"Women writers of literary fiction are having a golden moment, right now. For every stock protagonist with a
Hermès Birkin bag and a bead on an investment banker, there is a woman writer pushing the envelope of serious
fiction with depth and humor."
— from Elizabeth Merrick's introduction to This Is Not Chick Lit
— from Elizabeth Merrick's introduction to This Is Not Chick Lit
Elizabeth Merrick is the Editor of the Random House anthology This Is Not Chick Lit, and author of Girly, a novel.
Elizabeth has appeared in national and regional media such as Elle, Jane, USA Today, the
LA Times, and Time Out New York.
She received a B.A. from Yale, an M.F.A. from Cornell, and an M.A. in Creativity and Art Education from San Francisco State as well as fellowships from the Saltonstall Foundation, Ragdale Foundation, and VCCA.
She has taught at New York University and Cornell, and currently lives in New York where she runs the Grace Reading Series which she founded in 2005.
To book an appearance with Elizabeth, contact info@elizabethmerrick.com
For our monthly updates on appearances and readings you can sign up here.
"This Is Not Chick Lit is important not only for its content,
but for its title. I'll know we're getting somewhere
when equally talented male writers feel they have to separate themselves from the endless stream of fiction glorifying war,
hunting and sports by naming an anthology This Is Not a Guy Thing."— Gloria Steinem
Order now!
"Merrick has overturned the log of pop-culture-driven fare to uncover a riot of women's voices--writhing, colorful, and alive."
— ELLE magazine
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— ELLE magazine
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From Vanity Fair's Hot Type:
"Yes, editor Elizabeth Merrick is female, and the short stories she's collected are written by women, but marketplace be damned, This Is Not Chick Lit."
Read more.
"Yes, editor Elizabeth Merrick is female, and the short stories she's collected are written by women, but marketplace be damned, This Is Not Chick Lit."
Read more.
"This short story collection examines, in illuminating detail, issues and concerns facing women who won't find solace in a Prada bag. No less hopeful than typical chick lit but certainly more poignant and serious, this collection should spur spirited conversation."
—Booklist
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"This, as it turns out, is discourse — and as long as it's showcasing some good, smart, accomplished women writers, then I think it takes us that much closer to turning the chick lit frog into a prince."
—The Huffington Post
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"As I said, when I started, I was a chick lit fan, but I'm an avid reader in general, so I didn't JUST read Chick Lit. Now that I've read all the arguments, I can't help but be a bit more persuaded by the This is Not Chick Lit camp."
—Daily Kos
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"Merrick's feminist project has women talking about books and reading across genres, which, all told, has got to be good."
—Small Spiral Notebook
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"Most delightfully surprising is “The Seventy Two Ounce Steak Challenge” by Dika Lam, who has published only a few short stories in small magazines."
—The Columbus Dispatch
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—Booklist
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"This, as it turns out, is discourse — and as long as it's showcasing some good, smart, accomplished women writers, then I think it takes us that much closer to turning the chick lit frog into a prince."
—The Huffington Post
Read more
"As I said, when I started, I was a chick lit fan, but I'm an avid reader in general, so I didn't JUST read Chick Lit. Now that I've read all the arguments, I can't help but be a bit more persuaded by the This is Not Chick Lit camp."
—Daily Kos
Read more
"Merrick's feminist project has women talking about books and reading across genres, which, all told, has got to be good."
—Small Spiral Notebook
Read more
"Most delightfully surprising is “The Seventy Two Ounce Steak Challenge” by Dika Lam, who has published only a few short stories in small magazines."
—The Columbus Dispatch
Read more
about
books
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events & appearances
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grace reading series
elizabeth's writing workshops
contact
© Elizabeth Merrick 2006
books
press
events & appearances
blog
grace reading series
elizabeth's writing workshops
contact
© Elizabeth Merrick 2006
Announcing
NEW ONE-DAY WORKSHOPS
Select Saturdays, monthly
ELIZABETH'S WRITING BRUNCH
and
CREATIVE JUMPSTART SEMINAR
Click here for information, dates, and to register!
NEW ONE-DAY WORKSHOPS
Select Saturdays, monthly
ELIZABETH'S WRITING BRUNCH
and
CREATIVE JUMPSTART SEMINAR
Click here for information, dates, and to register!
"It's not that Merrick, 33, hates all chick lit. It's just that she wants to spread the word about what she calls
'a golden moment' for women writing serious literary fiction. 'It's interesting,' she says, 'that as this is
happening, we're getting the same chick lit narrative over and over again.'"
—USA Today
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—USA Today
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"What these stories — indeed, what all great literature has in common — is a refusal to follow a simple formula, chick lit or otherwise. These are stories that make us grapple with the complexities of life and love and the ways we abrade each other, reminding us that the human experience is much bigger and messier."
—The Los Angeles Times
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"Funny and inventive."
—The Village Voice
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"None of the anthology's 18 stories follows a formula; every one is a surprise. They address women's lives without condescension and with plenty of intelligence, style and wit."
—Miami Herald
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"Readers who've been Fendi'd and Choo'd to distraction would do well to pick this up."
—Publishers Weekly
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"Narrative-fracturing works by Carolyn Ferrell and Lynne Tillman are jarring, beguiling and wholly original."
—Time Out New York
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"Lush and elegantly crafted stories."
—Deseret Morning News
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"Ultimately, the writing and the breadth of creative subject material are what remind readers that this is not the frothy, raspberry-vinaigrette-drenched "lit" of our generation. Here, in these 18 stories, is literature."
—Daily Texan
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"Fresh and intriguing… reading the stories as a whole will lead readers to discover new favorite authors."
—Library Journal
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"If you’re tired of reading about women shopping for shoes while cheating on their diets, their boyfriends, and hiding from their bosses, Elizabeth Merrick feels your pain."
—The Detroit News
"So the only question about the fine new fiction anthology "This Is Not Chick Lit" is why it took so long to hit the shelves?"
—The State
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