List of German women writers
This is a list of women writers who were born in Germany or whose writings are closely associated with that country.
A
- Maximiliane Ackers, lesbian actress, novelist, scriptwriter
- Martha Albrand, novelist
- Hannah Arendt, German Jewish political theorist
- Bettina von Arnim, writer, novelist
- Ludmilla Assing, short story writer, biographer
- Anita Augspurg, feminist, lawyer, actress
- Elisabeth Augustin, poet, short story writer, novelist, wrote in German and Dutch
- Frau Ava, first woman writer in German
B
- Ingrid Bachér, playwright, screenwriter
- Bertha Badt-Strauss, journalist, biographer, translator
- Zsuzsa Bánk, novelist
- Gertrud Bäumer, writer, feminist
- Sybille Bedford, German born English-language novelist, non-fiction writer, memoirist
- Maria Beig, novelist
- Margot Benary-Isbert, children's writer in German and English
- Josefa Berens-Totenohl, novelist
- Sibylle Berg, successful novelist, essayist, short story writer, playwright
- Dörthe Binkert, novelist, non-fiction writer
- Charlotte Birch-Pfeiffer, playwright, actress
- Anne Birk, novelist
- Ilse Blumenthal-Weiss, poet
- Helene Böhlau, novelist
- Emily Bold, novelist
- Margarete Böhme, novelist, author of Tagebuch einer Verlorenen
- Vera Botterbusch, journalist, film producer
- Angelika Brandt, deep-sea biologist, non-fiction writer
- Lily Braun, feminist writer
- Christine Brückner, novelist, short story writer, children's writer
- Traude Bührmann, novelist, journalist, translator
- Tanja Bruske, writer and journalist
C
- Marie Calm, instructional book writer, novelist, poet
- Elisabeth Castonier, children's writer, journalist, writing in German and English
- Helmina von Chézy, poet, playwright, librettist
- Helene Christaller, children's novelist
- Zehra Çırak, Turkish-born German poet, short story writer
- Hedwig Courths-Mahler, novelist
D
- Utta Danella, novelist
- Gertrud David, journalist, filmmaker
- Henriette Davidis, cookbook writer
- Hilde Domin, poet
- Marion Dönhoff, acclaimed journalist, non-fiction writer
- Doris Dörrie, novelist, film director
- Ingeborg Drewitz, playwright, novelist
- Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, poet
- Karen Duve, novelist and short story writer
E
- Elizabeth Charlotte, Princess Palatine , letter writer
- Margareta Ebner,, diarist, mystic
- Susanna Eger, cook and cookbook writer, author of Leipziger Kochbuch
- Gisela Elsner, novelist
- Helene von Engelhardt, Baltic German poet, writer, translator
- Aslı Erdoğan, human rights activist, novelist, columnist, one novel translated into English
- Jenny Erpenbeck, novelist
- Nataly von Eschstruth, novelist
F
- Eva Figes, German-born English novelist, critic, memoirist
- Caroline Auguste Fischer, writer and women's rights activist
- Marieluise Fleißer, playwright
- Meta Forkel-Liebeskind, writer, translator
- Julia Franck, novelist
- Louise von François, novelist
- Bella Fromm, journalist, diarist
- Cornelia Funke, children's writer, author of The Thief Lord, Inkheart trilogy
G
- Miriam Gebhardt, historian, non-fiction writer
- Doris Gercke,, pen name Mary-Jo Morell, crime thriller novelist
- Karen Gershon,, German-born English poet, novelist, non-fiction writer
- Glückel of Hameln, Yiddish-language diarist
- Helga Goetze, poet and artist
- Claire Goll, German-born poet, novelist, writing in German and French
- Natalie Grams, German physician, writer, scientific skeptic, former homeopath
- Argula von Grumbach, poet, letter writer, first Protestant woman writer
- Karoline von Günderrode, poet
H
- Ida, Countess of Hahn-Hahn, German novelist
- Thea von Harbou, novelist, screenwriter
- Petra Hartmann, journalist, novelist, children's writer
- Uta-Maria Heim, playwright, novelist, poet
- Emmy Hennings, poet, performer
- Luise Hensel, religious writer, poet
- Judith Hermann, short story writer
- Elisabeth von Heyking, novelist, travel writer, diarist
- Hildegard of Bingen, mystic, playwright, poet writing in Latin
- Wilhelmine von Hillern, actress, novelist, short story writer
- Karla Höcker, novelist, biographer
- Barbara Honigmann, novelist
- Hrotsvith von Gandersheim, dramatist, poet, writing in Latin
- Therese Huber, novelist, short story writer, essayist, translator
- Ricarda Huch, historian, novelist, poet
K
- Yadé Kara, Turkish-German novelist
- Anna Louisa Karsch, poet, letter writer
- Marie Luise Kaschnitz, leading post-war poet, short story writer, essayist
- Judith Kerr, German-born children's writer in English
- Hedwig Kettler, short story writer, activist, education reformer
- Irmgard Keun, novelist
- Johanna Kinkel, novelist, non-fiction works on music, autobiographer
- Sarah Kirsch, poet, translator
- Karin Kiwus, poet
- Annette Kolb, novelist, pacifist, non-fiction writer
- Gertrud Kolmar, poet
- Clementine Krämer, short story writer, poet, social worker, activist
- Ursula Krechel, poet, novelist, playwright, critic
- Brigitte Kronauer, novelist
- Isolde Kurz, acclaimed poet, short story writer
L
- Vera Lachmann, poet, classicist, educator
- Nuray Lale, Turkish-German writer, translator
