If you want pointers for how to become a better writer, it is only natural to look to those who achieved significant success before you in literature. While it may be hard to get these people to share advice directly with you, you can read their books and try to understand what made them influential and well-known. In this article, we have gathered 7 of the most influential women writers of all time – influential in terms of their effect on literature and society. George Maybach explains.
British writer Virginia Woolf in 1902.
Jane Austen (1775-1817)
Jane Austen is known for being one of the first female authors to achieve significant fame and success while making women the central figures of her novels. She greatly influenced English literature in her own time and continues to do so today, as her works remain the object of numerous literary studies because of both their historical context and Austen’s literary techniques. Austen's most famous books include Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, and Mansfield Park. And no doubt if today you could ask Jane Austen for help to “write my discussion post,” it would undoubtedly be a great post!
Mary Shelley (1797-1851)
Mary Shelley is best known as the author of Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, an early Gothic novel and the work that probably influenced this genre and modern horror fiction more than any other book. However, her literary exploits are not limited to Frankenstein, although her other works are not nearly as well known. She wrote other novels, short stories, biographies, travel journals, and did editorial work.
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)
The author of some 1,800 poems, Emily Dickinson is considered to be one of the most important American poets, greatly influencing the poetic tradition of the country and defining the direction in which it developed afterwards. However, only 10 of her poems were published in her lifetime, in part as Dickinson’s writing was highly unconventional for the period.
Ayn Rand (1905-1982)
Ayn Rand is the pen name of Russian-born American writer Alisa Rosenbaum. Most famous for two novels, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, where she expressed her views on the economy and philosophy, she was a strong proponent of reason, rationality and laissez-faire capitalism as well as the founder of the philosophical system Objectivism. Her books, both fiction and nonfiction, tend to cause either adoration or virulent hatred in those who read them – while you may dislike her and her message, you have to agree that she is one of the most influential and controversial authors of the 20th century.
Agatha Christie (1890-1976)
The author of more than sixty novels and numerous short stories, plays, poems and other works, Agatha Christie is primarily known for her murder mysteries, especially those featuring two iconic characters, Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She became one of the most influential authors of murder mysteries and crime fiction, helping to cement the tropes, imagery and conventions of these genres. Her influence remains obvious even now, as many murder mystery books follow her conventions, and her own work remains an important part of popular culture, finding new representation in films, plays, radio shows and video games. She even wrote the world's longest running play, The Mousetrap. Her most famous book is probably Murder on the Orient Express.
Ursula Le Guin (1922-2018)
Ursula Le Guin is one of the most important writers in the genre of speculative fiction, on the same level as J.R.R Tolkien, Frank Herbert, and Robert Heinlein. Author of more than twenty novels and a hundred short stories, she also wrote works of literary criticism, poetry and books for children. In her work, she touched upon topics as diverse as religion, gender, and social and environmental issues in ways aimed at both children and adults. It would not be an exaggeration to say that she, to a significant degree, determined how speculative fiction (both fantasy and science fiction) has developed for the last few decades. Two of her most famous books are A Wizard of Earthsea and The Left Hand of Darkness.
Virginia Woolf (1882-1941)
Virginia Woolf is a British writer who became one of the most iconic modernist authors. In her work, she used streams of consciousness – the same narrative technique that is used in Joyce’s Ulysses – and helped popularize it among 20th century writers. A few of her most famous books are Mrs Dalloway and A Room of One's Own.
Of course, these are not nearly all the female writers who made and continue to make a significant impact on literature, intellectual life and the ideas of this world. Feel free add in the names of your favorite female authors in the comments!
Finally, if you need to write about any of these authors, or indeed other male or female writers, you can ask a writing service expert here to help guide you in your endeavors.
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