List of novelists from the United States
This is a list of novelists from the United States, listed with titles of a major work for each.
This is not intended to be a list of every American (born U.S. citizen, naturalized citizen, or long-time resident alien) who has published a novel. (For the purposes of this article, novel is defined as an extended work of fiction. This definition is loosely interpreted to include novellas, novelettes, and books of interconnected short stories.) Novelists on this list have achieved a notability that exceeds merely having been published. The writers on the current list fall into one or more of the following categories:
- Winner of a major literary prize, even if the winning work was a story collection rather than a novel: The Pulitzer Prize, The PEN American Center Book Awards, the National Book Award, the American Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Orange Prize, and some others. (Note: The only Pulitzer winner for Fiction not on the list is James Alan McPherson, who has never published a novel.)
- Having a substantial body of work, widely respected and reviewed in major publications, and perhaps often nominated or a finalist for major awards.
- A pioneering literary figure, possibly for the style or substance of their entire body of work, or for a single novel that was a notable "first" of some kind in U.S. literary history.
- Had several massive bestsellers, or even just one huge seller that has entered the cultural lexicon (Grace Metalious and Peyton Place, for example).
- A leading figure—especially award winning, and with crossover appeal to mainstream readers, reviewers, and scholars—in a major genre or subcategory of fiction: Science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, western, young adult fiction, regional or "local color" fiction, proletarian fiction, etc.
-
A
- Edward Abbey (1927–1989), The Monkey Wrench Gang
- Walter Abish (born 1931), How German Is It
- Diana Abu-Jaber (born 1960), Arabian Jazz
- Kathy Acker (1947–1997), Blood and Guts in High School
- Alice Adams (1926–1999), Beautiful Girl
- Henry Adams (1838–1918), Democracy: An American Novel
- George Ade (1866–1944), The Slim Princess
- Renata Adler (born 1938), Speedboat
- Warren Adler (born 1927), The War of the Roses
- James Agee (1909–1955), A Death in the Family
- Conrad Aiken (1889–1973), Blue Voyage
- Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888), Little Women
- Thomas Bailey Aldrich (1836–1907), Prudence Palfrey
- Lloyd Alexander (1924–2007), The Black Cauldron
- Sherman Alexie (born 1966), Reservation Blues
- Horatio Alger, Jr. (1832–1899), Ragged Dick
- Nelson Algren (1909–1981), The Man with the Golden Arm
- Hervey Allen (1889–1949), Anthony Adverse
- Dorothy Allison (born 1949), Bastard Out of Carolina
- Lisa Alther (born 1944), Kinflicks
- Joseph Alexander Altsheler (1862–1919), The Young Trailers
- Julia Alvarez (born 1950), How the García Girls Lost Their Accents
- Rudolfo Anaya (born 1937), Bless Me, Ultima
- Laurie Halse Anderson (born 1961) Speak
- Poul Anderson (1926–2001), Tau Zero
- Sherwood Anderson (1876–1941), Winesburg, Ohio
- V. C. Andrews (1923–1986), Flowers in the Attic
- Tina McElroy Ansa (born 1949), Baby of the Family
- A. Manette Ansay (born 1964), Vinegar Hill
- Donald Antrim (born 1959), The Hundred Brothers
- Allen Appel (born 1945), Time After Time
- Benjamin Appel (1907–1979), Brain Guy
- Max Apple (born 1941), Zip: A Novel of the Left and the Right
- Harriette Arnow (1908–1986), The Dollmaker
- Timothy Shay Arthur (1809–1885), Ten Nights in a Barroom and What I Saw There
- Sholem Asch (1880–1957), The Nazarene
- Isaac Asimov (1920–1992), The Gods Themselves
- Rilla Askew (born 1951), The Mercy Seat
- Robert Asprin (born 1946), Another Fine Myth
- Gertrude Atherton (1857–1948), The Conqueror
- William Attaway (1911–1986), Blood on the Forge
- Amelia Atwater-Rhodes (born 1984), In the Forests of the Night
- Louis Auchincloss (1917–2010), The Rector of Justin
- Jean M. Auel (born 1936), The Clan of the Cave Bear
- Paul Auster (born 1947), New York Trilogy
- Mary Hunter Austin (1868–1934), Isidro
B
- Richard Bach (born 1936), Jonathan Livingston Seagull
- Irving Bacheller (1859–1950), A Man for the Ages
- George Bagby (1906–1985), Murder at the Piano
- Dorothy Baker (1907–1968), Young Man with a Horn
- James Robert Baker (1947–1997), Fuel-Injected Dreams
- Nicholson Baker (born 1957), Vox
- Kirsten Bakis (born 1968), Lives of the Monster Dogs
- Faith Baldwin, (1893–1978), The Heart Has Wings
- James Baldwin (1924–1987), Go Tell It on the Mountain
- John Ball (1911–1988), In the Heat of the Night
- Toni Cade Bambara (1939–1995), The Salt Eaters
- Russell Banks (born 1940), The Sweet Hereafter
- Margaret Culkin Banning (1891–1982), Country Club People
- Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones) (born 1934), The System of Dante's Hell
- Anna Maynard Barbour (died 1941), That Mainwaring Affair
- John Franklin Bardin (1916–1981), Devil Take the Blue-Tail Fly
- Djuna Barnes (1892–1982), Nightwood
- Linda Barnes (born 1949), A Trouble of Fools
- Margaret Ayer Barnes (1886–1967), Years of Grace
- Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr (1831–1919), Jan Vedder's Wife
- Nevada Barr (born 1952), Track of the Cat
- Andrea Barrett (born 1964), The Voyage of the Narwhal
- John Barth (born 1930), Giles Goat-Boy
- Donald Barthelme (1931–1989), Snow White
- Frederick Barthelme (born 1943), Chroma
- Rick Bass (born 1958), Where the Sea Used to Be
- Hamilton Basso (1904–1964), The View from Pompey's Head
- L. Frank Baum (1856–1919), The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
- Richard Bausch (born 1945), The Last Good Time
- Robert Bausch (born 1945), Almighty Me
- Charles Baxter (born 1947), Shadow Play
- Peter S. Beagle (born 1939), The Last Unicorn
- Greg Bear, (born 1951), Darwin's Radio
- Ann Beattie, (born 1947), Chilly Scenes of Winter
- Louis Begley (born 1933), About Schmidt
- Madison Smartt Bell (born 1957), All Souls' Rising
- Edward Bellamy (1850–1898), Looking Backward: 2000 – 1887
- Saul Bellow (1915–2005), Henderson the Rain King
- Peter Benchley (1940–2006), Jaws
- Aimee Bender (born 1969), An Invisible Sign of My Own
- Pinckney Benedict (born 1964), Dogs of God
- Stephen Vincent Benet (1898–1943), Spanish Bayonet
- Gregory Benford (born 1941), Timescape
- Thomas Berger (born 1924), Little Big Man
- Gina Berriault (1926–1999), The Descent
- Don Berry (1931–2001), Trask
- Wendell Berry (born 1934), A Place on Earth
- Alfred Bester (1913–1987), The Demolished Man
- Doris Betts (born 1932), Souls Raised from the Dead
- Earl Derr Biggers (1884–1933), The Chinese Parrot
- Robert Montgomery Bird (1803–1854), The Infidel
- Michael Bishop (born 1945), No Enemy But Time
- William Peter Blatty (born 1928), The Exorcist
- Robert Bloch (1917–1994), Psycho
- Lawrence Block (born 1938), Eight Million Ways to Die
- Amy Bloom (born 1953), Love Invents Us
- Judy Blume (born 1938), Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret
- Chris Bohjalian (born 1960), The Law of Similars
- Arna Bontemps (1902–1973), God Sends Sunday
- Anthony Boucher (1911–1968), The Case of the Seven of Calvary
- Vance Bourjaily (born 1922), Brill Among the Ruins
- Ben Bova (born 1932), The Starcrossed
- Jane Bowles (1917–1973), Two Serious Ladies
- Paul Bowles (1910–1999), The Sheltering Sky
- Blanche McCrary Boyd (born 1945), The Revolution of Little Girls
- James Boyd (1888–1944), Drums
- Jennifer Finney Boylan (previously James Finney Boylan) (born 1958), The Planets
- Kay Boyle (1902–1992), Death of a Man
- T. Coraghessan Boyle (born 1948), The Road to Wellville
- Gerald Warner Brace (1901–1978), The World of Carrick's Cove
- Hugh Henry Brackenridge (1748–1816), Modern Chivalry
- Leigh Brackett (1915–1978), The Secret of Sinharat
- Ray Bradbury (born 1920), The Illustrated Man
- David Bradley (born 1950), The Chaneysville Incident
- Marion Zimmer Bradley (1930–1999), The Mists of Avalon
- Billy Lee Brammer (1929–1978), The Gay Place
- Max Brand (1892–1944), Destry Rides Again
- Giannina Braschi (born 1954) "Yo-Yo Boing!"
