From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
September
- 1675 – William Somervile, English poet born
- 1805 – Esteban Echeverría, Argentine writer who played a significant role in the development of Argentine literature is born
- 1854 – Hans Jæger, Norwegian writer born
- 1872 – N. F. S. Grundtvig, Danish writer and philosopher died
- 1894 – Joseph Roth, Austrian novelist born
- 1917 – Cleveland Amory, American author born
- 1921 – Henry Austin Dobson, English poet died
- 1965 – Johannes Bobrowski, German writer died
- 1973 – J. R. R. Tolkien, British writer died
- 1976 – Stanisław Grochowiak, Polish writer died
- 1998 – Allen Drury, American author died
- 2000 – Curt Siodmak, German-born author died
- 1719 - John Harris, English writer died
- 1866 - Tristan Bernard, French writer born
- 1870 - Aleksandr Kuprin, Russian writer born
- 1881 - Sidney Lanier, American writer died
- 1885 - Elinor Wylie, American writer born
- 1887 - Edith Sitwell, English poet born
- 1900 - Taylor Caldwell, American author born
- 1962 - Karen Blixen, Danish author died
- 1962 - Jennifer Egan, American writer born
- 1994 - James Clavell, Australian-born American author (Shogun) died
- 1474 – Ludovico Ariosto, Italian poet born
- 1644 – Francis Quarles, English poet died
- 1645 – Francisco de Quevedo, Spanish writer died
- 1656 – Joseph Hall, English bishop and writer died
- 1682 – Juan Caramuel y Lobkowitz, Spanish writer died
- 1778 – Clemens Brentano, German poet born
- 1783 – N. F. S. Grundtvig, Danish writer and philosopher born
- 1804 – Eduard Mörike, German poet born
- 1830 – Frédéric Mistral, French poet born
- 1886 – Siegfried Sassoon, English poet born
- 1919 – Gianni Brera, Italian writer born
- 1924 – Grace Metalious, American writer (Peyton Place) born
- 1933 – Michael Frayn, British playwright born
- 1947 – Ann Beattie, American writer born
- 1948 – Thomas Mofolo, Lesotho writer died
- 1952 – The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway is published
- 1665 - Jean Bolland, Flemish Jesuit writer died
- 1740 - Johann Heinrich Jung, German author born
- 1836 - Christian Dietrich Grabbe, German writer died
- 1870 - Fitz Hugh Ludlow, American author died
- 1880 - H. L. Mencken, American journalist and author born
- 1907 - Louis MacNeice, Northern Irish poet born
- 1919 - Leonid Andreyev, Russian writer died
- 1921 - Stanisław Lem, Polish writer born
- 1929 - Rainis, Latvian poet and playwright died
- 1943 - Michael Ondaatje, Sri Lankan-born writer born
- 1956 - Hans Carossa, German writer died
- 1981 - Eugenio Montale, Italian poet died
- 1321 - Dante Alighieri, Italian poet died
- 1592 - Michel de Montaigne, French writer died
- 1802 - Arnold Ruge, German philosopher and political writer born
- 1808 - Saverio Bettinelli, Italian writer died
- 1830 - Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach, Austrian writer born
- 1876 - Sherwood Anderson, American writer born
- 1894 - J. B. Priestley, English playwright and novelist born
- 1894 - Julian Tuwim, Polish poet born
- 1916 - Roald Dahl, Welsh writer born
- 1928 - Italo Svevo, Italian author died
- 1613 - François de La Rochefoucauld, French writer born
- 1613 - Thomas Overbury, English writer died (murdered)
- 1701 - Edmé Boursault, French writer died
- 1789 - James Fenimore Cooper, American novelist born
- 1889 - Robert Benchley, American author born
- 1890 - Agatha Christie, English writer remembered for her 80 mystery novels, particularly featuring detectives Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple, is born
- 1898 - J. Slauerhoff, Dutch poet and novelist born
- 1914 - Adolfo Bioy Casares, Argentine writer born
- 1926 - Rudolf Christoph Eucken, German writer died
- 1955 - Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita is published in Paris by Olympia Press.
- 1969 - Jim Curtiss, American writer born
- 1989 - Robert Penn Warren, American writer died
- 2003 - Josef Hiršal, Czech novelist died
- 19 BC - Virgil, Roman poet died
- 1542 - Juan Boscán Almogáver, Spanish poet died
- 1719 - Johann Heinrich Acker, German writer died
- 1832 - Sir Walter Scott, Scottish writer died
- 1866 - H. G. Wells, English writer born
- 1895 - Sergei Yesenin, Russian poet born
- 1902 - Luis Cernuda, Spanish poet born
- 1937 - J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit is published.
