Lay by your needles ladies, take the pen

This anthology contains long extracts from fifty early modern texts, including witchcraft pamphlets, letters and other manuscript material, prophetic texts, practical books and petitions, as well as the more widely recognised genres of prose fiction and autobiography. The women writers themselves represent a range of different social, religious and political positions. Texts by male writers are also included to encourage readers to engage with gendered poetics of literary production.

The result is a comprehensive introduction to early modern women's writing that also encourages the exploration of the differences between women.