- Richard Brautigan (1935–1984), Trout Fishing in America
- Kate Braverman (born 1950), Lithium for Medea
- Matt Briggs (born 1970), Shoot the Buffalo
- David Brin (born 1950), The Uplift War
- Poppy Z. Brite (born 1967), Exquisite Corpse
- Harold Brodkey (1930–1996), The Runaway Soul
- Louis Bromfield (1896–1956), The Rains Came
- Geraldine Brooks (born 1955), March
- Terry Brooks (born 1944), The Sword of Shannara
- Alice Brown (1857–1948), Fools of Nature
- Charles Brockden Brown (1771–1810), Wieland
- Dan Brown (born 1964), The Da Vinci Code
- Harry Brown (1917–1986), A Walk in the Sun
- Larry Brown (1951–2004), Dirty Work
- Rita Mae Brown (born 1944), Rubyfruit Jungle
- Rosellen Brown (born 1939), Before and After
- William Hill Brown (1756–1793), The Power of Sympathy
- Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973), The Good Earth
- Frederick Buechner (born 1926), Godric
- Charles Bukowski (1920–1994), Factotum
- Edward Bunker (1933–2005), Little Boy Blue
- Eugene Burdick (1918–1965), The Ugly American (with William Lederer)
- James Lee Burke (born 1936), The Neon Rain
- Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849–1924), Little Lord Fauntleroy
- William R. Burnett (1899–1982), Little Caesar
- Olive Ann Burns (1924–1990), Cold Sassy Tree
- Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875–1950), Tarzan of the Apes
- William S. Burroughs (1914–1997), Naked Lunch
- Frederick Busch (1941–2006), Harry and Catherine
- Octavia E. Butler (1947–2006), Patternmaster
- Robert Olen Butler (born 1945), The Alleys of Eden
C
- James Branch Cabell (1879–1958), Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice
- George Washington Cable (1844–1925), The Grandissimes
- Meg Cabot (born 1967), The Princess Diaries
- Abraham Cahan (1860–1951), The Rise of David Levinsky
- James M. Cain (1892–1977), The Postman Always Rings Twice
- Erskine Caldwell (1903–1987), God's Little Acre
- Taylor Caldwell (1900–1985), Dynasty of Death
- Hortense Calisher (1911–2009), False Entry
- Bebe Moore Campbell (1950–2006), Singing in the Comeback Choir
- John W. Campbell (1910–1971), The Mightiest Machine
- Ethan Canin (born 1960), For Kings and Planets
- Robert Cantwell (1908–1978), The Land of Plenty
- Kevin Canty (born 1953), Nine Below Zero
- Truman Capote (1924–1984), Other Voices, Other Rooms
- Philip Caputo (born 1941), Delcorso's Gallery
- Orson Scott Card (born 1951), Ender's Game
- Ron Carlson (born 1947), Betrayed by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Don Carpenter (1931–1995), Hard Rain Falling
- Caleb Carr (born 1955), The Alienist
- John Dickson Carr (1906–1977), The Crooked Hinge
- Gladys Hasty Carroll (1904–1999), As the Earth Turns
- Jonathan Carroll (born 1949), The Land of Laughs
- Forrest Carter (1925–1979), The Education of Little Tree
- Lin Carter (1930–1988), Sky Pirates of Callisto
- John Casey (born 1939), Spartina
- R. V. Cassill (1919–2002), Dr. Cobb's Game
- Ana Castillo (born 1953), So Far From God
- Willa Cather (1873–1947), My Ántonia
- Michael Chabon (born 1964), The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
- Jack L. Chalker (1944–2005), Midnight at the Well of Souls
- Robert W. Chambers (1865–1933), In the Quarter
- Raymond Chandler (1888–1959), The Big Sleep
- Jessie Chandler (born 1968), Bingo Barge Murder
- James Chapman, (born 1955), Stet
- Fred Chappell (born 1936), Dagon
- Jerome Charyn (born 1937), Blue Eyes
- Mary Ellen Chase (1887–1973), Mary Peters
- Stephen Chbosky (born 1970), The Perks of Being a Wallflower
- John Cheever (1912–1982), The Wapshot Chronicle
- Maxine Chernoff (born 1952), American Heaven
- C. J. Cherryh (born 1942), Cyteen
- Charles W. Chesnutt (1858–1932), The Marrow of Tradition
- Alan Cheuse (born 1940), The Grandmother's Club
- Lydia Maria Child (1802–1880), Hobomok
- Mark Childress (born 1957), Crazy in Alabama
- Kate Chopin (1851–1904), The Awakening
- Winston Churchill (1871–1947), Richard Carvel
- Carolyn Chute (born 1947), The Beans of Egypt, Maine
- Sandra Cisneros (born 1954), The House on Mango Street
- Tom Clancy (born 1947), The Hunt for Red October
- Eleanor Clark (1913–1996), Baldur's Gate
- Mary Higgins Clark (born 1927), A Stranger is Watching
- Walter Van Tilburg Clark (1909–1971), The Ox-Bow Incident
- Beverly Cleary (born 1916), Ramona the Pest
- Jeremiah Clemens (1814–1865), Tobias Wilson
- Samuel Langhorne Clemens (See: Mark Twain)
- Hal Clement (1922–2003), Mission of Gravity
- Michelle Cliff (born 1946), Abeng
- Robert M. Coates (1897–1973), The Eater of Darkness
- Harlan Coben (born 1962), Deal Breaker
- Laurie Colwin (1944–1992), Shine On, Bright and Dangerous Object
- Richard Condon (1915–1996), The Manchurian Candidate
- Evan S. Connell (born 1924), Mrs. Bridge
- Michael Connelly (born 1956), Blood Work
- Frank Conroy (1936–2005), Body and Soul
- Pat Conroy (born 1945), The Prince of Tides
- K. C. Constantine (born 1934), Upon Some Midnights Clear
- Robin Cook (born 1940), Coma
- John Esten Cooke (1830–1886), The Virginia Comedians
- J. California Cooper (born 1966), Some People, Some Other Place
- James Fenimore Cooper (1789–1851), The Last of the Mohicans
- Robert Coover (born 1932), The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop.
- Edwin Corle (1906–1956), Fig Tree John
- Patricia Cornwell (born 1956), Postmortem
- James Gould Cozzens (1903–1978), Guard of Honor
- Robert Crais (born c. 1953), Hostage
- Stephen Crane (1871–1900), The Red Badge of Courage
- Margaret Craven (1901–1980), I Heard the Owl Call My Name
- Francis Marion Crawford (1854–1909), Saracinesca
- Harry Crews (born 1935), Scar Lover
- Michael Crichton (1942–2008), Jurassic Park
- Robert Crichton (1925–1993), The Secret of Santa Vittoria
- Amanda Cross (1926–2003), The James Joyce Murder
- John Crowley (born 1942), Little, Big
- Maria Susanna Cummins (1827–1866), The Lamplighter
- Michael Cunningham (born 1952), The Hours
- James Oliver Curwood (1878–1927), The Grizzly King
- Clive Cussler (born 1931), Raise the Titanic!
D
- H. D. (1886–1961), Palimpsest
- Edward Dahlberg (1900–1977), Bottom Dogs
- Mark Z. Danielewski (born 1966), House of Leaves
- Edwidge Danticat (born 1969), Breath, Eyes, Memory
- Guy Davenport (1927–2005), Da Vinci's Bicycle
- Marcia Davenport (1903–1994), East Side, West Side
- Avram Davidson (1923–1993), The Phoenix and the Mirror
- Clyde Brion Davis (1894–1962), Nebraska Coast
- Dorothy Salisbury Davis (born 1916), Death of an Old Sinner
- H. L. Davis (1896–1960), Honey in the Horn
- L. J. Davis, A Meaningful Life
- Richard Harding Davis (1864–1916), Soldiers of Fortune
- Terry Davis (born 1947), Vision Quest
- Jeffrey Deaver (born 1950), The Bone Collector
- L. Sprague de Camp (1907–2000), Lest Darkness Fall
- John William De Forest (1826–1926),
Miss Ravenel's Conversion from Secession to Loyalty
- Margaret Deland (1857–1945), John Ward, Preacher
- Samuel R. Delany (born 1942), Dhalgren
- Don DeLillo (born 1936), White Noise
- Viña Delmar (1903–1990), Bad Girl
- Lester del Rey (1915–1993), Attack From Atlantis
- Patrick Dennis (1921–1976), Auntie Mame
- August Derleth (1909–1971), The Memoirs of Solar Pons
- Peter De Vries (1910–1993), Reuben, Reuben
- Pete Dexter (born 1943), Paris Trout
- Philip K. Dick (1928–1982), Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
- James Dickey (1923–1997), Deliverance
- Charles Dickinson (born 1951), A Shortcut in Time
- Joan Didion (born 1934), Play It As It Lays
- Thomas M. Disch (1940–2008), Camp Concentration
- Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (born 1956), The Mistress of Spices
- Melvin Dixon (1950–1992), Trouble the Water
- Stephen Dixon (born 1936), Frog
- Thomas Dixon (1864–1946), The Clansman
- Stephen Dobyns (born 1941), The Wrestler's Cruel Study
- E. L. Doctorow (born 1931), Ragtime
- Mary Mapes Dodge (1831–1905), Hans Brinker
- Harriet Doerr (1910–2002), Stones for Ibarra
- Ivan Doig (born 1939), Ride With Me, Mariah Montana
- Stephen R. Donaldson (born 1947), Lord Foul's Bane
- J. P. Donleavy (born 1926), The Ginger Man
- Richard Dooling (born 1954), White Man's Grave
- Michael Dorris (1945–1997), A Yellow Raft in Blue Water
- John Dos Passos (1896–1970), U.S.A.
