Who Are the Best Authors of All Time? A Ranking Based on Popularity, Influence, and Literary Merit

Petik.net - Who are the best authors of all time? This is a question that has been debated for centuries by readers, critics, scholars, and writers themselves.

There is no definitive answer, as different criteria can be used to measure an author’s greatness. However, some factors that are commonly considered are:

Popularity: How many copies of their books have been sold, how widely they have been read and translated, and how loyal their fan base is.
Influence: How much they have shaped the literary landscape, inspired other writers, and contributed to the culture and society of their time and beyond.
Literary merit: How well they have mastered the craft of writing, how original and creative their ideas and style are, and how they have explored universal themes and human emotions.

Based on these factors, we have compiled a ranking of the best authors of all time. This ranking is not meant to be definitive or objective, but rather a subjective and personal opinion based on our research and analysis.

We have also included some examples of their most famous works and some interesting facts about their lives and careers. Here is our list:

Mark Twain (1835-1910)

Mark Twain is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers and humorists of all time. He is best known for his novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), which are considered classics of American literature and culture.

Twain was also a prolific writer of short stories, essays, travel books, and speeches. He used his wit, satire, and social commentary to criticize the hypocrisy and injustice of his society, especially on issues such as slavery, racism, imperialism, and religion.

He also invented new words and phrases that are still used today, such as “gilded age”, “the damned human race”, and “there is no such thing as a free lunch”. Some interesting facts about Mark Twain are:

His real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. He adopted the pen name Mark Twain from a riverboat term meaning “two fathoms deep”.
He was born two weeks after Halley’s Comet appeared in 1835 and died one day after it reappeared in 1910. He predicted this coincidence in 1909, saying “I came in with Halley’s Comet in 1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it.”
He was a friend of Nikola Tesla and visited his laboratory often. He also patented three inventions of his own: a self-pasting scrapbook, an improvement in adjustable and detachable straps for garments, and a history trivia game.
He was an avid traveler and visited Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and South America. He wrote about his experiences in books such as The Innocents Abroad (1869), A Tramp Abroad (1880), Following the Equator (1897), and The Mysterious Stranger (1916).

Jane Austen (1775-1817)

Jane Austen is one of the most influential and beloved English novelists of all time. She is best known for her six novels: Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), Emma (1815), Northanger Abbey (1818), and Persuasion (1818).

These novels are renowned for their realism, wit, irony, social criticism, moral insight, and romantic comedy. Austen created memorable characters such as Elizabeth Bennet, Mr. Darcy, Emma Woodhouse, Mr. Knightley, Anne Elliot, Captain Wentworth, and many others.

She also depicted the life and manners of the landed gentry and the middle class in England during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Some interesting facts about Jane Austen are:

She never married or had children. She had several suitors in her life, but none of them resulted in a lasting relationship. She was once engaged to a wealthy man named Harris Bigg-Wither for one night but changed her mind the next morning.
She wrote most of her novels in secret at a small table in the family sitting room. She would hide her manuscripts under a piece of blotting paper whenever someone entered the room.
She died at the age of 41 from an unknown illness. Some scholars have speculated that she might have suffered from Addison’s disease, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, or arsenic poisoning.
She was not famous during her lifetime. Her novels were published anonymously or under a pseudonym. Her identity as an author was revealed only after her death by her brother Henry. She became more popular and respected in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially after the publication of her nephew’s biography A Memoir of Jane Austen (1869).

Charles Dickens (1812-1870)

Charles Dickens is one of the most popular and acclaimed English writers of all time. He is best known for his novels, such as Oliver Twist (1837-1839), A Christmas Carol (1843), David Copperfield (1849-1850), Bleak House (1852-1853), A Tale of Two Cities (1859), and Great Expectations (1860-1861).

These novels are famous for their vivid characters, complex plots, social realism, humor, and pathos. Dickens also wrote short stories, essays, articles, and letters. He was a champion of the poor, the oppressed, and the marginalized in his society.

