WITMonth Day 12 | The 50 Day Countdown (part 1)

Exactly two months ago on June 12th 2019, I launched a new project ahead of WITMonth - the 50-Day Countdown. The list is one of my favorite things that I've ever done in the context of this project, promoting a single woman writer from around the world every day for fifty straight days. Each tweet included a photo of the writer (usually from Wikipedia or Goodreads, or credited from another source), her country of origin, occasionally her language of origin (if relevant), and a brief line about her work. Sometimes I referenced recently released books, sometimes I tagged publishers, sometimes I simply mentioned what the author is best known for.

It's a list I'm extraordinarily proud of. I haven't read all of the authors on it (in fact, I've only read half!), but I learned a lot in preparing it and I can't wait to read more from every single author on it. And so, this time counting up, the #WITMonth 50 Day Countdown:

1. Trifonia Melibea Obono - Equatorial Guinea
2. Rania Mamoun - Sudan
3. Natalia Toledo - Mexico
4. Eileen Chang - China
5. Gabriela Alemán - Ecuador
6. Leila Abouzeid - Morocco
7. Rita Indiana - Dominican Republic
8. Qiu Miajoin - Taiwan
9. Gabriella Ghermandi - Ethiopia/Italy
10. Nawal El Saadawi - Egypt
11. Yoko Ogawa - Japan
12. Okky Madasari - Indonesia
13. Marie NDiaye - France
14. Goli Taraghi - Iran
15. Niviaq Korneliussen - Greenland
16. Excilia Saldaña - Cuba
17. Naomi Fontaine - Canada
18. Yoko Tawada - Japan/Germany
19. Claribel Alegría - El Salvador/Nicaragua
20. Yu Miri - Japan
21. Yanick Lahens - Haiti
22. Paulina Chiziane - Mozambique
23. Qurratulain Hyder - India
24. Nu Nu Yi - Myanmar
25. Mariama Bâ - Senegal
26. Margarita García Robayo - Colombia
27. Mahasweta Devi - India
28. Scholastique Mukasonga - Rwanda/France
29. Ece Temelkuran - Turkey
30. C. S. Lakshmi (Ambai) - India
31. Négar Djavadi - Iran/France
32. Frieda Ekotto - Cameroon/Switzerland
33. Cynthia McLeod - Suriname
34. Jokha Alharthi - Oman
35. Tanella Boni - Côte d'Ivoire
36. Nathacha Appanah - Mauritius/France
37. Dương Thu Hương - Vietnam
38. Mayra Montero - Puerto Rico
39. Dunya Mikhail - Iraq/US
40. Khadija Mastoor (Mastur) - Pakistan
41. Simone Schwarz-Bart - Guadeloupe/France
42. Ghada al-Samman - Syria
43. Justine Mintsa - Gabon
44. Duanwad Pimwana - Thailand
45. Hoada Barakat - Lebanon
46. Ronit Matalon - Israel
47. Raja (Raja'a) Alem - Saudi Arabia
48. Sulochana Manandhar - Nepal
49. Assia Djebar - Algeria
50. Aigerim Tazhi - Kazakhstan

I loved compiling this list for a lot of reasons... but it's also an experience that has left me with a lot more to say.

(To be continued)