- Lloyd C. Douglas (1877–1951), Magnificent Obsession
- Theodore Dreiser (1871–1945), An American Tragedy
- Allen Drury (1918–1998), Advise and Consent
- Tom Drury (born 1956), The End of Vandalism
- Andre Dubus III (born 1959), House of Sand and Fog
- Bruce Ducker (born 1938), Mooney in Flight
- John Dufresne (born 1948), Louisiana Power and Light
- David James Duncan (born 1952), The Brothers K
- Katherine Dunn (born 1945), Geek Love
- John Gregory Dunne (1932–2003), True Confessions
- John Dunning (born 1942), Booked to Die
E
- Tony Earley (born 1961), Jim the Boy
- Mignon G. Eberhart (1899–1996), The Patient in Room 18
- David Eddings (born 1931), Pawn of Prophecy
- Clyde Edgerton (born 1944), Walking Across Egypt
- Walter D. Edmonds (1903–1998), Drums Along the Mohawk
- George Alec Effinger (1947–2002), When Gravity Fails
- Jennifer Egan (born 1962), The Keep
- Dave Eggers (born 1970), You Shall Know Our Velocity
- Edward Eggleston (1837–1902), The Hoosier Schoolmaster
- John Ehle (born 1924), Last One Home
- Robert Elegant (born 1928) "Dynasty"
- Stanley Elkin (1930–1995), Mrs. Ted Bliss
- Aaron Elkins (born 1935), Old Bones
- Stanley Ellin (1916–1986), The Eighth Circle
- Bret Easton Ellis (born 1964), American Psycho
- Trey Ellis (born 1962), Right Here, Right Now
- Edward S. Ellis (1840–1916), Seth Jones; or, The Captives of the Frontier
- Ralph Ellison (1914–1994), Invisible Man
- James Ellroy (born 1948), L.A. Confidential
- Carol Emshwiller (born 1921), Carmen Dog
- Louise Erdrich (born 1954), Love Medicine
- Steve Erickson (born 1950), Arc d'X
- Loren D. Estleman (born 1952), Motor City Blue
- Jeffrey Eugenides (born 1960), The Virgin Suicides
- Janet Evanovich (born 1943), One For the Money
- Augusta Jane Evans (1835–1909), St. Elmo
- Frederick Exley (1929–1992), A Fan's Notes
F
- Janet Ayer Fairbank (1878–1951), The Bright Land
- John Fante (1909–1983), Wait Until Spring, Bandini
- Richard Fariña (1937–1966), Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me
- Philip José Farmer (born 1918), To Your Scattered Bodies Go
- James T. Farrell (1904–1979), Young Lonigan
- Howard Fast (1914–2003), April Morning
- William Faulkner (1897–1962), Light in August
- Jessie Redmon Fauset (1882–1961), Plum Bun: A Novel Without a Moral
- Kenneth Fearing (1902–1961), The Big Clock
- Raymond Federman (born 1928), The Twofold Vibration
- Raymond E. Feist (born 1945), Magician
- Edna Ferber (1885–1968), So Big
- Harvey Fergusson (1890–1971), The Conquest of Don Pedro
- Rachel Field (1894–1942), All This, and Heaven Too
- Charles Finch (born 1980), A Beautiful Blue Death
- Martha Farquharson Finley (1828–1909), Elsie Dinsmore
- Jack Finney (1911–1995), Time and Again
- Dorothy Canfield Fisher (1879–1958), Understood Betsy
- Vardis Fisher (1895–1968), Children of God
- F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940), The Great Gatsby
- Louise Fitzhugh (1928–1974), Harriet the Spy
- Thomas Flanagan (1923–2002), The Year of the French
- Martin Flavin (1883–1967), Journey in the Dark
- Paul Fleischman (born 1952), Whirligig
- Sid Fleischman (1920–2010), The Whipping Boy
- Lynn Flewelling (born 1958), Nightrunner
- Vince Flynn (born 1966), Pursuit of Honor
- Jonathan Safran Foer (born 1977), Everything Is Illuminated
- Mary Hallock Foote (1847–1938), The Chosen Valley
- Shelby Foote (1916–2005), Shiloh
- Esther Forbes (1891–1967), Johnny Tremain
- Jesse Hill Ford (1928–1996), The Liberation of Lord Byron Jones
- John M. Ford (1957–2006), The Dragon Waiting
- Paul Leicester Ford (1865–1902), The Honorable Peter Stirling
- Richard Ford (born 1944), Independence Day
- Leon Forrest (1937–1997), There Is a Tree More Ancient Than Eden
- Robert Forward (1932–2002), Dragon's Egg
- Alan Dean Foster (born 1946), Midworld
- Hannah Webster Foster (1758–1840), The Coquette
- Karen Joy Fowler (born 1950), The Jane Austen Book Club
- John Fox, Jr. (1862–1919), The Trail of the Lonesome Pine
- Paula Fox (born 1923), Desperate Characters
- William Price Fox (born 1926), Ruby Red
- Waldo Frank (1889–1967), Holiday
- Jonathan Franzen (born 1959), The Corrections
- Charles Frazier (born 1950), Cold Mountain
- Harold Frederic (1856–1898), The Damnation of Theron Ware
- Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman (1852–1930), Pembroke
- Marilyn French (1929–2009), The Women's Room
- Bruce Jay Friedman (born 1930), Stern
- Kinky Friedman (born 1944), Greenwich Killing Time
- Daniel Fuchs (1909–1993), Summer in Williamsburg
- Henry Blake Fuller (1857–1929), The Cliff-Dwellers
- Alan Furst (born 1941), Night Soldiers
G
- William Gaddis (1922–1998), The Recognitions
- Ernest Gaines (born 1933), The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman
- Mary Gaitskill (born 1954), Two Girls, Fat and Thin
- Zona Gale (1874–1938), Miss Lulu Bett
- Paul Gallico (1897–1976), The Poseidon Adventure
- Ernest K. Gann (1910–1991), The High and the Mighty
- Cristina Garcia (born 1958), Dreaming in Cuban
- John Reynolds Gardiner (1944–2006), Stone Fox
- Erle Stanley Gardner (1889–1970), The Case of the Velvet Claws
- John Gardner (1933–1982), Grendel
- Leonard Gardner (born 1933), Fat City
- Hamlin Garland (1860–1940), A Daughter of the Middle Border
- George Garrett (born 1929), Death of the Fox
- William Gass (born 1924), Omensetter's Luck
- David Gates (born 1947), Jernigan
- Kaye Gibbons (born 1960), Ellen Foster
- William Gibson (born 1948), Neuromancer
- Barry Gifford (born 1946), Wild at Heart
- Ellen Gilchrist (born 1935), Starcarbon
- Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860–1935), Herland
- Fred Gipson (1908–1973), Old Yeller
- Ellen Glasgow (1873–1945), Virginia
- Julia Glass (born 1956), Three Junes
- Gail Godwin (born 1937), A Mother and Two Daughters
- Herbert Gold (born 1924), The Man Who Was Not With It
- Arthur Golden (born 1957), Memoirs of a Geisha
- Francisco Goldman (born 1954), The Long Night of White Chickens
- William Goldman (born 1931), The Princess Bride
- Rebecca Goldstein (born 1950), The Mind-Body Problem
- David Goodis (1917–1967), Down There
- Allegra Goodman (born 1967), The Family Markowitz
- Paul Goodman (1911–1972), Making Do
- Marcus Goodrich (1897–1991), Delilah
- Caroline Gordon (1895–1981), Aleck Maury, Sportsman
- Mary Gordon (born 1949), Final Payments
- Ron Goulart (born 1933), After Things Fell Apart
- William Goyen (1915–1983), The Fair Sister
- Sue Grafton (born 1940), "A" is for Alibi
- Robert Grant (1852–1940), Unleavened Bread
- Shirley Ann Grau (born 1929), The Keepers of the House
- Anna Katharine Green (1846–1935), The Leavenworth Case
- Julien Green (1900–1998), Léviathan (The Dark Journey)
- Sam Greenlee (born 1930), The Spook Who Sat By The Door
- Andrew Sean Greer (born 1970), The Confessions of Max Tivoli
- William Lindsay Gresham (1909–1962), Nightmare Alley
- Zane Grey (1872–1939), Riders of the Purple Sage
- Sutton E. Griggs (1872–1933), The Hindered Hand
- Martha Grimes (born 1931), The Old Contemptibles
- John Grisham (born 1955), The Firm
- Winston Groom (born 1944), Forrest Gump
- Davis Grubb (1919–1980), The Night of the Hunter
- Judith Guest (born 1936), Ordinary People
- Allan Gurganus (born 1947), Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All
- David Guterson (born 1956), Snow Falling on Cedars
- A. B. Guthrie, Jr. (1901–1991), The Big Sky
H
- Jessica Hagedorn (born 1949), Dogeaters
- Jennifer Haigh (born 1968), Mrs. Kimble
- Joe Haldeman (born 1943), The Forever War
- Alex Haley (1921–1992), Roots
- James Norman Hall (1887–1951), Mutiny on the Bounty (with Charles Nordhoff)
- Oakley Hall (born 1920), Warlock
- Brett Halliday (1904–1977), Dividend on Death
- Hilary Thayer Hamann (born 1962), Anthropology of an American Girl
- Jane Hamilton (born 1957), The Book of Ruth
- Laurell K. Hamilton (born 1963), Guilty Pleasures
- Dashiell Hammett (1894–1961), The Maltese Falcon
- Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket) (born 1970), Watch Your Mouth
- Barry Hannah (born 1942), Geromino Rex
- Joseph Hansen (1923–2004), Fadeout
- Ron Hansen (born 1947), Mariette in Ecstasy
- Paul Harding (born 1967), Tinkers
- Elizabeth Hardwick (born 1916), Sleepless Nights
- Arthur Sherburne Hardy (1847–1930), The Wind of Destiny
- Donald Harington (1935–2009), The Cockroaches of Stay More
- Henry Harland (1861–1905), The Cardinal's Snuff-box
- Charles L. Harness (1915–2005), The Paradox Men
- Bertha Harris (1937–2005), Lover
- E. Lynn Harris (1955–2009), Invisible Life
- MacDonald Harris (1921–1993), The Balloonist
- Mark Harris (1922–2007), Bang the Drum Slowly
- Thomas Harris (born 1940), The Silence of the Lambs
- Harry Harrison (born 1925), Make Room! Make Room!
