The New York Times bestseller list, once the bastion of masculine authorship, is increasingly becoming the domain of female writers, according to a study conducted by an on-line publishing website.
The study examined the list of hardcover novels from the mid-fifties to the present and found that between 1955 and 1964, women accounted for almost 18 per cent of the total number one bestsellers.
In the last decade, however, 46 per cent of all bestselling authors have been women. This year has boasted an even 50 per cent so far.
Currently, four of the five top-selling books are by women.
The study was conducted by lulu.com, a website that lets amateur authors publish and sell their books on-line.