List of African-American writers
This is a list of African-American authors and writers, all of whom are considered part of African-American literature, and who already have Wikipedia articles. The list also includes non-American authors and writers of African descent.
Note: Consult Who is African-American? to gain a better sense as to who can be listed as an African-American writer.
A
- Aberjhani
- Mumia Abu-Jamal (born 1954)
- Linda Addison (born 1952), author and poet
- Rochelle Alers (born 1963), author and artist
- Kwame Alexander
- Larry D. Alexander (born 1953), author and artist
- Clarissa Minnie Thompson Allen, author and educator
- Robert L. Allen (born 1942)
- Zamounde S. Allie Jr. (born 1965), author and poet
- Maya Angelou (1928–2014), author and poet
- Tina McElroy Ansa (born 1949), novelist, filmmaker, teacher and journalist
- Chalmers Archer (1928–2014), author, veteran and educator
- M. K. Asante, Jr., author, poet, screenwriter, professor
- Jabari Asim (born 1962), poet, playwright, professor
- William Attaway (1911–1986)
B
- Michael Baisden (born 1963)
- Calvin Baker, novelist
- James Baldwin (1924–1987)
- Toni Cade Bambara (1939–1995)
- Leslie Esdaile Banks (1959–2011)
- Amiri Baraka (1934–2014)
- Steven Barnes (born 1952)
- Carol S. Batey (born 1955)
- Samuel Alfred Beadle (1857–1932)
- Paul Beatty (born 1962)
- Robert Beck (1918–1992)
- Christopher C. Bell (born 1933)
- Derrick Bell (1930–2011)
- Gwendolyn Bennett (1902-1981)
- Hal Bennett (1936–2004)
- Lerone Bennett, Jr. (born 1928)
- Bertice Berry (born 1960)
- Venise T. Berry, novelist
- Henry Bibb (1815–1854)
- Kole Black (born 1975)
- Eleanor Taylor Bland (1944–2010), writer of crime fiction
- Marita Bonner (1899–1971)
- Arna Bontemps (1902–1973)
- David Bradley (born 1950)
- William Stanley Braithwaite (1878–1962), poet and literary critic
- Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000)
- Claude Brown (1937–2002)
- Hallie Quinn Brown (1849–1949)
- Sterling A. Brown (1901–1989), poet, literary critic, professor, poet laureate of the District of Columbia
- William Wells Brown (1814–1884)
- Ashley Bryan (born 1923)
- Niobia Bryant, author of romance and mainstream fiction novels
- Ed Bullins (born 1935)
- Olivia Ward Bush (1869–1944)
- Octavia Butler (1947–2004)
C
- George Cain (1943–2010)
- Bebe Moore Campbell (1950–2006)
- Stokely Carmichael (1941–1998)
- Ben Carson (born 1951)
- Stephen L. Carter (born 1954)
- Cyrus Cassells (born 1957)
- Charles W. Chesnutt (1858–1932), novelist and short-story writer
- Alice Childress (1912–1994), playwright and novelist
- Cheril N. Clarke (born 1980)
- John Henrik Clarke (1915–1998)
- Troy CLE
- Pearl Cleage (born 1948)
- Eldridge Cleaver (1935–1998)
- Michelle Cliff (born 1946)
- Lucille Clifton (1936–2010)
- Wendy Coakley-Thompson (born 1966)
- Wanda Coleman (1946–2013)
- Marvel Cooke (1903–2000)
- Anna J. Cooper (1858–1964)
- J. California Cooper, playwright
- James Corrothers (1869–1917)
- Jayne Cortez (1934–2012)
- Bill Cosby (born 1937)
- Joseph Seamon Cotter, Sr. (1861–1949)
- Donald Crews (born 1938), children's book author
- Stanley Crouch (born 1945)
- Countee Cullen (1903–1946)
- Christopher Paul Curtis (born 1953)
D
- Jeffrey Daniels, poet
- Meri Nana-Ama Danquah (born 1967)
- Christopher Darden (born 1956)
- Angela Davis (born 1944)
- Frank Marshall Davis (1905–1987)
- Kyra Davis, novelist
- Milton Davis
- Samuel R. Delany (born 1942), novelist
- Eric Jerome Dickey (born 1961)
- Anita Doreen Diggs (born 1966)
- Lonnie Dixon (1932–2011)
- Frederick Douglass (1818–1895)
- Rita Dove (born 1952), poet
- Sharon Draper (born 1948)
- W. E. B. Du Bois (1868–1963)
- Tananarive Due (born 1966)
- Henry Dumas (1934–1968)
- Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872–1918), poet
- Alice Dunbar-Nelson (1875–1935)
- David Anthony Durham (born 1969)
- Michael Eric Dyson (born 1958)
E
- Cornelius Eady (born 1954)
- Sarah Jane Woodson Early (1825–1907), educator, activist and author
