One of the first periodicals written primarily for, though not aimed solely at, an audience of women, the Female Tatler charmed early eighteenth-century Londoners with its lively wit and scathing satire. In circulation for less than one year (1709-1710), it nevertheless marks an important point in magazine publication history and in female authorship and readership. Purportedly written by women-first by a Mrs. Crackenthorpe and then taken over by a "Society of Ladies"-the Female Tatler is often passed over, especially in relation to its counterpart and inspiration, Richard Steele's periodical the Tatler. Yet the Female Tatler capably stands on its own.