Nonfiction Authors L-Z, WEI-ZUC
Meet the essayists, biographers, historians, journalists, and other nonfiction writers whose work has informed readers, challenged assumptions, and brought the real world vividly to the page.
Nonfiction Authors L-Z Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Weil, Simone
Simone Weil was a French mystic, social philosopher, and activist in the French Resistance during World War II,......
Weinberg, George
George Weinberg was an American psychotherapist who coined the term homophobia to describe the extreme aversion......
Weinheber, Josef
Josef Weinheber was an Austrian poet noted for his technical mastery. Weinheber’s parents died when he was a child,......
Weiss, Peter
Peter Weiss was a German dramatist and novelist whose plays achieved widespread success in both Europe and the......
Welch, Denton
Denton Welch was an English painter and novelist chiefly remembered for two imaginative novels of adolescence,......
Weldon, Fay
Fay Weldon was a British novelist, playwright, and television and radio scriptwriter known for her thoughtful and......
Welles, Gideon
Gideon Welles was the U.S. secretary of the navy under presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. Born into......
Wells, Carolyn
Carolyn Wells was a prolific American writer remembered largely for her popular mysteries, children’s books, and......
Wells, Dicky
Dicky Wells was a leading American jazz trombonist who was noted, especially in the big band era, for his melodic......
Welty, Eudora
Eudora Welty was an American short-story writer and novelist whose work is mainly focused with great precision......
Wendt, Albert
Albert Wendt is a Samoan novelist and poet who wrote about present-day Samoan life. Perhaps the best-known writer......
Wentworth, Peter
Peter Wentworth was a prominent Puritan member of the English Parliament in the reign of Elizabeth I, whom he challenged......
Wentworth, W.C.
W.C. Wentworth was the leading Australian political figure during the first half of the 19th century, whose lifelong......
West, Cornel
Cornel West is an American philosopher, scholar of African American studies, and political activist. His influential......
West, Jessamyn
Jessamyn West was an American writer, a master of the short story and an accomplished novelist, who wrote with......
West, Mae
Mae West was an American stage and film actress, a sex symbol whose frank sensuality, languid postures, and blasé......
West, Morris
Morris West was an Australian novelist noted for such best-sellers as The Devil’s Advocate (1959) and The Shoes......
West, Rebecca
Rebecca West was a British journalist, novelist, and critic, who was perhaps best known for her reports on the......
Westheimer, Ruth
Ruth Westheimer was a German American sex therapist who became one of the most trusted authorities on sex and relationships......
Wharton, Edith
Edith Wharton was an American author best known for her stories and novels about the upper-class society into which......
Wharton, William
William Wharton was an American novelist and painter best known for his innovative first novel, Birdy (1979; filmed......
Wheatley, Phillis
Phillis Wheatley was the first Black woman to become a poet of note in the United States. The girl who was to be......
White, E.B.
E.B. White was an American essayist, author, and literary stylist, whose eloquent, unaffected prose appealed to......
White, Edmund
Edmund White was an American writer of novels, short fiction, and nonfiction whose critically acclaimed work focuses......
White, Joseph Blanco
Joseph Blanco White was a Spanish-born English poet, journalist, and writer of miscellaneous prose. He was a friend......
White, Patrick
Patrick White was an Australian novelist and playwright who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1973. White was......
White, Paula
Paula White is an American Pentecostal pastor, speaker, and author associated with the controversial prosperity......
White, T H
T. H. White was an English novelist, social historian, and satirist who was best known for his brilliant adaptation......
White, Theodore H.
Theodore H. White was an American journalist, historian, and novelist, best known for his astute, suspenseful accounts......
Whitehead, Colson
Colson Whitehead is an American author known for innovative novels that explore social themes, including racism,......
Whitman, Sarah Helen
Sarah Helen Whitman was an American poet and essayist, noted for her literary criticism and perhaps best remembered......
Whitman, Walt
Walt Whitman was an American poet, journalist, and essayist whose verse collection Leaves of Grass, first published......
Whittemore, Reed
Reed Whittemore was an American teacher and poet noted for his free-flowing ironic verse. Whittemore cofounded......
Whymper, Edward
Edward Whymper was an English mountaineer and artist who was associated with the exploration of the Alps and was......
