Greatest Fantasy Authors of All Time
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973), known by his pen name J. R. R. Tolkien, was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor who is best known as the author of the classic high-fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion. Fair to say his works can be a little hard to read, I LOVE them personally. Regardless though Tolkien is The Godfather of fantasy. We didn't have elves, dwarfs, or orcs before this man. DnD which made helped make fantasy more popular in 80's and 90's got the vast majority of their content from him. Really fantasy wouldn't be what it is today without him he's the GOAT.
The father of the modern fantasy genre, Professor Tolkien's world of Middle-Earth is the best fictional world ever created and will never be surpassed. He gave us not one but several new languages (and all with proper rules and history), a multitude of memorable characters, and the greatest, most epic of tales ever told. JK Rowling's Harry Potter is nothing compared to this magnificent masterpiece of literature.
The great story to the side, he has written the only fantasy books that were meaningful to me. For example the one ring is a treasure that can help people in many ways but it corrupts the user because that's the nature of power, if you give power to someone after a while the others will be destroyed because the user will only care for himself and that's why Gandalf chooses a hobbit to take it to mount doom because hobbits don't want power so they will not be corrupted fast unlike elves and men. Smaug is a great example to because it represents dictators. you see he takes erebor only to sleep on the gold as dictators do in rich countries. In my opinion these books are second to none in every aspect.
J.R.R Tolkien is the Greatest author ever. He is the King of Fantasy, has a imagination greater than anyone, and his books are supreme. If I were to classify books, I would classify the Hobbit and LOTR in Superior. Those who hate his books are useless idiots that have no mental sense in them. Correct me if I'm wrong, but J.R.R Tolkien should be crowned Emperor of Fantasy (if not literature and writings)
This author am closest to in writing style according to some test from a while ago. I never seen anything wrong with Harry Potter so then good for J.K. Rowling for the cool adventures in Science Fiction.
I could say that Harry Potter really has a great impact on it's magical things and imagery. I really like how her thoughts expand more to it especially with the Fantastic Beast.
I've been reading Harry Potter since I was 9 and have probably read the whole series 10times now.
The Harry Potter series is full od nonsense. I don't understand why she is on this list.
A delight to read, Sanderson's creativity is phenomenal. I adore the way he looks at life it is always a fascinating and exciting ride
One of the best fantasy/fiction writers in a generation. His magic systems are always interesting and detailed. His philosophies built into his books are nothing short of amazing.
I don't enjoy reading anyone more then Sanderson. And luckily I'll be reading his works for the rest of my life cause this tree murdering, printer of a man puts out more high quality books then any fantasy author ever probably more then any author ever that I've seen at least.
One of the hardest working Authors out there today. He is a master or creating a world but his true strength is developing characters with depth that readers can't help but be invested in. If you are looking up any list of great authors his name should be on it regardless of genre. The length of his stories may be intimidating to some but the ease of which you will flow through his work will amaze you. If you haven't read any of his work yet, stop reading this and go start. Mistborn is a great place to start!
George Raymond Richard Martin (born George Raymond Martin), also known as George R. R. Martin, is an American author known for his epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire, which was later adapted into the famous HBO series Game of Thrones. Still have a deck of cards lying around from Game of Thrones. Good game from the tales of 'A Song of Ice and Fire'. It is fun and interesting though kind of odd in appearance it has heart and magic or something. Great!
I love historical fantasy (fantastorical fiction) and G. R. R. Martin is my greatest inspiration.
The Genius who came up with Game of Thrones...no one can beat this man
One of the 20th century founders along with Tolkien. Don't just try Narnia though
,there are others like 'Perelandra' and ' The Screwtape letters.
I don't know what we would be without The Chronicles of Narnia. Seriously. We wouldn't be looking for worlds behind the wardrobe; we wouldn't be entranced by paintings of the sea, we would never have tried on the magic rings, we never would have met Aslan.
Narnia is a place no common mine can think of! It clears that sir Lewis wasnt some common man. He was extraordinary because extraordinary things happen to extraordinary people
Never read the books, but I've seen 2 of the movies. Maybe I should check him out.
Richard Russell Riordan Jr. (born June 5, 1964) is an American author. He is known for writing the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. His books have been translated into 42 languages and sold more than 30 million copies in the US. 20th Century Fox has adapted the first two books of his Percy Jackson series as part of a series of films. His books have spawned related media, such as graphic novels and short story collections. He my bae. I wish I was him. I was so close to meeting him, but then HE HAD TO MOVE!
He is still my favorite author.
Post by M.B Despain
I love the books and the movies. He also should be higher.
He is great and PJATO is classic especially with the new spinoffs Heroes of Olympus and the Trails of Apollo! Yeet go Percabeth!
Amazing author. Why isn't he higher on the list?
Sir Terence David John "Terry" Pratchett (1948-2015) was an English author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for writing the comic fantasy book series Discworld. So much wisdom hidden in his humor. If you don't like being told off. Just enjoy the ride.
There is much to learn from the Turtle and Discworld unwinds nearly the whole advantage. Well thought out!