- Jim Harrison (born 1937), Legends of the Fall
- Kent Haruf (born 1943), Plainsong
- Jon Hassler (1933–2008), Staggerford
- John Hawkes (1925–1998), The Lime Twig
- Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804–1864), The Scarlet Letter
- Ernest Haycox (1899–1950), Bugles in the Afternoon
- Shirley Hazzard (born 1931), The Great Fire
- Shelby Hearon (born 1931), Owning Jolene
- Peter Hedges (born 1962), What's Eating Gilbert Grape
- Ursula Hegi (born 1946), Stones from the River
- Scott Heim (born 1966), Mysterious Skin
- Larry Heinemann (born 1944), Paco's Story
- Robert A. Heinlein (1907–1988), Stranger in a Strange Land
- Joseph Heller (1923–1999), Catch-22
- Mark Helprin (born 1947), Winter's Tale
- Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961), A Farewell to Arms
- Aleksandar Hemon (born 1964), Nowhere Man
- Frank Herbert (1920–1986), Dune
- Joseph Hergesheimer (1880–1954), Linda Condon
- Robert Herrick (1868–1938), Web of Life
- John Hersey (1914–1993), A Bell for Adano
- DuBose Heyward (1885–1940), Porgy
- Carl Hiaasen (born 1953), Sick Puppy
- George V. Higgins (1939–1999), The Friends of Eddie Coyle
- Patricia Highsmith (1921–1995), The Talented Mr. Ripley
- Oscar Hijuelos (born 1951), The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love
- Tony Hillerman (1925–2008), The Blessing Way
- Chester Himes (1909–1984), If He Hollers Let Him Go
- S. E. Hinton (born 1948), The Outsiders
- Russell Hoban (born 1925), Riddley Walker
- Laura Z. Hobson (1900–1986), Gentleman's Agreement
- Alice Hoffman (born 1952), Practical Magic
- Josiah Gilbert Holland (1819–1881), The Bay-Path
- Sheri Holman (born 1966), The Mammoth Cheese
- Mary Jane Holmes (1825–1907), Lena Rivers
- Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809–1894), Elsie Venner
- A. M. Homes (born 1961), The End of Alice
- Ann Hood (born 1956), Somewhere Off the Coast of Maine
- Khaled Hosseini (born 1965), The Kite Runner
- Silas House (born 1971), A Parchment of Leaves
- Blanche Willis Howard (1847–1898), Guenn: A Wave on the Breton Coast
- Maureen Howard (born 1930), Natural History
- E. W. Howe (1853–1937), The Story of a Country Town
- William Dean Howells (1837–1920), The Rise of Silas Lapham
- David Huddle (born 1942), La Tour Dreams of the Wolf Girl
- Barry Hughart (born 1934), Bridge of Birds
- Langston Hughes (1902–1967), Not Without Laughter
- William Humphrey (1924–1997), Farther Off from Heaven
- Josephine Humphreys (born 1945), Rich in Love
- Evan Hunter (1926–2005), Blackboard Jungle
- Stephen Hunter (born 1946), Point of Impact
- Fannie Hurst (1885–1968), Imitation of Life
- Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960), Their Eyes Were Watching God
- Siri Hustvedt (born 1955), The Sorrows of an American
- James Hynes (born 1955), The Lecturer's Tale
I
J
- Charles R. Jackson (1902–1968), The Lost Weekend
- Helen Hunt Jackson (1830–1885), Ramona
- Shirley Jackson (1916–1965), The Haunting of Hill House
- Rona Jaffe (1932–2005), Mazes and Monsters
- John Jakes (born 1932), North and South
- Randall Jarrell (1914–1965), Pictures from an Institution
- Henry James (1843–1916), Washington Square
- Sandy James (born 1963), Turning Thirty-Twelve
- Will James (1892–1942), Smoky the Cow Horse
- Elizabeth Janeway (1913–2005), Daisy Kenyon
- Tama Janowitz (born 1957), By the Shores of Gitchee Gumee
- Gish Jen (born 1956), Typical American
- Jerry B. Jenkins (born 1949), Left Behind (with Tim LaHaye)
- Gary Jennings (1928–1999), Aztec
- Sarah Orne Jewett (1849–1909), The Country of the Pointed Firs
- Ha Jin (born 1956), Waiting
- Adam Johnson (born 1967) Parasites Like Us
- Charles R. Johnson (born 1948), Middle Passage
- Denis Johnson (born 1949), Fiskadoro
- Diane Johnson (born 1934), Le Divorce
- James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938), The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man
- Josephine Winslow Johnson (1910–1990), Now in November
- Joyce Johnson (born 1935), In the Night Café
- Owen Johnson (1878–1952), Stover at Yale
- Mary Johnston (1870–1936), To Have and to Hold
- Edward P. Jones (born 1951), The Known World
- Gayl Jones (born 1949), Corregidora
- James Jones (1921–1977), From Here to Eternity
- LeRoi Jones (See: Amiri Baraka)
- Matthew F. Jones (born 19??), A Single Shot
- Erica Jong (born 1942), Fear of Flying
- Robert Jordan (1948–2007), The Eye of the World
- Sylvester Judd (1813–1853), Margaret
- Heidi Julavits (born 1968), The Mineral Palace
- Ward Just (born 1935), Jack Gance
K
- James Otis Kaler (1848–1912), Toby Tyler; or, Ten Weeks with a Circus
- Richard Kalich (born 1935), The Nihilstete
- Robert Kalich] (born 1935), The Handicapper
- Stuart M. Kaminsky (1934–2009), Cold Red Sunrise
- Joseph Kanon (born 1946), Los Alamos
- MacKinlay Kantor (1904–1977), Andersonville
- Jan Karon (born 1937), At Home in Mitford
- John Katzenbach (born c. 1950), The Madman's Tale
- Janet Kauffman (born 1945), Collaborators
- Bel Kaufman (born 1911), Up the Down Staircase
- Sue Kaufman (1926–1977), Diary of a Mad Housewife
- Harry Stephen Keeler (1890–1967), The Riddle of the Traveling Skull
- Clarence Budington Kelland (1881–1964), Dangerous Angel
- Jesse Kellerman (born 1978), The Executor
- Jonathan Kellerman (born 1949), Flesh and Blood
- Faye Kellerman (born 1952), The Ritual Bath
- William Melvin Kelley (born 1937), A Different Drummer
- Marjorie Kellogg (1922–2005), Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon
- Elmer Kelton (1926–2009), Buffalo Wagons
- John P. Kennedy (1795–1870), Horse-Shoe Robinson
- William Kennedy (born 1928), Ironweed
- Jack Kerouac (1922–1969), On the Road
- Ken Kesey (1935–2001), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
- Jack Ketchum (born 1946), The Girl Next Door
- Daniel Keyes (born 1927), Flowers for Algernon
- Frances Parkinson Keyes (1885–1970), Dinner at Antoine's