- Ruth Landshoff, German-American actress, novelist, poet, columnist, wrote in German and English
- Katja Lange-Müller, novelist
- Elisabeth Langgässer, poet, novelist
- Sophie von La Roche, novelist
- Else Lasker-Schüler, poet, playwright
- Gertrud von Le Fort, novelist, poet, essayist
- Katerina Lemmel, letter-writer, nun
- Ellen Lenneck, novelist, short story writer
- Fanny Lewald, novelist, feminist
- Sonia Levitin, German-born English-language children's and young adults' writer, essayist
- Sibylle Lewitscharoff, novelist
- Mechtilde Lichnowsky, poet, playwright, essayist
- Angela Litschev, Bulgarian-born German poet
- Cornelia Lüdecke, polar researcher, historian
M
- Erika Mann, anti-Nazi writer, performer, daughter of Thomas Mann
- E. Marlitt, novelist
- Monika Maron, essayist, political writer
- Petra Mathers, German-born American children's writer, illustrator
- Mechthild of Magdeburg, mystic, writing in Low German
- Saint Mechtilde of Hackeborn, religious writer in Latin
- Sophie Mereau, novelist, poet
- Malwida von Meysenbug, political writer, memoirist
- Agnes Miegel, journalist, writer, poet
- Jo Mihaly, diarist, novelist, dancer
- Irmtraud Morgner, novelist
- Petra Morsbach, novelist
- Lisel Mueller, German-born American poet
- Luise Mühlbach, historical novelist, many works translated into English
- Inge Müller, poet, playwright, children's writer
- Herta Müller, Romanian-born German novelist, poet, and essayist, Nobel Prize winner
- Inge Müller, poet
N
- Benedikte Naubert, historical novelist
- Friederike Caroline Neuber, playwright, actress
- Charlotte Niese, non-fiction writer, poet
- Ingrid Noll, novelist
- Helga M. Novak, poet, political writer
O
- Louise Otto-Peters, poet, journalist, feminist
- Angelika Overath, author, journalist
- Emine Sevgi Özdamar, Turkish-born German novelist, playwright
P
- Henriette Paalzow, historical novelist
- Peggy Parnass, actress, columnist, court reporter, short story writer, memoirist
- Annette Pehnt, literary critic
- Marie Petersen, story writer, author of the fairy tale Princess Ilse
- Luise von Ploennies, poet, translator
- Karla Poewe, anthropologist, non-fiction writer
- Luise F. Pusch, linguist, feminist, essayist
R
- Elisa von der Recke , writer, poet from Courland
- Eva Gabriele Reichmann, historian, works on anti-Semitism
- Brigitte Reimann, novelist
- Annemarie Reinhard, novelist, children's writer
- Christa Reinig, poet, novelist, non-fiction writer, playwright
- Gabriele Reuter, novelist, essayist, children's writer
- Jutta Richter, children's writer
- Brigitte Riebe , novelist
- Luise Rinser, novelist, autobiographer, children's writer
- Ruth Margarete Roellig, novelist, travel writer, journalist
- Anna Rosmus, non-fiction writer, works on Nazi treatment of Jews
- Friederike Roth, playwright
- Alice Rühle-Gerstel, journalist, psychologist, feminist
- Anna Rüling, pen name of Theo Anna Sprüngli, journalist, LGBT activist
S
- Lessie Sachs, poet and artist
- Nelly Sachs, poet, playwright
- Rahel Sanzara,, novelist
- Oda Schaefer, poet, journalist
- Caroline Schelling, essayist, critic, correspondent
- Dorothea von Schlegel, novelist, translator
- Elke Schmitter, novelist
- Elizabeth of Schönau, visionary writing in Latin
- Amalie Schoppe, children's writer
- Claudia Schoppmann, historian, nonfiction writer
- Martina Schradi, writer, cartoonist
- Adele Schreiber-Krieger, journalist, screenwriter, politician
- Angelika Schrobsdorff, best selling novelist, actress
- Helga Schubert, novelist
- Sibylla Schwarz, Baroque poet
- Anna Seghers, novelist, author of The Seventh Cross
- Angela Sommer-Bodenburg, children's writer, author of The Little Vampire
- Ilse von Stach, playwright, novelist, poet
- Charlotte von Stein,, dramatist, friend of Goethe
- Gisela Steineckert, poet, songwriter
- Ginka Steinwachs, novelist, playwright, non-fiction writer
- Eva Strittmatter, poet, children's writer
- Antje Rávic Strubel, novelist
- Karin Struck, short story writer, novelist
T
- Fanny Tarnow, short story writer, playwright
- Renata Thiele, Polish-born German novelist, short story writer, editor
- Adrienne Thomas, pen name of Hertha A. Deutsch, autobiographical novelist
- Dorothea Tieck, translator of Shakespeare
- Canan Topçu, Turkish-German writer, works on Turkish immigration in German
V
- Rahel Varnhagen, essayist, correspondent
- Clara Viebig, novelist, playwright
- Helene Voigt-Diederichs, travel writer, novelist, short story writer
W
- Marianne Weber, women's rights activist, non-fiction writer
- Ruth Weiss, German-born American poet, performer, playwright
- Anna Elisabet Weirauch, playwright, novelist
- Ottilie Wildermuth, children's writer, novelist, biographer
- Gabriele Wohmann, novelist, short story writer
- Christa Wolf, novelist, critic, essayist
- Caroline von Wolzogen, novelist, biographer
- Mathilde Wurm, politician, journalist
Z
- Sidonia Hedwig Zäunemann, poet
- Susanna Elizabeth Zeidler, poet
- Juli Zeh, novelist, author of Eagles and Angels
- Eva Zeller, poet, novelist
- Hedda Zinner, political writer
- Kathinka Zitz-Halein, poet, biographer
- Unica Zürn, poet, artist