10 Writers Who Rocked My World

TRIGGER WARNING: Ayn Rand is one of them.

1: Paul Masters
You probably don't recognize the name. But Masters is my writing partner-someone who reads my work and shows me his own. We push each other to become better writers. We were friends in real life before we realized we were both writers and his sense of humor is way too much like mine. It's one of the best things you can have as a writer. To read his work, go here: Essuul
Favorite Work: Adam's Folly

2: George Orwell
I would be a very different writer if it weren't for Orwell's novellas: Animal Farm and 1984. When I first read them, I was really more of a historical fiction writer with some realistic teen contemporary and children's fantasy on the side. Animal Farm was a huge epiphany: "Whoa, fiction can have a message!" It was crazy. This story about talking animals is actually an analogy for Soviet Russia? WHAT? It was really cool when I happened upon 1984. That day marked my true conversion to the political dystopian genre. My Wattpad compadre AnOctoberPepper told me, coincidentally, that my work echoed Orwell. I am honored, even though it's kinda meh.
Favorite Work: Animal Farm

3: Victor Hugo
The difference between a book lover and a normal person is that a book lover knows how to eat words. If that is true, Les Misérables was a four-course meal in the true French fashion, containing many complicated flavors that blended beautifully into a feast of rare bouquet. I absolutely savored that book! It was a suitable introduction to the Romantic style, an idealistic writing method focusing on larger-than-life protagonists and weaving in beautiful descriptions. This, I would say, is my preferred writing style.
Favorite Work: Les Misérables

4: C.S. Lewis
Here, I would like to make something quite clear: I am a Christian! I believe with all my heart that Jesus is the only way to heaven and that I just lost at least two followers. C.S. Lewis is something unique: sound Christian theology balanced with amazing fiction writing. He has one of the most complicated senses of humor I've ever encountered. He was my favorite author when I wrote children's fantasy-I wanted my work to look just like his. He's still one of the few writers of that genre I like. As far as the intellectual side goes...he's probably the writer I quote the most.
Favorite Work: The Magician's Nephew

5: Ayn Rand
After a Christian writer, I have a very, very non-Christian writer. However, as my mentor says, "It's okay to read a book you don't agree with!" There is, in my opinion, a difference between a "style" and a "genre." Ayn Rand is a blend of my favorite style (Romantic) and my favorite genre (political dystopian). I love reading her journal entries in the front of the books-they contain the best writing advice I've ever seen. After I read the introduction to Atlas Shrugged, I became a much better "planner" for my new books. While I believe her conclusions are wrong, I love her emphasis on reason and mind over heart. And while we disagree on the Bible...we hold equally low opinions on The Communist Manifesto.
Favorite Work: Atlas Shrugged

6: Lemony Snicket
If anyone on earth has a better sense of humor than Paul Masters, it's Lemony Snicket. I can't possibly try to tell you any of his jokes. But you should read his series, A Series Of Unfortunate Events. It's only 169 extremely short chapters long-13 books with 13 chapters each. If you've read them, just keep in mind that I'm on the lookout for a Christian girl who has read these. That way, if we get married, one of us could go get pizza, and the other could say, "Where's the roast beef?" and we'd crack up. My parents, sadly, won't agree to doing that. But seriously, his dark humor is something I try to mimic in my own work.
Favorite Work: The Hostile Hospital

7: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
How can I begin to explain how Sherlock Holmes rocked my world?
Favorite Work: A Scandal In Bohemia

8: Oscar Wilde
I promise this is the last time I say something like this. But this guy is the funniest writer of all time. His humor, however, is completely different from the other writers on this list. It's more of a high-comedy type of deal. It makes sense, but it doesn't, if you know what I mean. I was, as they say these days, "rofl" when I read The Importance Of Being Earnest. My mom, who had read it in high school, was not impressed. If you've read that, or seen it live, I'm glad you're on Wattpad. Science is always making such wonderful improvements in things (yes, that was a reference!).
Favorite Work: The Importance Of Being Earnest

9: Neil Peart
Those of you who have good taste in music know that this is not a conventional writer, but rather the greatest rock and roll drummer ever to pick up the sticks. However, he's also the lyricist for Rush-and what are lyrics? Poems. Making him a writer. If you don't think classic rock songs are very poetic, Neil is an exception.
Favorite Work: 2112

10: William Shakespeare
It's not cliché, it's the truth! Every single one of us quotes Shakespeare. He rocked all of our worlds. And I hope you all get a chance to see a play in person. While we throw his words around all the time, it's important to note just how darn good those words are. It is not a stretch to say he is the greatest writer in the English language.