- Sue Monk Kidd (born 1948), The Secret Life of Bees
- Karen Kijewski (born 1943), Katwalk
- Haven Kimmel (born 1965), The Solace of Leaving Early
- Jamaica Kincaid (born 1949), Annie John
- Grace King (1852–1932), The Pleasant Ways of St. Médard
- Laurie R. King (born 1952), A Grave Talent
- Stephen King (born 1947), Carrie
- Barbara Kingsolver (born 1955), The Bean Trees
- Maxine Hong Kingston (born 1940), Tripmaster Monkey
- Joseph Kirkland (1830–1894), Zury: The Meanest Man in Spring County
- Walter Kirn (born 1962), Thumbsucker
- Fletcher Knebel (1911–1993), Seven Days in May (with Charles Bailey II)
- John Knowles (1926–2001), A Separate Peace
- Manuel Komroff (1890–1974), Coronet
- Dean Koontz (born 1945), Whispers
- Jerzy Kosinski (1933–1991), Being There
- William Kotzwinkle (born 1943), The Fan Man
- Eric Kraft (born 1945), What a Piece of Work I Am
- Larry Kramer (born 1935), Faggots
- Gary Krist (born 1957), Extravagance
- Herbert Krause (1905–1976), The Thresher
- [[Jim Krusoe[] (born 1942), The Girl Factory
- Tom Kromer (1906–1969), Waiting for Nothing
- Maxine Kumin (born 1925), Through Dooms of Love
- Allen Kurzweil (born 1960), A Case of Curiosities
L
- Mercedes Lackey (born 1950), Arrows of the Queen
- Ed Lacy (1911–1968), Room To Swing
- Oliver La Farge (1901–1963), Laughing Boy
- R. A. Lafferty (1914–2002), Past Master
- Tim LaHaye (born 1926), Left Behind (with Jerry B. Jenkins)
- Jhumpa Lahiri (born 1967), The Namesake
- Lori L. Lake (born 1960), Snow Moon Rising
- Harold Lamb (1892–1962), Marching Sands
- Wally Lamb (born 1950), She's Come Undone
- Anne Lamott (born 1954), Crooked Little Heart
- Louis L'Amour (1908–1988), Jubal Sackett
- Margaret Landon (1903–1993), Anna and the King of Siam
- Jane Langton (born 1922), The Transcendental Murder
- Joe R. Lansdale (born 1951), The Bottoms
- Ring Lardner (1885–1933), You Know Me Al
- Nella Larsen (1891–1964), Passing
- Emma Lathen (Martha Hennissart (born 1929) and Mary Jane
Latsis (1927–1997)), Murder Against the Grain
- Keith Laumer (1925–1993), A Plague of Demons
- Robert Lawson (1892–1957), Rabbit Hill
- David Leavitt (born 1961), The Lost Language of Cranes
- William Lederer (1912–2009), The Ugly American (with Eugene Burdick)
- Ursula K. Le Guin (born 1929), The Left Hand of Darkness
- Chang-Rae Lee (born 1965), Native Speaker
- Harper Lee (born 1926), To Kill a Mockingbird
- Peter Lefcourt (born 1941), The Dreyfus Affair
- Ella Leffland (born 1931) Rumors of Peace
- Dennis Lehane (born 1966) Mystic River
- Fritz Leiber (1910–1992), A Specter is Haunting Texas
- Murray Leinster (1896–1975), The Greks Bring Gifts
- Brad Leithauser (born 1953), Hence
- Madeleine L'Engle (1918–2007), A Wrinkle in Time
- J. Robert Lennon (born 1970), Mailman
- Elmore Leonard (born 1925), Get Shorty
- JT LeRoy (Laura Albert) (born 1965), Sarah
- John Lescroart (born 1948), The Mercy Rule
- Jonathan Lethem (born 1964), Motherless Brooklyn
- Jeremy Leven (born 1941), Satan: His Psychotherapy and Cure
- Ira Levin (1929–2007), Rosemary's Baby
- Meyer Levin (1905–1981), Compulsion
- Stacey Levine (born 19??), Frances Johnson
- Janet Lewis (1899–1998), The Wife of Martin Guerre
- Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951), Main Street
- Ludwig Lewisohn (1882–1955), The Case of Mr. Crump
- John L'Heureux (born 1934), An Honorable Profession
- Alan Lightman (born 1948), Einstein's Dreams
- Tao Lin (born 1983), Richard Yates
- Joseph C. Lincoln (1870–1944), Rugged Water
- Johanna Lindsey (born 1952), Fires of Winter
- Elizabeth Linington (1921–1988), Knave of Hearts
- Elinor Lipman (born 1950), The Pursuit of Alice Thrift
- George Lippard (1822–1854), The Monks of Monk Hall
- Rosina Lippi (born 1956), Homestead
- Sam Lipsyte (born 1968), Home Land
- David Liss (born 1966), A Conspiracy of Paper
- Bentley Little (born 1960), The Revelation
- Robert Littell (born 1935), The Amateur
- Ross Lockridge, Jr. (1914–1948), Raintree County
- Jack London (1876–1916), The Call of the Wild
- Frank Belknap Long (1901–1994), The Horror from the Hills
- Anita Loos (1893–1981), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
- Bret Lott (born 1958), Jewel
- H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937), At the Mountains of Madness
- Lois Lowry (born 1937), The Giver
- Robert Ludlum (1927–2001), The Bourne Identity
- Grace Lumpkin (1891–1980), To Make My Bread
- Alison Lurie (born 1926), Foreign Affairs
- Andrew Nelson Lytle (1902–1995), The Velvet Horn
M
- John D. MacDonald (1916–1986), The Deep Blue Good-by
- Ross Macdonald (1915–1983), The Moving Target
- Harold MacGrath (1871–1932), The Man on the Box
- Norman Maclean (1902–1990), A River Runs Through It
- Charlotte MacLeod (1922–2005), The Corpse in Oozak's Pond
- Gregory Maguire (born 1954), Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
- Norman Mailer (1923–2007), The Naked and the Dead
- Charles Major (1856–1913), When Knighthood Was in Flower
- Clarence Major (born 1936), Painted Turtle: Woman With Guitar
- Bernard Malamud (1914–1986), The Natural
- Thomas Mallon (born 1951), Henry and Clara
- Barry N. Malzberg (born 1939), Beyond Apollo
- Frederick Manfred (1912–1994), Lord Grizzly
- William March (1893–1954), The Bad Seed
- Dee Marie (born 19??), Sons of Avalon, Merlin’s Prophecy
- Margaret Maron (born 19??), Bootlegger's Daughter
- John P. Marquand (1893–1960), The Late George Apley
- Catherine Marshall (1914–1983), Christy
- Paule Marshall (born 1929), Brown Girl, Brownstones
- George R. R. Martin (born 1948), A Game of Thrones
- Valerie Martin (born 1948), Mary Reilly
- Carole Maso (born 1955), Defiance
- Bobbie Ann Mason (born 1940), In Country
- F. Van Wyck Mason (1901–1978), Three Harbours
- Richard Matheson (born 1926), I Am Legend
- Harry Mathews (born 1930), The Conversions
- Jack Matthews (born 1925), Hanger Stout, Awake!