- 1938 - Ivana Brlić-Mažuranić Croatian writer died
- 1944 - Fannie Flagg, American actress and novelist born
- 1947 - Stephen King, American author born
- 1947 - Marsha Norman, American playwright born
- 1972 - Henry de Montherlant, French writer died
- 1974 - Jacqueline Susann, American novelist died
- 2002 - Robert Forward, American writer died
- 1547 - Philipp Nikodemus Frischlin, German philologist and poet born
- 1658 - Georg Philipp Harsdorffer, German poet died
- 1680 - Barthold Heinrich Brockes, German poet born
- 1722 - John Home, Scottish writer born
- 1743 - Quintin Craufurd, British author born
- 1788 - Theodore Edward Hook, English author born
- 1923 - Dannie Abse, Welsh poet and writer born
- 1924 - Rosamunde Pilcher, English novelist born
- 1947 - Robert Morace, American writer born
- 1988 - Rais Amrohvi, Pakistani poet died
- 2002 - Jan de Hartog, Dutch-born writer died
- 480 BC - Euripides, Greek playwright born
- 1605 - Pontus de Tyard, French poet died
- 1764 - Robert Dodsley, English writer died
- 1863 - Mary Church Terrell, American writer born
- 1865 - Baroness Orczy, British novelist born
- 1870 - Prosper Mérimée, French author died
- 1889 - Wilkie Collins, British author died
- 1901 - Jaroslav Seifert, Czech writer born
- 1907 - Dominique Aury, French novelist born
- 1943 - Elinor Glyn, English author died
- 1956 - Peter David, American writer born
- 1973 - Pablo Neruda, Chilean poet died
- 1994 - Robert Bloch, American author died
- 1707 - Vicenzo da Filicaja, Italian poet died
- 1802 - Alexander Radishchev, Russian writer died
- 1817 - Ramon de Campoamor y Campoosorio, Spanish poet and philosopher born
- 1878 - C. F. Ramuz, Swiss writer born
- 1890 - A. P. Herbert, British humorist, barrister, novelist born
- 1896 - F. Scott Fitzgerald, American novelist born
- 1933 - Alice Muriel Williamson, British novelist died
- 1966 - Michael J. Varhola, American author born
- 1991 - Theodor Seuss Geisel aka. Dr. Seuss, American children's writer died
- 2004 - Françoise Sagan, French writer died
- 1536 - Johannes Secundus, Dutch poet died
- 1782 - Charles Robert Maturin, Irish playwright and novelist born
- 1881 - Lu Xun, Chinese writer born
- 1897 - William Faulkner, American writer born
- 1930 - Shel Silverstein, American humorist and author born
- 1933 - Ring Lardner, American writer died
- 1970 - Erich Maria Remarque, German author died
- 1980 - Marie Under, Estonian author and poet died
- 1999 - Marion Zimmer Bradley, American writer died
- 2000 - R. S. Thomas, Welsh poet died
- 2003 - Herb Gardner, American playwright died
- 2003 - George Plimpton, American writer and actor died
- 2005 - M. Scott Peck, American psychiatrist and writer died
- 1729 - Michael Denis, Austrian poet born
- 1730 - Laurence Eusden, English poet died
- 1821 - Henri Frederic Amiel, Swiss writer born
- 1871 - Grazia Deledda, Italian writer born
- 1891 - Ivan Goncharov, Russian author died
- 1906 - William Empson, British poet born
- 1906 - Jim Thompson, American author born
- 1917 - Louis Auchincloss, American author born
- 1924 - Bernard Waber, American author born
- 1945 - Kay Ryan, American poet born
- 1951 - Jim Shooter, American comic book writer born
- 1961 - Irvine Welsh, Scottish writer born
- 1493 - Agnolo Firenzuola, Italian poet born
- 1618 - Joshua Sylvester, English poet died
- 1803 - Prosper Mérimée, French author born
- 1824 - Francis Turner Palgrave, British critic and poet born
- 1856 - Kate Douglas Wiggin, American children's author born
- 1891 - Herman Melville, American novelist died
- 1909 - Al Capp, American cartoonist born
- 1950 - John Sayles, American director and writer born
- 1966 - André Breton, French poet died
- 1970 - John Dos Passos, American novelist died
- 1993 - Peter De Vries, American novelist died
- 1547 - Miguel de Cervantes, Spanish author is born. He is best known for his novel Don Quixote de la Mancha, which is considered by many to be the first modern novel, one of the greatest works in Western literature, and the greatest in the Spanish language.
- 1800 - Michael Denis, Austrian poet died
- 1810 - Elizabeth Gaskell, British novelist born
- 1864 - Miguel de Unamuno, Spanish writer and philosopher born
- 1901 - Lanza del Vasto, Italian philosopher and poet born
- 1902 - William Topaz McGonagall, British poet died
- 1902 - Émile Zola, French writer died
- 1908 - Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, Brazilian writer died
- 1930 - Colin Dexter, British author of Inspector Morse novels is born
- 1951 - Andrés Caicedo, Colombian writer born
- 1967 - Carson McCullers, American author died
- 1973 - W. H. Auden, English poet died
