The #DailyWIT project ran from January 1st, 2021, until December 31st, 2021, showcasing one woman writer from around the world for every single day of the year. Separately, the #DailyQIT project in June 2021 highlighted trans, nonbinary, and intersex writers.

 

The #DailyWIT is an attempt to set the record straight. Nearly half of the authors included in the #DailyWIT project have not yet been translated into English. #DailyWIT includes 365 unique authors. It spans over 154 countries and 122 different languages. Genres include: poetry, fiction, non-fiction, fantasy, sci-fi, folklore, children’s literature, young adult literature, crime, plays, graphic novels, and more.

 

Why?

 

A common "rebuttal" to the Women in Translation project is that this is an unnecessary effort. “There's no real problem, women don't write!” However this ignores the thousands of women who have written across the globe, even when facing biased contexts.

 

Another common argument is that women "didn't write then". (The 1950s, 80s, 90s have all been proposed as start dates.) This too is false: Women account for the first named works in history AND first surviving novel, in the 23rd century BCE and 11th century CE respectively.

 

Women have been writing across the entire globe for thousands of years. The #DailyWIT includes 45 writers from the 19th century or earlier.

 

Translations are often dominated by a small group of languages, countries, or backgrounds. But that's not reflective of the writing that goes on in the world. There is so much out there!

 

#DailyWIT is, in that regard, a few drops in the bucket. For every writer included here, there are dozens more who were not. The list is limited by our ability to access information and resources. The #DailyWIT could easily continue for years on end, without repeats.

 

More WIT

 

For even more women in translation, check out these 50 Day Countdowns from 2019 and 2020.

 

For US based readers, check out our Bookshop.org wishlist for the #DailyWIT.

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The Women in Translation Resources tab includes more book lists of yearly new releases from September 2017 until August 2022.