- Peter Matthiessen (born 1927), At Play in the Fields of the Lord
- Armistead Maupin (born 1944), Tales of the City
- William Maxwell (1908–2000), Time Will Darken It
- Joyce Maynard (born 1953), To Die For
- Anne McCaffrey (1926–2011), Dragonflight
- Robert R. McCammon (born 1952), Boy's Life
- Cormac McCarthy (born 1933), All the Pretty Horses
- Mary McCarthy (1912–1989), The Group
- Ed McClanahan (born 1932), Natural Man
- Horace McCoy (1897–1955), They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
- Elizabeth McCracken (born 1966), The Giant's House
- Sharyn McCrumb (born 1948), The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter
- Carson McCullers (1917–1967), The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter
- George Barr McCutcheon (1866–1928), Brewster's Millions
- Alice McDermott (born 1953), Charming Billy
- Gregory Mcdonald (born 1937), Fletch
- Joseph McElroy (born 1930), A Smuggler's Bible
- William McFee (1881–1966), Casuals of the Sea
- William P. McGivern (1918–1982), Blondes Die Young
- Thomas McGuane (born 1939), Nothing But Blue Skies
- Jay McInerney (born 1955), Bright Lights, Big City
- Richard McKenna (1913–1964), The Sand Pebbles
- Reginald McKnight (born 1956), He Sleeps
- James McManus (born 1951), Going to the Sun
- Terry McMillan (born 1951), Waiting to Exhale
- Larry McMurtry (born 1936), Lonesome Dove
- Stephen W. Meader (1892–1977), Boy with a Pack
- Herman Melville (1819–1891), Moby-Dick
- Gordon Merrick (1916–1988), The Lord Won't Mind
- Claire Messud (born 1966), When the World Was Steady
- Grace Metalious (1924–1964), Peyton Place
- Stephenie Meyer (born 1973), Twilight
- Leonard Michaels (1933–2003), The Men's Club
- James A. Michener (1907–1997), Tales of the South Pacific
- Caroline Miller (1903–1992), Lamb in His Bosom
- Henry Miller (1891–1980), Tropic of Cancer
- Rex Miller (1939–2004), Slob
- Sue Miller (born 1943), The Good Mother
- Walter M. Miller, Jr. (1923–1996), A Canticle for Leibowitz
- Lydia Millet (born 1968), My Happy Life
- Steven Millhauser (born 1943), Martin Dressler
- Anchee Min (born 1957), Becoming Madame Mao
- Stephen Minot (born 1927), Surviving the Flood
- Susan Minot (born 1956), Evening
- Jacquelyn Mitchard (born 1955), The Deep End of the Ocean
- Donald Grant Mitchell (1822–1908), Dr. Johns
- Margaret Mitchell (1900–1949), Gone with the Wind
- S. Weir Mitchell (1829–1914), Hugh Wynne, Free Quaker
- N. Scott Momaday (born 1934), House Made of Dawn
- Rick Moody (born 1961), The Ice Storm
- Christopher Moore (born 1957),
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
- Lorrie Moore (born 1957), Who Will Run the Frog Hospital?
- Ruth Moore (1903–1989), Spoonhandle
- Susanna Moore (born 1947), In the Cut
- Ward Moore (1903–1978), Bring the Jubilee
- Robert Morgan (born 1944), Gap Creek
- Christopher Morley (1890–1957), Kitty Foyle
- Mary McGarry Morris (born 1943), Songs In Ordinary Time
- Wright Morris (1910–1998), Plains Song
- Toni Morrison (born 1931), Beloved
- Bradford Morrow (born 1951), Trinity Fields
- James Morrow (born 1947), Towing Jehovah
- Howard Frank Mosher (born c. 1943), A Stranger in the Kingdom
- Walter Mosley (born 1952), Devil in a Blue Dress
- Dow Mossman (born 1944), The Stones of Summer
- Willard Motley (1912–1965), Knock on Any Door
- Bharati Mukherjee (born 1940), Jasmine
- Clarence E. Mulford (1883–1956), Hopalong Cassidy
- Marcia Muller (born 1944), Wolf in the Shadows
- Mary Noailles Murfree (1850–1922), The Amulet
- Sabina Murray (born 1968), A Carnivore's Inquiry
- John Myers Myers (1906–1988), Silverlock
- Anton Myrer (1922–1996), Once an Eagle
N
- Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977), Lolita
- Robert Nathan (1894–1985), Portrait of Jennie
- Gloria Naylor (born 1950), The Women of Brewster Place
- John Neal (1793–1876), The Down-Easters
- Antonya Nelson (born 1961), Talking in Bed
- Howard Nemerov (1920–1991), The Homecoming Game
- Arthur Nersesian (born 1958), The Fuck-Up
- Katherine Neville (born 1945), The Eight
- Fae Myenne Ng (born 1956/7?), Bone
- John Nichols (born 1940), The Milagro Beanfield War
- Anaïs Nin (1903–1977), A Spy in the House of Love
- Larry Niven (born 1938), Ringworld
- Lewis Nordan (born 1939), The Sharpshooter Blues
- Charles Nordhoff (1887–1947), Mutiny on the Bounty (with James Norman Hall)
- Gurney Norman (born 1937), Divine Right's Trip
- Howard Norman (born 1949), The Bird Artist
- John Norman (born 1931), Tarnsman of Gor
- Charles Gilman Norris (1881–1945), Bricks Without Straw
- Frank Norris (1870–1902), McTeague
- Kathleen Norris (1880–1966), Second Hand Wife
- Harold Norse (born 1916), Beat Hotel
- Andre Norton (1912–2005), The Witch World
- Craig Nova (born 1945), The Good Son
- Josip Novakovich (born 1956), April Fool's Day
O
- Joyce Carol Oates (born 1938), them
- Tim O'Brien (born 1946), Going After Cacciato
- Edwin O'Connor (1918–1968), The Last Hurrah
- Flannery O'Connor (1925–1964), The Violent Bear It Away
- Chris Offutt (born 1958), The Good Brother
- Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden (born 1952), writes as Robin Hobb & Megan Lindholm
- John O'Hara (1905–1970), Appointment in Samarra
- Robert Olmstead (born 1954), A Trail of Heart's Blood Wherever We Go
- Stewart O'Nan (born 1961), The Speed Queen
- Martha Ostenso (1900–1963), Wild Geese
- Cynthia Ozick (born 1928), The Puttermesser Papers
P
- Thomas Nelson Page (1853–1952), On Newfound River
- Chuck Palahniuk (born 1962), Fight Club
- Edgar Pangborn (1909–1976), Davy
- Alexei Panshin (born 1940), Rite of Passage
- Sara Paretsky (born 1947), Indemnity Only
- Jay Parini (born 1948), The Last Station
- Robert B. Parker (born 1932), Crimson Joy
- T. Jefferson Parker (born 1953), Laguna Heat
- Anne Parrish (1888–1957), The Perennial Bachelor
- Ann Patchett (born 1963), Bel Canto
- Elliot Paul (1891–1958), Concert Pitch
- Gary Paulsen (born 1939), Hatchet
- James Kirke Paulding (1778–1860), The Dutchman's Fireside
- Bill Pearson (born 1938), Drifter's Detour
- Ridley Pearson (born 1953), Undercurrents
- T. R. Pearson (born 1956), Blue Ridge
- Robert Newton Peck (born 1928), A Day No Pigs Would Die
- Janet Peery (born 195?), The River Beyond the World
- Don Pendleton (1927–1995), War Against the Mafia
- Walker Percy (1916–1990), The Moviegoer
- Frank E. Peretti (born 1951), This Present Darkness
- Julia Peterkin (1880–1961), Scarlet Sister Mary
- Ann Petry (1931–1997), The Narrows
- Arthur Phillips (born 1969), Prague
- David Graham Phillips (1867–1911), Susan Lenox: Her Fall and Rise
- Jayne Anne Phillips (born 1952), Machine Dreams
- Jodi Picoult (born 1966), The Pact
- Marge Piercy (born 1936), He, She And It
- Mary Hayden Green Pike (1824–1898), Ida May
- Darryl Pinckney (born 1953), High Cotton
- Josephine Pinckney (1895–1957), Three O'Clock Dinner
- H. Beam Piper (1904–1964), Little Fuzzy
- Sylvia Plath (1932–1963), The Bell Jar
- George Plimpton (1927–2003), The Curious Case of Sidd Finch
- Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket
- Frederik Pohl (born 1919), Gateway
- Darryl Ponicsan (born 1938), The Last Detail
- Ernest Poole (1880–1950), His Family
- Eleanor H. Porter (1868–1920), Pollyanna
- Katherine Anne Porter (1890–1980), Ship of Fools
- Charles Portis (born 1933), True Grit
- Melville Davisson Post (1871–1930), The Nameless Thing
- Chaim Potok (1929–2002), The Chosen
- Jerry Pournelle (born 1933), The Endless Frontier
- Dawn Powell (1896–1965), The Wicked Pavilion
- Padgett Powell (born 1952), Edisto
- Richard P. Powell (1908–1999), The Philadelphian
- J. F. Powers (1917–1999), Morte d'Urban
- Richard Powers (born 1957), The Gold Bug Variations
- Emily Prager (born 1952), Clea & Zeus Divorce
- Theodore Pratt (1901–1969), Mr. Limpet
- Eugenia Price (1916–1996), The Beloved Invader
- Reynolds Price (born 1933), Kate Vaiden
- Richard Price (born 1949), Freedomland
- Frederic Prokosch (1908–1989), The Seven Who Fled
- Bill Pronzini (born 1943), Hoodwink
- Francine Prose (born 1947), Blue Angel
- E. Annie Proulx (born 1935), The Shipping News
- Olive Higgins Prouty (1882–1974), Stella Dallas
- James Purdy (born 1923), Cabot Wright Begins
- Mario Puzo (1920–1999), The Godfather
- Thomas Pynchon (born 1937), Gravity's Rainbow
Q
R
- Ayn Rand (1905–1982), Atlas Shrugged
- Alice Randall (born 1959), The Wind Done Gone
- Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (1896–1953), The Yearling
- Wilson Rawls (1913–1984), Where the Red Fern Grows
- Chet Raymo (born 19??), The Dork of Cork
- John Rechy (born 1934), City of Night
- Jaclyn Reding (born 1966), The Secret Gift
- Ishmael Reed (born 1938), Mumbo Jumbo
- Arthur B. Reeve (1880–1936), Craig Kennedy Listens In
- Kathy Reichs (born 1950), Déjà Dead
- Thomas Mayne Reid (1818–1883), The Rifle Rangers
- Sheri Reynolds (born 1967), The Rapture of Canaan
- Eugene Manlove Rhodes (1869–1934), Bransford in Arcadia
- Anne Rice (born 1941), Interview with the Vampire
- Craig Rice (1908–1957), The Corpse Steps Out
- Conrad Richter (1890–1968), The Town
- Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876–1958), The Circular Staircase
- Harold Robbins (1916–1997), The Carpetbaggers
- Tom Robbins (born 1936), Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
- Elizabeth Madox Roberts (1881–1941), The Great Meadow
- Kenneth Roberts (1885–1957), Northwest Passage
- Nora Roberts (born 1950), Irish Thoroughbred
- Kim Stanley Robinson (born 1952), Red Mars
- Marilynne Robinson (born 1943), Housekeeping
- Mary Robison (born 1949), Why Did I Ever
- Lucia St. Clair Robson (born 1942), Ride the Wind
- Edward Payson Roe (1838–1888), Barriers Burned Away
- O. E. Rølvaag (1876–1931), Giants in the Earth
- Judith Rossner (1935–2005), Looking for Mr. Goodbar
- Leo Rosten (1908–1997), Captain Newman, M.D.
