Many people believe that J.K. Rowling is the only female author who paved the way for future authors. That is not true, as there are multiple authors in history whose works are highly recognised but are not acknowledged.
Some of such wonderful authors are:
Enhedunna:
Enhedunna is the earliest known author in world history. Her works belong to Sumerian literature. Her works, including Exaltation of Inanna, feature her as the first-person narrator, and Sumerian Temple Hymns identify her as their author.
Sappho:
Sappho was an Archaic Greek poet from Eresos of Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. Sappho is known for her lyric poetry, written to be sung while accompanied by music. Sappho was widely regarded as one of the greatest lyric poets and given names such as the "Tenth Muse" and "The Poetess".
Murasaki Shikibu:
Murasaki Shikibu is a Japanese writer and lady-in-waiting who was the author of the Genji Monogatari, generally considered the legendary work of Japanese literature and thought to be the world's oldest complete novel.
Catherine Sinclair:
Catherine Sinclair wrote in numerous genres, including novels, children's literature, travel writing, and devotional works. Her books sold thousands of copies — the illustrated 'Modern accomplishments' title page was first used decades after the first edition when the book was still popular. Her best-known book is 'Holiday house', a children's book published in 1839 which remained a nursery favourite for the next century. It was a landmark in children's literature as it was one of the first books to give a realistic picture of children who are naturally curious, mischievous, and argumentative.
Lady Margaret Lucas Cavendish:
Margaret was probably the most published woman of the 17th century, publishing plays, essays, criticisms and poetry, and some of the earliest proto-science fiction. In 1667 she became the first woman to attend a meeting of the Royal Society – a bold step not repeated for centuries to come.
Mary Shelley:
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic novel Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus, an early example of science fiction. She also edited and promoted her husband's works, the Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Christine de Pizan:
Christine de Pisan (Christine de Pizan) was a medieval writer and historiographer who advocated for women's equality. Her works are considered some of the earliest feminist writings, including poetry, novels, biography, autobiography, literary, political, and religious commentary.
Jane Austen:
Jane Austen was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpreted, critiqued and commented upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots often explore the dependence of women on marriage in the pursuit of favourable social standing and economic security.
Emily Brontë:
Emily Jane Brontë was an English novelist and poet and is best known for her only novel, Wuthering Heights, now considered a classic of English literature.
Baroness Orczy:
Baroness Emma Orczy, usually known as Baroness Orczy or to her family and friends as Emmuska Orczy, was a Hungarian-born British novelist and playwright.
Agatha Christie:
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan. DBE was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. The number of her books sold is second to Shakespeare's, with a whopping amount of 4 billion.
Enid Blyton:
Enid Mary Blyton was an English children's writer whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her writings are still widely read and translated into more than 90 languages. As of June 2018, Blyton held 4th place for the most translated author.
Anne McCaffrey:
Anne Inez McCaffrey was an American-Irish writer known for the Dragonriders of Pern science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction and the first to win a Nebula Award.
Ursula K. Le Guin:
Ursula K. Le Guin was an iconic writer known for her science-fiction, high fantasy works, and essays. Her published books include the "City of Illusion", "The Left Hand of Darkness", and the "Earthsea" series.
Marion Zimmer Bradley:
Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy, historical fantasy, science fiction, and science fantasy works and is best known for the Arthurian fiction novel The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series.
Octavia E. Butler:
Octavia Estelle Butler was an American science fiction author and a multiple-time recipient of the Hugo and Nebula awards. In 1995, Butler became the first science-fiction writer to receive a MacArthur Fellowship. She built stunning worlds rife with diverse characters and brought nuance and depth to the representation of their experiences.
Mercedes Lackey:
Mercedes Ritchie Lackey is an American writer of fantasy novels. Most of her works and trilogies are interlinked and set in the world of Velgarth.
Tamora Pierce:
Tamora Pierce is an American fantasy fiction author for teenagers, known best for stories featuring young heroines. She made a name for herself with her first book series, The Song of the Lioness, which followed the main character Alanna through the trials and triumphs of training as a knight.
Katherine Applegate:
Katherine Alice Applegate, known professionally as K. A. Applegate or Katherine Applegate, is an American young adult and children's fiction writer, best known as the author of the Animorphs, Remnants, Everworld, and other book series. She won the 2013 Newbery Medal for her 2012 children's novel The One and Only Ivan.
Suzanne Collins:
Suzanne Collins is an American television writer and author. She is known as the author of The Underland Chronicles and The Hunger Games.
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