He exposed the evils of child labor, debtors’ prisons, industrialization, corruption, and injustice. He also celebrated the values of family, friendship, generosity, and compassion. Some interesting facts about Charles Dickens are:

He had a difficult childhood. His father was imprisoned for debt when he was 12 years old. He had to work in a factory to support his family. He later used his experiences as inspiration for some of his novels, such as Oliver Twist and David Copperfield.
He was a prolific and successful writer. He wrote 15 novels, 5 novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction pieces. He also edited several magazines and journals. He was one of the first writers to serialize his novels in weekly or monthly installments. He had a large and loyal readership in Britain and abroad.
He was a celebrity in his time. He gave public readings of his works to thousands of people. He also traveled extensively in Europe and America. He met many famous people, such as Queen Victoria, Abraham Lincoln, Edgar Allan Poe, and Hans Christian Andersen.
He died suddenly at the age of 58 from a stroke. He was working on his last novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1870) at the time. The novel was left unfinished and has sparked many theories and speculations about its ending.

Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910)

Leo Tolstoy is one of the greatest Russian writers and thinkers of all time. He is best known for his novels War and Peace (1865-1869) and Anna Karenina (1873-1877), which are considered among the finest works of world literature.

These novels are epic in scope, rich in detail, profound in philosophy, and realistic in portrayal of human nature. Tolstoy also wrote short stories, essays, memoirs, diaries, and letters.

He explored various themes such as love, death, war, peace, religion, morality, art, politics, and social issues. He was a moralist and a pacifist who advocated non-violence, vegetarianism, anarchism, and Christian anarchism.

Some interesting facts about Leo Tolstoy are:

He was born into a wealthy and noble family. He inherited a large estate called Yasnaya Polyana when he was 19 years old. He lived there for most of his life with his wife Sofia and their 13 children.
He served in the army during the Crimean War (1853-1856). He witnessed the horrors of war firsthand and wrote about them in his early works such as Sevastopol Sketches (1855-1856) and The Cossacks (1863).
He had a spiritual crisis in his midlife. He became disillusioned with his privileged lifestyle and questioned the meaning of life. He renounced his aristocratic status and embraced a simple and ascetic way of living. He also developed his own version of Christianity based on the teachings of Jesus.
He died at the age of 82 from pneumonia. He left his home secretly in the middle of the night to escape from his family conflicts and seek solitude. He died at a remote railway station surrounded by strangers.

William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world’s pre-eminent dramatist. He is best known for his 37 plays, which include tragedies such as Hamlet (1603), Macbeth (1606), Othello (1604), King Lear (1606), and Romeo and Juliet (1597); comedies such as A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1595), Twelfth Night (1602), As You Like It (1599), and The Merchant of Venice (1596); histories such as Richard III (1593), Henry V (1599), Julius Caesar (1599), and Antony and Cleopatra (1607); and romances such as The Tempest (1611) and The Winter’s Tale (1611).

Shakespeare also wrote 154 sonnets and several poems. These plays and poems are admired for their artistic excellence, linguistic innovation, dramatic intensity, psychological insight, and cultural influence.

Shakespeare also created some of the most memorable characters in literature, such as Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, Lear, Juliet, Falstaff, Prospero, and many others.

He also coined many words and phrases that are still used today, such as “to be or not to be”, “the green-eyed monster”, “a rose by any other name”, and “the world’s your oyster”.

Some interesting facts about William Shakespeare are:

He was born and died on the same date: April 23. He was baptized on April 26, 1564 and died on April 23, 1616. He was 52 years old when he died.
He married Anne Hathaway when he was 18 years old and she was 26. They had three children: Susanna, Hamnet, and Judith. Hamnet died at the age of 11 from unknown causes.
He moved to London in the late 1580s and became an actor, playwright, and shareholder of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, later known as the King’s Men. He performed at the Globe Theatre and other venues. He also wrote for other companies and patrons.
He retired to his hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon around 1613 and died there three years later. He left most of his estate to his eldest daughter Susanna and his second-best bed to his wife Anne.
He is buried at the Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon. His grave bears an epitaph that warns anyone from moving his bones:

Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare, To digg the dust encloased heare: Bleste be ye man yt spares thes stones, And curst be he yt moves my bones.

Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616)

Miguel de Cervantes is widely regarded as the greatest Spanish writer and one of the founders of modern literature. He is best known for his novel Don Quixote (1605-1615), which is considered one of the first and most influential novels in history.

