SOURCE: Wingfield, Rachel. “Lesbian Writers in the Mainstream: Sara Maitland, Jeanette Winterson and Emma Donoghue.” In Beyond Sex and Romance?: The Politics of Contemporary Lesbian Fiction, edited by Elaine Hutton, pp. 60-80. London: Women's Press, 1998.

In the following essay, Wingfield analyzes the works of Sara Maitland, Jeanette Winterson, and Emma Donoghue in the context of the history of lesbian literature, comparing and contrasting their handling of themes and characters.

Lesbians in the Mainstream Before the Backlash

I am beginning with a contradiction. In a chapter on lesbians in mainstream publishing I am going to start with—and keep returning to—the work of Sara Maitland. Responses to this decision to date have ranged from ‘Sara Maitland isn't a lesbian, is she?’ to ‘Sara Maitland, isn't she married to a vicar?¹ Personally, I have no doubts at all about including Sara Maitland's writing in a discussion on lesbian fiction...