He is just great
James Oliver Rigney Jr. (1948-2007), better known by his pen name Robert Jordan, was an American author known for writing the epic fantasy series The Wheel of Time. He was also known for writing stories about Conan the Barbarian, and for writing other books with different pseudonyms. He died from cardiac ...read more. Truly one of the best fantasy series of all time. Certainly the most complex and epic. I've never literally jumped out of a chair with excitement for any other books. (Did so twice for WoT).
WoT may be my favorite epic fantasy. Either that or Storm Light. Regardless he helped inspire the author for storm light. I do wish he could have finished the series and all the books he had planned for after the main story on Randland.
Jordan at #16...really!? Jordan has made such an impact on the genre and has left such a legacy behind, which that alone should place him higher. Jordan is #1 in my opinion, but at the very least should be in the top 5! He is easily better than Lewis, Rowling, Pratchett, Hobb, Anthony, Salvatore (though I love the Dark Elf series), Feist, Riordan, and Moorcock.!
Jordan deserves to be much higher on the list! The impact he had on the genre cannot be measured.
A Wizard of Earthsea is influential and still astounding to find. Wish there is more courage to familiarize with it, this author does good with it. Normal can find as the top fantasy authors list from searching. Has a nice surprise in that segment of writing.
If you haven't read Left Hand of Darkness consider yourself under educated.
Wish it didn't take a decade to write a book but I have no doubt it's gonna be 10/10 whenever it comes out.
Rothfuss and Robin Hobb. Really good reads, hope they continue the books.
The Newcomers
Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short story writer, poet, screenwriter, and fighter pilot. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. 15. The Enormous Crocodile
14. Charlie And The Great Glass Elevator
13. The Minpins
12. The Magic Finger
11. The Giraffe And The Pelly And Me
10. Georges Marvelous Medicine
9. Esio Trot
8. The Twits
7. The BFG
6. James And The Giant Peach
5. The Witches
4. Fantastic Mr. Fox
3. Danny The Champion Of The World
2. Matilda
1. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory
Remember, this is my opinion! Don't hat on my opinion!
Just look at what he's written. Seriously.
One of my favorite authors of all time and I am as they say late to the party. His ability to capture the imagination while keeping a dark undertone is incredible. Not to mention his ability to keep continuity with his book series that span several time skips is impressive to say the least.
Such a complex and interwoven set of stories that slowly bring an entire universe to life. Magical writing in every sense.
He is by far the best fantasy Author of all time.
Magician is just awesome.
Far better than Tolkien
Conan the Barbarian is a staple of modern times television, the collection of the stories have charm within - possible why is in second rank. Uncertain of the other novels but Conan can be recognizable right away, good work from that.
Most visceral, gripping fiction ever! Especially for boys and men- no 'chick lit' here!
Should be in top 5. Fantastic author and recognised widely as one of the greats.
The series about Fitz and the Fool is one of the best. Outstanding writer that captivates the reader from beginning to end,
A really good author. Should be higher on the list.
Jules Gabriel Verne was a French novelist, poet, and playwright best known for his adventure novels and his profound influence on the literary genre of science fiction. Have read the Novel name as 'The Golden Volcano' write of Jules Verne which is neat but kind of drastic at the end their prize goes to the ocean. Also another of classic towards modern is 'White Fang' written of Jack London. These encompass a lot of key points in nature of imagination and somewhat hold relevance despite time passages supposing. A good read, yeah could be.
"Journey to the Center of the Earth", "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea", "Around the World in Eighty Days", need I say more.
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, science fiction, and fantasy. Many of his most well-known novels include Carrie, It, The Shinning, The Stand, Misery, The Dark Tower series, and Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, which was later ...read more.
Lloyd Chudley Alexander (1924-2007) was an American author of fantasy novels for children and young adults. His most famous work is the fantasy series The Chronicles of Prydain (which was later adapted into the 1985 Disney film The Black Cauldron, which has also earned a reputation for being one of ...read more.Amazing author...one of the largest new expansive sagas of these times from is the Malazan one. Gardens of the Moon reminds one of school. It is a place of gather and draw on reason to name a few of things folks can play there. Awesome writings, hope will continue.
He was the first author my youngest son read for enjoyment. I was relieved as I read everything my kids did and I enjoyed his works as well.
Joe outstanding. He visits the dark side of characters like no other.
One of my earliest forays into fantasy, he writes battle scenes and self doubt better than any other.
The best by far.
Michael John Moorcock is an English author of science fiction and fantasy. He is best known for his series of books centering around the fictional character Elric of Melniboné. Elric, Corum, Hawkmoon...all aspects of the Eternal Hero. One can find echoes of his "multi-verse" and the depiction of the struggle between chaos and order in many other works including in the gaming industry.
Told beautiful stories that were individual masterpieces linked together
Love the running with the demon series wish he had written more books.
Best fantasy writer ever in my humble opinion ! The belgaried series was life life changing for me ! I started reading them when I was 15 and I am 50 now and still read them .
Haven't read much of him, but from what I've read I REALLY like. Be sure to search out and read his animal tales,