Global Leaderboard 50 in view

Most Famous American Writers

Writing 1,575
United States 23,678
48 EA Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe American Poet 1809–1849
90 SK Stephen King Stephen King American Writer b. 1947
105 NC Noam Chomsky Noam Chomsky American Philosopher b. 1928
110 MT Mark Twain Mark Twain American Writer 1835–1910
134 SL Stan Lee American Comic 1922–2018
206 IA Isaac Asimov Isaac Asimov American Writer 1920–1992
266 HP H. P. Lovecraft H. P. Lovecraft American Novelist 1890–1937
315 BD Bette Davis Bette Davis American Biographer 1908–1989
438 JS John Steinbeck John Steinbeck American Writer 1902–1968
465 FS F. Scott Fitzgerald F. Scott Fitzgerald American Writer 1896–1940
475 HD Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau American Poet 1817–1862
531 AE Amelia Earhart Amelia Earhart American Author 1897–1937
637 ED Emily Dickinson Emily Dickinson American Writer 1830–1886
676 WW Walt Whitman Walt Whitman American Poet 1819–1892
715 JD John Dewey John Dewey American Philosopher 1859–1952
834 KV Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut American Playwright 1922–2007
921 EP Ezra Pound Ezra Pound American Poet 1885–1972
954 AG Allen Ginsberg Allen Ginsberg American Playwright 1926–1997
962 TW Tennessee Williams Tennessee Williams American Playwright 1911–1983
998 WJ William James William James American Philosopher 1842–1910
1,128 WE W. E. B. Du Bois W. E. B. Du Bois American Historian 1868–1963
1,137 GS Gertrude Stein Gertrude Stein American Writer 1874–1946
1,169 TM Toni Morrison Toni Morrison American Writer 1931–2019
1,188 NH Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne American Writer 1804–1864
1,229 GV Gore Vidal Gore Vidal American Playwright 1925–2012
1,557 RA Robert A. Heinlein Robert A. Heinlein American Writer 1907–1988
1,567 DB Dan Brown Dan Brown American Writer b. 1964
1,612 LR L. Ron Hubbard L. Ron Hubbard American Author 1911–1986
1,618 HB Harriet Beecher Stowe Harriet Beecher Stowe American Writer 1811–1896
1,796 LM Louisa May Alcott Louisa May Alcott American Writer 1832–1888
1,797 LH Langston Hughes Langston Hughes American Poet 1902–1967
1,815 HL Harper Lee Harper Lee American Writer 1926–2016
1,849 HM Henry Miller Henry Miller American Writer 1891–1980
1,870 PS Pearl S. Buck Pearl S. Buck American Writer 1892–1973
1,880 TP Thomas Pynchon Thomas Pynchon American Writer b. 1937
1,975 JG John Grisham John Grisham American Writer b. 1955
2,010 CP Cole Porter Cole Porter American Playwright 1891–1964
2,110 RE Roger Ebert Roger Ebert American Critic 1942–2013
2,371 JF James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper American Writer 1789–1851
2,400 WG William Gibson William Gibson American Writer b. 1948
2,434 JU John Updike American Poet 1932–2009
2,463 AW Alice Walker Alice Walker American Writer b. 1944
2,476 OH O. Henry O. Henry American Writer 1862–1910
2,525 CP Chuck Palahniuk Chuck Palahniuk American Writer b. 1962
2,540 DF David Foster Wallace David Foster Wallace American Writer 1962–2008
2,553 SB Saul Bellow Saul Bellow American Writer 1915–2005
2,667 LF L. Frank Baum L. Frank Baum American Author 1856–1919
2,780 SL Sinclair Lewis Sinclair Lewis American Novelist 1885–1951
2,789 JP James Patterson James Patterson American Author b. 1947
2,809 IB Isaac Bashevis Singer Isaac Bashevis Singer American Writer 1902–1991
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Ranked by cross-verified academic notability — how it works

By the numbers

Inside the United States Writers

1,575 notable people in this slice of the dataset.

Through the Decades

One face per decade — the most globally famous the united states writers born in each.

Notable Births by Decade

Notable births among the United States Writers peaked in the 1940s with 138 people.

What the United States Writers Are Known For

Click any row to drill into that filter.

Writer are the United States Writers's biggest group — 33% of all notables (522).

The United States Writers over-index on novelist — 34.1× the global rate.

  1. Writer522
  2. Novelist198
  3. Journalist187
  4. Poet137
  5. Historian126
  6. Author88
  7. Philosopher52
  8. Editor42
  1. Novelist19834.1×
  2. Editor4232.6×
  3. Biographer2025.2×
  4. Librarian2321.9×
  5. Publisher2919.4×
  6. Journalist18712.4×
  7. Scholar1710.7×
  8. Playwright299.8×

City Hot Spots

Cities that over-produce the United States Writers compared to the world average — multiplier shows how much more.