Gender bias in Australian literature »

We already know that around two thirds of published authors in Australia are women, but two thirds of the books being reviewed are by men. A new study has confirmed that the careers of Australia's female authors are suffering due to gender bias within the literature industry. Dr Julieanne Lamond, from the Australian National University (ANU) School of Literature Languages and Linguistics, said male authors were more likely than their female counterparts to have their work featured in published reviews. "We already know that around two thirds of published authors in Australia are women, but two thirds of the books being reviewed are by men," Dr Lamond said. "We have found that this ratio has remained largely the same for 30 years. It's entrenched unconscious gender bias. There's a long-standing association between literary importance and male writers." Dr Lamond, who is also editor of the Australian Literary Studies journal, said having books reviewed has a huge impact on the careers of Australian authors.