I have just been killing myself laughing at the comments over at this: A Forum of Ice and Fire

I shan’t comment on being called a “girl” (as I think the poster of the topic actually meant women) …but I am wondering what planet some of those leaving comments live on.

Leaving aside paranormal urban fantasy such as Twilight, with its female teenage following, I know just as many female readers of epic fantasy as I know men readers.

 I myself – over the past year or so – have read male writers such as Peter V. Brett, Patrick Rothfuss, Robert V.S. Reddick, M.D. Lachlan, Adrian Tchaikosvsky, Ben Aaronovitch, Brent Weeks, Joe Abercrombie, Tad Williams and Paul Hoffman. And of course, I read George R.R.Martin. And a stack of women fantasy writers as well.

My closest friend who lives around here reads the same books I do. And you know what? Our respective husbands don’t read fantasy at all. Ever.

However, I imagine many of those posting on the site will just say in answer: “Ah, then you’re the exception.”

So maybe I will ask…do you think female fantasy writers don’t like fantasy? (And once again, I’m not talking urban or  romantic fantasy of the kind that male readers largely seem to dodge.)

 And that’s just a start — all the names that popped into my head in the last few minutes. I am sure if I spent half an hour thinking, I could put up the names of 100 women writers who write the large fantasy canvas. And I wouldn’t mind betting that everyone of them LOVES epic fantasy and reads a great deal of it.

And I’d love to ask everyone of the writers mentioned what proportion of their fanmail is from female readers!