author of Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles (The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles)
- Madeleine Pelletier (1874–1939), feminist writer
- Georges de Peyrebrune (1841–1917), prolific novelist, columnist and feminist
- Louise Pioger (1848-1920) anarchist nursery rhymes
- Anne Plichota (born 1968), children's writer and novelist
- Maria Pognon (1844–1925), writer, journal editor, feminist, suffragist and pacifist
- Aliénor de Poitiers (15th century), writer on court etiquette
- Alice Poulleau (1885–1960), travel writer and geographer
R
- Rachilde, pen name of Marguerite Vallette-Eymery (1860–1953), novelist and non-fiction writer, author of Monsieur Vénus
- Geneviève-Françoise Randon de Malboissière (1746–1766), playwright, poet and multi-lingual translator
- Pauline Réage, pen-name of Anne Desclos (1907–1998), who also used the pen-name Dominique Aury, novelist, editor, critic and author of Story of O (Histoire d'O)
- Marie Redonnet, pen name of Martine L'hospitalier (born 1948), poet, novelist, essayist, short story writer and playwright
- Christine Renard (1929–1979), science fiction novelist
- Yasmina Reza (born 1959), playwright, novelist, actress, screenwriter and author of God of Carnage
- Marie Jeanne Riccoboni (1714–1792), novelist and editor
- Catherine Rihoit (born 1950), novelist and biographer
- Christine de Rivoyre (1921–2019), novelist and journalist
- Antoinette Henriette Clémence Robert (1797–1872), novelist and playwright
- Nina Roberts (born 1979), erotic novelist and actress
- Tatiana de Rosnay (born 1961), journalist, novelist and screenwriter,
- Marie-Anne de Roumier-Robert (1705–1771), early science fiction novelist
- Pascale Roze (born 1954), playwright and novelist, author of Sarah's Key (Elle s'appelait Sarah)
- Léonie Rouzade (1839–1916), journalist, novelist and feminist
S
- Françoise Sagan (1935–2004), playwright, novelist and screenwriter, author of Bonjour Tristesse
- Vefa de Saint-Pierre (1872–1967), explorer, reporter, Breton-language poet and children's writer
- Lydie Salvayre (born 1948), novelist widely translated
- George Sand (1804–1876), novelist and playwright, author of Indiana
- Anne de Seguier 16th-century French poet and salon holder
- Nathalie Sarraute (1900–1999), Russian-born French novelist, who pioneered the nouveau roman
- Albertine Sarrazin (1937–1967), French-Algerian novelist, essayist and poet
- Simone Schwarz-Bart (born 1938), Guadeloupean-French novelist, playwright and non-fiction writer
- Ann Scott (born 1965), novelist, short story writer
- Madeleine de Scudéry (1607–1701), novelist, works containing lengthy conversations
- Countess of Ségur (1799–1874), Russian-born French novelist and children's writer
- Eulalie de Senancour (1791–1876), journalist, novelist and children's writer
- Coline Serreau (born 1947), actress, film director, playwright and essayist
- Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, marquise de Sévigné (1626–1696), correspondent
- Shan Sa, pen name of Yan Ni (born 1972), Chinese-born French poet, novelist and painter, now writing in French
- Maboula Soumahoro (born 1976), scholar, Afro-feminist
- Germaine de Staël, also Madame de Staël (1766–1817), essayist, novelist, non-fiction writer and salonnière
- Louise Swanton Belloc (1796–1881), translator, essayist, novelist, non-fiction writer, children's book writer and feminist
T
- Tibors de Sarenom (12th century), troubadour poet writing in Occitan
- Chantal Thomas (born 1945), historian and novelist
- Édith Thomas (1909–1970), novelist, historian and journalist
- Gilles Thomas, pen name of Éliane Taïeb (1929–1985), science fiction novelist
- Annette Tison (born 1942), architect, children's writer and co-creator of Barbapapa
- Valerie Toranian (born 1962), journalist and editor of Elle
- Nicole Tourneur (1950–2011), novelist and children's writer
- Elsa Triolet (1896–1970), Russian-born French novelist, first women to win the Prix Goncourt, wrote in Russian and French
- Nadine Trintignant (born 1934), film editor, writer, director, producer and novelist
- Flora Tristan (1803–1844), socialist writer and feminist
V
- Valérie Valère (1961–1981), autobiographical novelist
- Fred Vargas, pen name of Frédérique Audoin-Rouzeau (born 1957), crime fiction writer and historian
- Delphine de Vigan (born 1966), novelist and author of No et moi, translated into 20 languages
- Marie-Catherine de Villedieu (1640–1683), playwright, novelist and short story writer
- Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve (c.1695–1755), novelist, fairy tale writer and author of Belle et la Bête
- Louise Lévêque de Vilmorin (1902–1969), novelist, poet and journalist
- Renée Vivien (1877–1909), British-born French-language poet, often writing autobiographical verse
- Élisabeth Vonarburg (born 1947), science-fiction novelist
W
- Simone Weil (1909–1943), philosopher and non-fiction writer
- Anne Wiazemsky (1947–2017), German-born French novelist and actress
- Joëlle Wintrebert (born 1949), science fiction novelist and children's writer
- Monique Wittig (1935–2003), novelist, playwright and feminist writer
- Cendrine Wolf (born 1969), children's writer, who collaborates with Anne Plichota
Y
- Marguerite Yourcenar (1903–1987), novelist and essayist
Z
- Léontine Zanta (1872–1942), novelist and feminist
References
- Sabatier, Robert (1988). Femmes poètes du XIXe siècle (in French). Paris: Allen Michel. p. 16. ISBN 978-2-22601-395-8.
- van Bragt, Katrin; d'Hulst, Lieven; Lambert, José (1995). Bibliographie des traductions françaises (1810-1840) (in French). Louvain: Presses Universitaires de Louvain. p. 257. ISBN 978-9-06186-707-4.
- Dupuy, Aimé (1951). "Rose Combe, garde-barrière et romancière". La Vie du Rail (in French): 2.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.