Wideman, John Edgar
John Edgar Wideman is an American writer regarded for his lyrical, intricate literary style in novels about the......
Widmann, Joseph Viktor
Joseph Viktor Widmann was a Swiss writer, editor, and critic. Widmann settled in Switzerland early in life. As......
Wiesel, Elie
Elie Wiesel was a Romanian-born Jewish writer, whose works provide a sober yet passionate testament of the destruction......
Wilcox, Ella Wheeler
Ella Wheeler Wilcox was an American poet and journalist who is perhaps best remembered for verse tinged with an......
Wilde, Oscar
Oscar Wilde was an Irish wit, poet, and dramatist whose enduring fame rests on his only novel, The Picture of Dorian......
Wilder, Laura Ingalls
Laura Ingalls Wilder was an American author of children’s fiction based on her own youth in the American Midwest.......
Wilkerson, Isabel
Isabel Wilkerson is known for chronicling the lives of unsung African Americans and exposing deeply embedded systems......
Willem Van Ruysbroeck
Willem Van Ruysbroeck was a French Franciscan friar whose eyewitness account of the Mongol realm is generally acknowledged......
Willems, Paul
Paul Willems was a Belgian novelist and playwright whose playful strategies and fascination with language, doubles,......
William Of Newburgh
William Of Newburgh was an English chronicler who is remembered as the author of one of the most valuable historical......
Williams, Emlyn
Emlyn Williams was a Welsh actor and playwright, author of some highly effective, often macabre plays. Williams......
Williams, Hank, Jr.
Hank Williams Jr. is an American country and western musician and one of the most successful and long-lasting performers......
Williams, Helen Maria
Helen Maria Williams was an English poet, novelist, and social critic best known for her support of such radical......
Williams, Tennessee
Tennessee Williams was an American dramatist whose plays reveal a world of human frustration in which sex and violence......
Williams, William Carlos
William Carlos Williams was an American poet who succeeded in making the ordinary appear extraordinary through......
Williamson, David
David Williamson is an Australian dramatist and screenwriter known for topical satiric comedies that display his......
Williamson, Marianne
Marianne Williamson is an American author, politician, and spiritual leader who was initially best known for her......
Wills, Garry
Garry Wills is an American historian, journalist, and author of provocative books on Roman Catholicism, history,......
Wilson, A.N.
A.N. Wilson is an English essayist, journalist, and author of satiric novels of British society and of scholarly......
Wilson, Colin
Colin Wilson was an English novelist and writer on philosophy, sociology, music, literature, and the occult. Wilson......
Wilson, David
David Wilson was an American lawyer and author who collaborated with Solomon Northup to describe the latter’s kidnapping......
Wilson, Edmund
Edmund Wilson was an American critic and essayist recognized as one of the leading literary journalists of his......
Wilson, Sir Angus
Sir Angus Wilson was a British writer whose fiction—sometimes serious, sometimes richly satirical—portrays conflicts......
Winterson, Jeanette
Jeanette Winterson is a British writer noted for her quirky, unconventional, and often comic novels. Winterson......
Wispelaere, Paul de
Paul de Wispelaere was a Flemish novelist, essayist, and critic whose avant-garde works examined the individual’s......
Wittig, Monique
Monique Wittig was a French avant-garde novelist and radical feminist whose works include unconventional narratives......
Wittlin, Józef
Józef Wittlin was a Polish novelist, essayist, and poet, an Expressionist noted for his humanist views. Having......
Woiwode, Larry
Larry Woiwode was an American writer whose semi-autobiographical fiction reflects his early childhood in a tiny......
Wolf, Christa
Christa Wolf was a German novelist, essayist, and screenwriter most often associated with East Germany. Wolf was......
Wolf, Naomi
Naomi Wolf is a celebrated feminist writer whose groundbreaking work in the 1990s, including The Beauty Myth, gained......
Wolfe, Tom
Tom Wolfe was an American novelist, journalist, and social commentator who was a leading critic of contemporary......
Wolff, Tobias
Tobias Wolff is an American writer who is primarily known for his memoirs and for his short stories, in which many......
Wollstonecraft, Mary
Mary Wollstonecraft was an English writer and passionate advocate of educational and social equality for women.......
Wood, Anthony
Anthony Wood was an English antiquarian whose life was devoted to collecting and publishing the history of Oxford......
