To celebrate International Women’s Day we asked our writers to tell us about the women who inspire them.
By Simran Kaur Takhi
What a great way to celebrate international women’s day by paying homage to one of the most prominent feminists of modern times: Caitlin Moran.
Since her award winning literary debut How to Be a Women back In 2011, Caitlin has been inspiring women and men of all ages to discuss what it means to be a women in an era of growing misogyny.
So, why has Caitlin risen to become such a prominent figure in modern times? Well to put it simply, she talks about taboo subjects in a way like no other. Thanks to Caitlin’s sparkling wit and humour, subjects previously seen as cultural taboos such as abortion, masturbation, periods, body hair and promiscuity, to name a few, are voiced with a grace and elegance that can’t help but empower generations of women and young girls, despite the stigma that is unfortunately still attached to them.
These issues need to be brought to attention because they are all essentially, real issues that affect real women and by being writing about them in depth. With the use of humour, these issues become much more accessible to the wider public.
In relation to the subject of abortion Caitlin once stated:
‘One in three women in the Western world will end up having an abortion, but they never talk about it. When you keep silent about that stuff, it is because you are embarrassed by the societal distaste of the topic.’
Caitlin is an instrumental figure in abolishing societal distaste for issues that relate to women. She makes it clear to a generation of young girls and women that such issues shouldn’t be shied away from but rather, should be discussed in a way that empowers women and this is evident though her books and interviews.
And that is why I’m celebrating Caitlin Moran this International Women’s Day.
Featured image and gallery: Hoang Phan Notebooks were carried from one workshop to another. Writers from different generations sat around tables, sharing manuscripts and listening to each other. Outdoors, small groups strolled along Oxford Road, pausing before buildings steeped in literary history. This was the scene during the Manchester Writing School Summer Festival 2026, held…
Featured image: Katja Ogrin With many sore heads and limbs this morning after the most hardcore day of the festival taking place yesterday, many are recovering from the moshing and pit brutality of the previous day’s antics. As the tradition of a morning movie in the Serpents Lair prevails, the crowd sprawls out onto the plush,…
Featured image: Abbi Draper After an electrifying start to the weekend, with temperatures slowly climbing, many lather themselves in suncream, shed their band shirts and rise from their tents to trek towards the arena. Saturday has big things incoming for the humans of Bloodstock 2026. Some pace themselves for the day and hide from the early…
Featured image: Abbi Draper After a memorable Thursday opener, Bloodstock 2026 opens its gates once again onto the Hallowed Grounds of Catton Park, kicking off day two of its 25th-anniversary celebration of metal. As the sun rises on Catton Park, festivalgoers emerge from their tents to prepare for another day of mayhem. The morning brings…
Leave a reply