Collaborative writing is not a new phenomenon, nor is it specific to a particular genre of writing. In Rethinking Women's Collaborative Writing, Lorraine York presents an eminently readable study of the history of collaborative writing and common critical reactions to it. From Early Modern playwrights and poets to nineteenth-century novelists to contemporary writers and literary critics, York's survey focuses on women's collaborative writing in order to expose the long-standing prejudice against this form and to encourage readings of these works that take into account the personalities of the collaborators and the power dynamics of their authorial relationships.

York explores collaborative writing from women in Britain, the United States, Italy and France, illuminating the tensions in the collaborative process that grow out of important cultural, racial, and sexual differences between the authors. Current scholarship on collaborative writing is growing and Rethinking Women's Collaborative Writing presents a strong, thoughtful addition to the literature in the field.