- Henry Roth (1906–1995), Call It Sleep
- Philip Roth (born 1933), Portnoy's Complaint
- Susanna Rowson (1762–1824), Charlotte Temple
- Robert Ruark (1915–1965), Uhuru
- Norman Rush (born 1933), Mating
- Rebecca Rush (1779–1850), Kelroy
- Joanna Russ (born 1937), The Female Man
- Mary Doria Russell (born 1950), The Sparrow
- Richard Russo (born 1949), Empire Falls
- Marah Ellis Ryan (1860–1934), Told in the Hills
S
- J. D. Salinger (1919–2010), The Catcher in the Rye
- James Sallis (born 1944), Long-Legged Fly
- James Salter (born 1925), A Sport and a Pastime
- Edgar Saltus (1855–1921), Mr.Incoul's Misadventure
- Lawrence Sanders (1920–1998), The Anderson Tapes
- John Sandford (born 1944), Rules of Prey
- Mari Sandoz (1896–1966), Slogum House
- William Saroyan (1908–1981), The Human Comedy
- May Sarton (1912–1995), Faithful are the Wounds
- John Saul (born 1942), Suffer the Children
- George Saunders (born 1958), The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil
- John Sayles (born 1950), Pride of the Bimbos
- Jack Schaefer (1907–1991), Shane
- Cathleen Schine (born 1953), Rameau's Niece
- Mark Schorer (1908–1977), A House Too Old
- Budd Schulberg (born 1914), What Makes Sammy Run?
- Christine Schutt (born 19??), All Souls
- Lynne Sharon Schwartz (born 1939), Disturbances in the Field
- Sandra Scoppettone (born 1936), Suzuki Beane
- Evelyn Scott (1893–1963), A Calendar of Sin
- Joanna Scott (born 1960), The Manikin
- Allan Seager (1906–1968), Amos Berry
- Molly Elliot Seawell (1860–1916), The House of Egremont
- Alice Sebold (born 1963), The Lovely Bones
- Catharine Sedgwick (1789–1867), Hope Leslie
- Carolyn See (born 1934), Making History
- Erich Segal (born 1937), Love Story
- Lore Segal (born 1928), Other People's Houses
- Hubert Selby Jr. (1928–2004), Last Exit to Brooklyn
- Anya Seton (1904–1990), Green Darkness
- Mary Lee Settle (1918–2005), Blood Tie
- Michael Shaara (1928–1988), The Killer Angels
- Laurence Shames (born 1951), Florida Straits
- Ntozake Shange (born 1948), Betsey Brown
- Akhil Sharma (born 1971), An Obedient Father
- Irwin Shaw (1913–1984), Rich Man, Poor Man
- Robert Shea (1933–1994), The Illuminatus! Trilogy (with Robert Anton Wilson)
- Wilfrid Sheed (born 1930), Square's Progress
- Sidney Sheldon (born 1917), The Naked Face
- Samuel Shellabarger (1888–1954), Captain from Castile
- Jim Shepard (born 1956), Lights Out in the Reptile House
- Carol Shields (1935–2003), The Stone Diaries
- Anita Shreve (born 1946), The Weight of Water
- Susan Richards Shreve (born 1939), A Country of Strangers
- Lionel Shriver (born 1957), We Need to Talk About Kevin
- Gary Shteyngart (born 1972), The Russian Debutante's Handbook
- Anne Rivers Siddons (born 1936), Peachtree Road
- Clancy Sigal (born 1926), Going Away
- Leslie Marmon Silko (born 1948), Ceremony
- Robert Silverberg (born 1935), A Time of Changes
- Clifford D. Simak (1904–1988), City
- Dan Simmons (born 1948), Hyperion
- William Gilmore Simms (1806 – 1870}, The Sword and the Distaff
- Mona Simpson (born 1957), Anywhere But Here
- Upton Sinclair (1878–1968), The Jungle
- Isaac Bashevis Singer (1902–1991), Enemies, a Love Story
- Israel Joshua Singer (1893–1944), The Brothers Ashkenazi
- Jane Smiley (born 1949), A Thousand Acres
- Betty Smith (1896–1972), A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
- E. E. Smith (1890–1965), First Lensman
- Elizabeth Oakes Smith (1806–1893), The Western Captive
- Francis Hopkinson Smith (1838–1915), Colonel Carter of Cartersville
- H. Allen Smith (1907–1976), Rhubarb
- Lee Smith (born 1944), Fair and Tender Ladies
- Thorne Smith (1892–1934), Topper
- Zilpha Keatley Snyder (born 1927), The Headless Cupid
- Susan Sontag (1933–2004), In America
- Virginia Sorensen (1912–1991), On This Star
- Christopher Sorrentino (born 1963), Trance
- Gilbert Sorrentino (1929–2006), Mulligan Stew
- Gary Soto (born 1952), Buried Onions
- Terry Southern (1924–1995), The Magic Christian
- E. D. E. N. Southworth (1819–1899), The Hidden Hand
- W. M. Spackman (1905–1980), An Armful of Warm Girl
- Frank H. Spearman (1859–1937), Whispering Smith
- Scott Spencer (born 1945), Endless Love
- Mickey Spillane (1918–2006), I, the Jury
- Norman Spinrad (born 1940), The Iron Dream
- Harriet Elizabeth Prescott Spofford (1835–1921), Sir Rohan's Ghost
- David Derek Stacton (1925–1968), On a Balcony
- Jean Stafford (1915–1979), Boston Adventure
- Jason Starr (born 1966), The Follower
- Danielle Steel (born 1947), Family Album
- Wallace Stegner (1909–1993), Angle of Repose
- Gertrude Stein (1874–1946), The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas
- John Steinbeck (1902–1968), The Grapes of Wrath
- Darcey Steinke (born 1964), Jesus Saves
- Ann Sophia Stephens (1810–1886), Malaeska: The Indian Wife of the White Hunter
- Neal Stephenson (born 1959), Snow Crash
- Bruce Sterling (born 1954), Islands in the Net
- Richard G. Stern (born 1928), Golk
- Steve Stern, The Angel of Forgetfulness
- Brooke Stevens, Tattoo Girl
- George R. Stewart (1895–1980), Earth Abides
- Frederic Jesup Stimson (1855–1943), The Crime of Henry Vane
- R. L. Stine (born 1943), Monster Blood
- Frank R. Stockton (1834–1902), Rudder Grange
- Mary Stolz (born 1920), The Edge of Next Year
- Grace Zaring Stone (1891–1991), The Bitter Tea of General Yen
- Irving Stone (1903–1989), The Agony and the Ecstasy
- Robert Stone (born 1937), Dog Soldiers
- Phil Stong (1899–1957), State Fair
- Hans Otto Storm (1895–1941), Pity the Tyrant
- Rex Stout (1886–1975), Fer-de-Lance
- Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811–1896), Uncle Tom's Cabin
- Edward Stratemeyer (1862–1930), The Rover Boys At School
- Gene Stratton-Porter (1863–1924), A Girl of the Limberlost
- Peter Straub (born 1943), Ghost Story
- Darin Strauss (born 1970), The Real McCoy
- Edward Streeter (1891–1976), Father of the Bride
- T. S. Stribling (1881–1965), The Store
- Elizabeth Strout (born 1956), Amy and Isabelle
- Jesse Stuart (1906–1984), Taps for Private Tussie
- Theodore Sturgeon (1918–1985), More Than Human
- William Styron (1925–2006), The Confessions of Nat Turner
- Ronald Sukenick (1932–2004), Up
- Cid Ricketts Sumner (1890–1970), Quality
- Jacqueline Susann (1918–1974), Valley of the Dolls
- Harvey Swados (1920–1972), Out Went the Candle
- Glendon Swarthout (1918–1992), The Shootist
T
- Elizabeth Tallent (born 1954), Museum Pieces
- Amy Tan (born 1952), The Joy Luck Club
- Booth Tarkington (1869–1946), The Magnificent Ambersons
- Donna Tartt (born 1963), The Secret History
- Kathrine Taylor (1903–1996), Address Unknown
- Peter Taylor (1917–1994), A Summons to Memphis
- Phoebe Atwood Taylor (1909–1976), The Cape Cod Mystery
- Robert Lewis Taylor (1912–1998), The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters
- William Tenn (born 1920), Of Men and Monsters
- Mary Virginia Terhune (1830–1922), Alone
- Walter Tevis (1928–1984), The Hustler
- Paul Theroux (born 1941), The Mosquito Coast
- Daniel Pierce Thompson (1795–1868), The Green Mountain Boys