Wood, Sir Henry J.
Sir Henry J. Wood was a conductor, the principal figure in the popularization of orchestral music in England in......
Woodcock, George
George Woodcock was a Canadian poet, critic, historian, travel writer, playwright, scriptwriter, and editor, whose......
Woodson, Jacqueline
Jacqueline Woodson is an American author who has written more than 40 books for adults, young adults, and children......
Woolf, Virginia
Virginia Woolf was an English writer whose novels, through their nonlinear approaches to narrative, exerted a major......
Woolman, John
John Woolman was a British-American Quaker leader and abolitionist whose Journal is recognized as one of the classic......
Woolsey, Sarah Chauncey
Sarah Chauncey Woolsey was an American children’s author whose vivacious and mischievous heroines presented a popular......
Woolson, Constance Fenimore
Constance Fenimore Woolson was an American writer whose stories and novels are particularly notable for the sense......
Wordsworth, Dorothy
Dorothy Wordsworth was an English prose writer whose Alfoxden Journal 1798 and Grasmere Journals 1800–03 are remarkable......
Wouk, Herman
Herman Wouk was an American novelist best known for his epic war novels. During World War II Wouk served in the......
Wright, Richard
Richard Wright was a novelist and short-story writer who inaugurated the tradition of protest explored by other......
Wyntoun, Andrew of
Andrew of Wyntoun was a Scottish chronicler whose Orygynale Cronykil is a prime historical source for the later......
Wölfli, Adolf
Adolf Wölfli was a Swiss artist, writer, and musician associated with the art-brut and outsider-art movements.......
Xia Yan
Xia Yan was a Chinese writer, journalist, and playwright known for his leftist plays and films. Xia was sent to......
Xuanzang
Xuanzang was a Buddhist monk and Chinese pilgrim to India who translated the sacred scriptures of Buddhism from......
Yavorov, Peyo
Peyo Yavorov was a Bulgarian poet and dramatist, the founder of the Symbolist movement in Bulgarian poetry. Yavorov......
Yaʿqūbī, al-
al-Yaʿqūbī was an Arab historian and geographer, author of a history of the world, Tāʾrīkh ibn Wāḍiḥ (“Chronicle......
Yeats, William Butler
William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet, dramatist, and prose writer who is considered one of the greatest English-language......
Yevtushenko, Yevgeny
Yevgeny Yevtushenko was a poet and spokesman for the younger post-Stalin generation of Russian poets. His internationally......
Yoshida Kenkō
Yoshida Kenkō was a Japanese poet and essayist, the outstanding literary figure of his time. His collection of......
Yoshimoto, Banana
Banana Yoshimoto is a Japanese author who achieved worldwide popularity writing stories and novels with slight......
Young, Arthur
Arthur Young was a prolific English writer on agriculture, politics, and economics. Besides his books on agricultural......
Yáñez, Agustín
Agustín Yáñez was a Mexican novelist, short-story writer, and active political figure whose novels, explorations......
Zagajewski, Adam
Adam Zagajewski was a Polish poet, novelist, and essayist whose works were grounded in the turbulent history of......
Zamyatin, Yevgeny
Yevgeny Zamyatin was a Russian novelist, playwright, and satirist, one of the most brilliant and cultured minds......
Zhang Binglin
Zhang Binglin was a Nationalist revolutionary leader and one of the most prominent Confucian scholars in early......
Zhang Junxiang
Zhang Junxiang was a leading playwright and motion-picture director in China. Zhang was educated at Qinghua University......
Zhang Zhongjing
Zhang Zhongjing was a Chinese physician who wrote in the early 3rd century ce a work titled Shang han za bing lun......
Zhao Rukuo
Zhao Rukuo was a Chinese trade official whose two-volume work Zhufan zhi (“Description of the Barbarians”) is one......
Zhou Zuoren
Zhou Zuoren was a Chinese essayist, critic, and literary scholar who translated fiction and myths from many languages......
Zitkala-Sa
Zitkala-Sa was a writer and reformer who strove to expand opportunities for Native Americans and to safeguard their......
Zola, Émile
Émile Zola was a French novelist, critic, and political activist who was the most prominent French novelist of......
Zuckmayer, Carl
Carl Zuckmayer was a German playwright whose works deal critically with many of the problems engendered by two......