What is a girl author?

Planning to do research is almost as satisfying as actually doing it. I'll be doing a little research at the Bancroft Library this summer, on Mark Twain and his very dubious notions of girlhood. (This has not gone uncommented in the scholarship by any means, but I'll be focusing in particular on the notion of girl authorship with respect to Twain's daughter Susy, in contrast with, for instance, Emmeline Grangerford). Twain is one of those straight-talkers who can never, in fact, be taken straight. I'm looking forward to getting started on this project. But first I need to finish the one I'm currently doing! On we go.