- Hunter S. Thompson (1937–2005), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
- Jim Thompson (1906–1977), The Killer Inside Me
- Maurice Thompson (1844–1901), Alice of Old Vincennes
- Melanie Rae Thon (born 1957), Meteors in August
- James Thurber (1894–1961), The 13 Clocks
- Wallace Thurman (1902–1934), The Blacker the Berry
- Ernest Tidyman (1928–1984), Shaft
- John Kennedy Toole (1937–1969), A Confederacy of Dunces
- Jean Toomer (1894–1967), Cane
- Nick Tosches (born 1949), In the Hand of Dante
- Albion W. Tourgée (1838–1905), A Fool's Errand
- Arthur Train (1875–1945), Yankee Lawyer: The Autobiography of Ephraim Tutt
- Lawrence Treat (1903–1998), V as in Victim
- Trevanian (1931–2005), The Eiger Sanction
- Calvin Trillin (born 1935), Runestruck
- Dalton Trumbo (1905–1976), Johnny Got His Gun
- George Tucker (1775–1861), A Voyage to the Moon
- John R. Tunis (1889–1975), The Kid From Tomkinsville
- Scott Turow (born 1949), Presumed Innocent
- Harry Turtledove (born 1949), In the Balance
- Mark Twain (1835–1910), Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
- Anne Tyler (born 1941), The Accidental Tourist
- Royall Tyler (1757–1826), The Algerine Captive
U
V
W
- David Wagoner (born 1926), The Escape Artist
- Alice Walker (born 1944), The Color Purple
- Margaret Walker (1915–1998), Jubilee
- David Foster Wallace (1962–2008), Infinite Jest
- Irving Wallace (1916–1990), The Fan Club
- Lew Wallace (1827–1905), Ben-Hur
- Edward Lewis Wallant (1926–1962), The Tenants of Moonbloom
- Robert James Waller (born 1939), The Bridges of Madison County
- Douglass Wallop (1920–1985), The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant
- Joseph Wambaugh (born 1937), The Choirboys
- Walter Wangerin, Jr. (born 1944), The Book of the Dun Cow
- Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward (1844–1911), The Gates Ajar
- William Ware (1797–1852), Zenobia; or, The Fall of Palmyra
- Catherine Anne Warfield (1816–1877), The Household of Bouverie
- Charles Dudley Warner (1829–1900), The Gilded Age (with Mark Twain)
- Gertrude Chandler Warner (1890–1979), The Boxcar Children
- Susan Warner (1819–1895), The Wide, Wide World
- Robert Penn Warren (1905–1989), All the King's Men
- Larry Watson (born 1947), Montana 1948
- Hillary Waugh (born 1920), Last Seen Wearing...
- Will Weaver (born 1950), Red Earth, White Earth
- Charles Webb (born 1939), The Graduate
- Katharine Weber (born 1955), Triangle
- Jean Webster (1876–1916), Daddy-Long-Legs
- Jerome Weidman (1913–1998), I Can Get It for You Wholesale
- James Welch (1940–2003), Fools Crow
- Manly Wade Wellman (1903–1986), The Old Gods Waken
- Rebecca Wells (born 1952), Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
- Eudora Welty (1909–2001), The Optimist's Daughter
- Glenway Wescott (1901–1987), The Grandmothers
- Dorothy West (1907–1998), The Living Is Easy
- Jessamyn West (1902–1984), The Massacre at Fall Creek
- Nathanael West (1903–1940), The Day of the Locust
- Paul West (born 1930), The Women of Whitechapel and Jack the Ripper
- Donald E. Westlake (born 1933), God Save the Mark
- Edith Wharton (1862–1937), The Age of Innocence
- William Wharton (1925–2008), Birdy
- E. B. White (1899–1985), Charlotte's Web
- Edmund White (born 1940), A Boy's Own Story
- Randy Wayne White (born 1950), Sanibel Flats
- Stewart Edward White (1873–1946), The Claim Jumpers
- Colson Whitehead (born 1969), The Intuitionist
- Brand Whitlock (1869–1934), The Turn of the Balance
- Phyllis A. Whitney (born 1903), The Mystery of the Haunted Pool
- Edward Whittemore (1933–1995), Sinai Tapestry
- John Edgar Wideman (born 1941), Philadelphia Fire
- Elie Wiesel (born 1928), Twilight
- Kate Douglas Wiggin (1856–1923), Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
- Marianne Wiggins (born 1947), Evidence of Things Unseen
- James Wilcox (born 1949), Modern Baptists
- Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867–1957), Little House on the Prairie
- Thornton Wilder (1897–1975), The Bridge of San Luis Rey
- Kate Wilhelm (born 1928), Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang
- Christopher Willard (born 1960), Garbage Head
- Charles Willeford (1919–1988), Miami Blues
- Ben Ames Williams (1889–1953), House Divided
- John Williams (1922–1994), Stoner
- John A. Williams (born 1925), The Man Who Cried I Am
- Joy Williams (born 1944), State of Grace
- Philip Lee Williams (born 1950), "Elegies for the Water"
- Tennessee Williams (1911–1983), The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone
- Thomas Williams (1926–1990), The Hair of Harold Roux
- Jack Williamson (born 1908), The Humanoid Touch
- Calder Willingham (1922–1995), End As a Man
- Connie Willis (born 1945), Doomsday Book
- Harriet E. Wilson (1825–1900), Our Nig; Or, Sketches from the Life of a Free Black
- Harry Leon Wilson (1867–1919), Ruggles of Red Gap
- Margaret Wilson (1882–1973), The Able McLaughlins
- Robert Anton Wilson (born 1932), The Illuminatus! Trilogy (with Robert Shea)
- Sloan Wilson (1920–2003), The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit
- Mark Winegardner (born 1961), Crooked River Burning
- Theodore Winthrop (1828–1861), John Brent
- Owen Wister (1860–1938), The Virginian
- Larry Woiwode (born 1941), Beyond the Bedroom Wall
- Gene Wolfe (born 1931), The Book of the New Sun
- Thomas Wolfe (1900–1938), Look Homeward, Angel
- Tom Wolfe (born 1931), The Bonfire of the Vanities
- Geoffrey Wolff (born 1937), Providence
- Tobias Wolff (born 1945), The Barracks Thief
- Hilma Wolitzer (born 1930), Silver
- Meg Wolitzer (born 1959), This Is Your Life
- Daniel Woodrell (born 1953), Give Us a Kiss
- Samuel Woodworth (1784–1842), The Champions of Freedom
- Cornell Woolrich (1903–1968), The Bride Wore Black
- Constance Fenimore Woolson (1840–1894), For the Major
- Herman Wouk (born 1915), The Caine Mutiny
- Austin Tappan Wright (1883–1931), Islandia
- Mary Tappan Wright (1851–1917), Aliens
- Ernest Vincent Wright (c. 1873 – 1939), Gadsby
- Harold Bell Wright (1872–1944), The Shepherd of the Hills
- Kirby Wright (born 1955), Punahou Blues
- Richard Wright (1908–1960), Native Son
- Stephen Wright (born 1946), The Amalgamation Polka
X
- Xu Xi (born 1954), The Unwalled City
Y
- Irvin D. Yalom (born 1931), When Nietzsche Wept
- Lois-Ann Yamanaka (born 1961), Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers
- Karen Tei Yamashita (born 1951), Through the Arc of the Rain Forest
- Chelsea Quinn Yarbro (born 1942), Hotel Transylvania
- Steve Yarbrough (born 1956), The Oxygen Man
- Richard Yates (1926–1992), Revolutionary Road
- Frank Yerby (1916–1991), Judas, My Brother
- Anzia Yezierska (c. 1880 – 1970), Bread Givers
- Rafael Yglesias (born 1954), Fearless
- Al Young (born 1939), Ask Me Now
- Stark Young (1881–1963), So Red the Rose
Z
See also
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References
- Nelson, Emmanuel S. Asian American Novelists: A Bio-Bibliographical Critical Sourcebook. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2000)