One of the greatest sci-fi writers of all time is a woman. Most consider her to be the best. Ursula LeGuin.

And she absolutely is not the only one. There are plenty of very talented and very popular women authors in the genre.

Margaret Atwood just wants to be thought of as literary.

The handmaid's tale is without a doubt speculative fiction (SF), the umbrella term for writing that includes sci-fi, fantasy, alternative history, etc.