International Women's Day : Female Authors

Famous for the writings in the Mystery, specifically Whodunits, Agatha Christie is credited with being the creator of character such as Hecule Poirot and Miss Marple. With minimum-estimated sales of 2 billion and 85 books under her belt, Agatha Christie is no doubt the best-selling female fiction author.

This award winning author brought the world Harry Potter and the magical world of wizardry. Selling a minimum of 600 million books and having a net worth of an estimated £820 million, she is one of the richest and most well-known female authors.

Known as the Queen of Romance, Dame Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland has cemented herself as one of the best-selling authors worldwide of the 20th century. With an estimated sale of more than 750 million copies of her books, the step-grandmother of the late Princess Diana truly left a mark on the literary world.

It is nearly impossible for anyone to look through a selection of books and not come across at least one of the 190 books written by this famous American author. Known for her romance which might include a darker element, over 500 million copies of her work has been sold but this could be upwards of 800 million.

This American author started out writing after her husband challenged her to write a better love story than those she had grown up reading and as a result she was the first female writer to be published by the British Publisher Harlequin UK ltd. More than 300 million copies of her books have sold worldwide and have been translated into 19 languages.

The younger sister of Dame Joan Collins, Jackie carved her own place in the world as a writer and actress, writing 32 novels which have all appeared in The New York Time best sellers list. Her books have sold a minimum of 250 million copies but it could be upward of 500 million copies and translated into 40 languages.

Janice Berenstain, along with her husband Stanley, are best known for creating the book series The Berenstain Bears. The first copy of their famous series was published in 1962 and has sold over 250 million copies worldwide and was turned into a children’s cartoon series.

This American Author is best known for her work The Baby-Sitters Club series along with other standalone novels. Due to the popularity of The Baby-Sitters Club series, she has sold more than 172 million copies of her books.

Anne Rice was an American author who specialised in gothic fiction and Christian literature. Her best-known works are a series of novels known as The Vampire Chronicles, with the first book, Interview with the Vampire, being made into a film (1994) and more recently a TV series. Her books have sold over 150 million copies minimum but the true number is still unknown.

With over 225 romance novels under her belt it is no wonder that Nora Roberts was the first author to be inducted into the Romance Writers of America Hall of Fame. As of 2011, her novels have spent a combined 861 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list, with 176 weeks being in the top spot. She has sold between 145 million and 400 million copies of her books.

Agatha Christie (1890-1976): The "Queen of Crime," Christie is best known for her detective novels featuring Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, such as Murder on the Orient Express (1934).

Anne Rice (1941-2021): Renowned for her vampire chronicles, Rice's Interview with the Vampire (1976) is a gothic novel that explores themes of immortality, loneliness, and the human condition through the eyes of a centuries-old vampire.

Charlotte Brontë (1816-1855): Brontë's gothic novel Jane Eyre (1847) is a classic coming-of-age story that explores themes of independence, self-discovery, and love.

Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989): Known for her suspenseful novels and short stories, du Maurier's Rebecca (1938) is a gothic masterpiece that tells the story of a young woman who marries a mysterious widower and becomes increasingly unsettled by the shadow of his deceased first wife.

Emily Brontë (1816-1855): One of the Brontë sisters, Emily's Wuthering Heights (1847) is a gothic romance classic that blends elements of love, revenge, and social commentary with a hauntingly beautiful Yorkshire setting.

Harper Lee (1926-2016): Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) is a powerful indictment of racism and a timeless story about childhood innocence and the loss of it.

Jane Austen (1775-1817): Known for her witty social commentary and timeless stories of love and marriage, Austen's most famous novel is Pride and Prejudice (1813).

J.K. Rowling (1965-present): The creator of the beloved Harry Potter series (1997-2007), Rowling has brought magic and wonder to countless readers of all ages.

Margaret Atwood (1939-present): A prolific author of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction, Atwood is best known for her dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale (1985), which explores themes of oppression, gender roles, and totalitarian regimes.

Mary Shelley (1797-1851): Considered the "mother of science fiction," Shelley's Frankenstein (1818) remains a chilling masterpiece that explores themes of creation, responsibility,