The novel tells the story of a middle-aged man who becomes obsessed with chivalric romances and decides to become a knight-errant. Along with his faithful squire Sancho Panza, he embarks on a series of adventures that are both comic and tragic.

The novel is a masterpiece of satire, parody, realism, fantasy, and metafiction. Cervantes also wrote other works such as Novelas ejemplares (1613), a collection of 12 short stories; La Galatea (1585), a pastoral romance; and Los trabajos de Persiles y Sigismunda (1617), a Byzantine novel.

Some interesting facts about Miguel de Cervantes are:

He had a adventurous and turbulent life. He fought in the Battle of Lepanto (1571) against the Ottoman Empire and lost the use of his left hand. He was captured by Barbary pirates in 1575 and spent five years as a slave in Algiers until he was ransomed by his family. He also faced poverty, imprisonment, exile, and lawsuits throughout his life.
He had a rivalry with another famous Spanish writer, Lope de Vega. They competed for fame, popularity, and patronage in the literary scene of their time. They also criticized each other’s works in their writings.
He died on the same date as William Shakespeare: April 23, 1616. However, due to the difference between the Julian calendar used in England and the Gregorian calendar used in Spain, they actually died 10 days apart.
He is buried at the Convent of the Barefoot Trinitarians in Madrid. His grave was rediscovered in 2015 after a four-year search by a team of experts.

Dante Alighieri (1265-1321)

Dante Alighieri is widely regarded as the greatest Italian writer and one of the most important poets of all time. He is best known for his epic poem The Divine Comedy (1308-1321), which is considered one of the greatest works of world literature and a masterpiece of human thought.

The poem describes Dante’s journey through the three realms of the afterlife: Hell (Inferno), Purgatory (Purgatorio), and Paradise (Paradiso). Along the way, he meets various historical and mythical figures who represent different aspects of human nature, sin, virtue, and salvation.

The poem is also an allegory of Dante’s own life, exile, love, politics, philosophy, and religion. The poem is written in Italian using a rhyme scheme called terza rima and a meter called hendecasyllabic.

Some interesting facts about Dante Alighieri are:

He was born in Florence, Italy, into a prominent family that was involved in the political and cultural life of the city. He was a member of the Guelph faction that supported the Pope against the Emperor in the conflict known as the Guelphs and Ghibellines.
He fell in love with a woman named Beatrice when he was nine years old and she was eight. He saw her only twice in his life and never spoke to her. She died at the age of 24 and inspired Dante’s poetry and his vision of Paradise.
He was exiled from Florence in 1302 for his political involvement and his support of the White Guelphs, a moderate faction that opposed the Pope’s interference in the city’s affairs. He wandered from city to city, seeking refuge and patronage. He never returned to his hometown and died in Ravenna, Italy, in 1321.
He is buried at the Basilica of San Francesco in Ravenna. His tomb bears an inscription that reads: Onorate l’altissimo poeta L’ombra sua torna, ch’era dipartita Honor the most exalted poet His shade returns, which had departed.

Homer (8th or 7th century BC)

Homer is widely regarded as the greatest ancient Greek poet and one of the earliest and most influential writers of all time. He is best known for his two epic poems: The Iliad and The Odyssey. The Iliad tells the story of the Trojan War, a ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states led by King Agamemnon.

The poem focuses on the wrath of Achilles, the greatest Greek warrior, and his conflict with Agamemnon over a captive woman named Briseis. The poem also depicts the intervention of various gods and goddesses who favor or oppose different sides in the war.

The Odyssey tells the story of Odysseus, one of the Greek heroes who fought in the Trojan War, and his ten-year journey home to his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus.

The poem describes his encounters with various monsters, witches, nymphs, and gods who either help or hinder his return. The poems are written in Greek using a meter called dactylic hexameter.

Some interesting facts about Homer are:

His life and identity are shrouded in mystery. He is traditionally believed to have lived in the 8th or 7th century BC, but some scholars have argued that he might have lived earlier or later, or that he might not have existed at all. He is also said to have been blind, but this is based on a legend that derives from his name, which means “hostage” or “blind” in some dialects of Greek.
He is credited with being the author of both The Iliad and The Odyssey, but some scholars have suggested that they might have been composed by different poets or by a group of poets over a long period of time. They also argue that the poems might have been based on oral traditions that were transmitted and modified by generations of bards before being written down.
He is regarded as the father of Western literature and culture. His poems have influenced countless writers, artists, philosophers, and historians throughout history. They have also inspired many adaptations, translations, interpretations, and imitations in various media and genres.

