I've talked about how all movies about women seem to be relegated to chick flick status no matter what they are about. It's no surprise that it's happening for books too:
Having cottoned on to the fact that chick lit books sell like cupcakes, publishers are now adding chick lit-style covers to any book written by a woman whether it fits the genre definition or not.The great chick lit cover-up (The Guardian)
...books aimed at women are becoming increasingly homogenised, girly and bland-looking.
But this affliction doesn't only blight women who write. Male authors who create sympathetic female characters are also at risk. Douglas Kennedy's work is frequently lauded for its intelligence and vision, yet his novels all feature non-descript pictures of wistful-looking women and the ubiquitous flowing script that denotes a female-friendly beach book.