William Faulkner (1897-1962)

William Faulkner is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers and one of the most influential novelists of the 20th century. He is best known for his novels set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, which depict the history, culture, and society of the American South from various perspectives and time periods.

Some of his most famous novels are The Sound and the Fury (1929), As I Lay Dying (1930), Light in August (1932), Absalom, Absalom! (1936), and The Reivers (1962).

These novels are renowned for their experimental techniques, such as stream of consciousness, multiple narrators, non-linear chronology, and complex symbolism.

Faulkner also wrote short stories, essays, screenplays, and poems. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1949 for his powerful and artistically unique contribution to the modern American novel.

Some interesting facts about William Faulkner are:

He was born in New Albany, Mississippi, but grew up in Oxford, Mississippi. He dropped out of high school and college and worked as a bank clerk, bookstore owner, postmaster, carpenter, painter, and journalist before becoming a full-time writer.
He served in the Canadian Royal Air Force during World War I but never saw combat. He also served as a screenwriter for Hollywood studios during World War II and wrote scripts for films such as The Big Sleep (1946) and To Have and Have Not (1944).

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He was an alcoholic and struggled with addiction for most of his life. He often drank while writing and suffered from bouts of depression, anxiety, and paranoia. He also had several affairs and a turbulent marriage with his wife Estelle.
He was a mentor and friend to many other writers, such as Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, Truman Capote, and Flannery O’Connor. He also influenced many modern and contemporary writers, such as Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Toni Morrison, Cormac McCarthy, and Haruki Murakami.
He died of a heart attack at the age of 64 in Byhalia, Mississippi. His last words were reportedly “I’m cold”. He is buried at St. Peter’s Cemetery in Oxford, Mississippi. His epitaph reads: Beloved, go with God But not too far.

J.R.R. Tolkien (1892-1973)

J.R.R. Tolkien is widely regarded as the father of modern fantasy literature and one of the most influential writers of all time. He is best known for his novels The Hobbit (1937) and The Lord of the Rings (1954-1955), which are set in a fictional world called Middle-earth.

These novels are epic in scale, rich in detail, profound in theme, and imaginative in creation. They tell the story of a quest to destroy the One Ring, a powerful and evil artifact that threatens to enslave all living beings.

Along the way, they introduce a vast array of characters, races, languages, cultures, histories, and mythologies that make up the fabric of Middle-earth. Tolkien also wrote other works related to Middle-earth, such as The Silmarillion (1977), The Children of Hurin (2007), and Unfinished Tales (1980).

These works are collectively known as the legendarium or the Tolkien mythology. Some interesting facts about J.R.R. Tolkien are:

He was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa, but moved to England when he was three years old. He grew up in Birmingham and Oxford and became interested in languages, literature, and mythology from an early age.
He served in the British Army during World War I and fought in the Battle of the Somme (1916). He lost many of his friends in the war and was deeply affected by the horrors he witnessed. He later said that his experience of war inspired some of his writings about evil and suffering.
He was a professor of English language and literature at Oxford University for most of his career. He was an expert on Old and Middle English, especially on the works of Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. He also invented several languages of his own, such as Quenya, Sindarin, Khuzdul, and Black Speech.
He was a devout Catholic and a close friend of C.S. Lewis, another famous writer and scholar. They were both members of a literary group called the Inklings, which met regularly at a pub called the Eagle and Child in Oxford. They discussed their works and shared their ideas on faith, literature, and fantasy.
He died of pneumonia at the age of 81 in Bournemouth, England. His last words were “Edith”, the name of his wife who had died two years earlier. They are buried together at Wolvercote Cemetery in Oxford. Their gravestone bears the names “Beren” and “Luthien”, two characters from his legendarium who represent their love story.

This concludes our ranking of the best authors of all time. We hope you enjoyed reading this article and learned something new about these amazing writers. Do you agree with our list? Who are your favorite authors? Let us know in the comments below!