- Junius Edwards (1929–2008)
- Ralph Ellison (1914–1994), novelist, best known as author of Invisible Man
- Olaudah Equiano (c. 1745–1797)
- Mari Evans (born 1923), poet
- Percival Everett (born 1956)
F
- Ronald Fair (born 1932)
- John M. Faucette (1943–2003), science-fiction author
- Jessie Fauset (1882–1961), editor, poet, essayist and novelist
- Lolita Files (born 1963), author, screenwriter, and producer
- Antwone Fisher (born 1959)
- Rudolph Fisher (1897–1934), novelist, short story writer, dramatist
- Sharon G. Flake (born 1955), writer of young adult literature
- Robert Fleming, journalist and writer of erotic fiction and horror fiction
- Mary Weston Fordham (1844–1905), poet
- Leon Forrest (1937–1997), novelist
- J. E. Franklin, playwright
G
- Ernest Gaines (born 1933), fiction writer
- Marcus Garvey (1887–1940)
- Tony Gaskins, motivational, inspirational, self-help writer
- Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (born 1950)
- Nikki Giovanni (born 1943)
- Roy Glenn, fiction writer, Is It A Crime, Payback
- Donald Goines (1936–1974)
- Marita Golden (born 1950)
- Charles Gordone (1925–1995), playwright
- Lawrence Otis Graham (born 1962)
- Moses Grandy (born c. 1786)
- Eloise Greenfield (born 1929), children's book author
- Sam Greenlee (1930–2014), novelist, poet, best known as author of The Spook Who Sat by the Door
- Deborah Gregory, author of The Cheetah Girls book series
- Dick Gregory (born 1932)
- Sutton E. Griggs (1872–1933)
- Nikki Grimes, children's book author and poet[1]
- Angelina Weld Grimke (1880–1958)
- Charlotte Forten Grimké (1837–1914)
- Rosa Guy (1922–2012)
- John Langston Gwaltney, anthropologist, author of Drylongso
H
- Alex Haley (1921–1992), author of Roots: The Saga of an American Family
- Virginia Hamilton (1934–2002), author of children's books
- Henry Hampton (1940–1998)
- Lorraine Hansberry (1930–1965), playwright
- Vincent Harding (1931–2014), historian and social activist
- Frances Harper (1825–1922), poet and abolitionist
- E. Lynn Harris (1955–2009)
- Robert Hayden (1913–1980), poet, essayist, educator
- Essex Hemphill (1957–1995), poet and activist
- Chester Himes (1909–1984), novelist
- Kameisha Jerae Hodge (born 1989)
- Corey J. Hodges (born 1970)
- Karla F.C. Holloway
- bell hooks (born 1952), feminist, and social activist
- Pauline Hopkins (1859–1930), novelist, journalist, playwright, historian and editor
- Nalo Hopkinson (Jamaican Canadian; not American)
- George Moses Horton (1797–1884)
- Detrick Hughes (born 1966)
- Langston Hughes (1902–1967), poet, social activist, novelist, playwright and columnist
- Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960), folklorist, anthropologist, author of novels short stories, plays and essays
J
- Brenda Jackson
- Jesse C. Jackson (born 1908), young-adult novelist
- Harriet Jacobs (1813–1897), author of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1861)
- T.D. Jakes (born 1957)
- John Jea (born 1773)
- N. K. Jemisin
- Beverly Jenkins (born 1951)
- Alaya Dawn Johnson (born 1982)
- Charles R. Johnson (born 1948)
- Georgia Douglas Johnson (1880–1966), poet
- Helene Johnson (1906–1995), poet
- James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938)
- Mat Johnson (born 1970)
- Edward P. Jones, novelist and short story writer
- Gayl Jones (born 1949), novelist
- Tayari Jones (born 1970)
- June Jordan (1936–2002), poet, essayist and activist
K
- Ron Karenga (born 1941)
- Bob Kaufman (1925–1986), poet
- Elizabeth Keckley (1818–1907)
- William Melvin Kelley, novelist
- Emma Dunham Kelley-Hawkins (1863–1938), novelist
- Randall Kenan (born 1963)
- Adrienne Kennedy, playwright
- John Oliver Killens (1916–1987), novelist
- Jamaica Kincaid (born 1949)
- Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–1968)
- Woodie King, Jr. (born 1937)
- Etheridge Knight (1931–1991), poet
- Yusef Komunyakaa (born 1947)
L
- Pinkie Gordon Lane (1923-2008), poet, editor and teacher
- Nella Larsen (1891–1964), novelist
- Victor LaValle (born 1972)
- Andrea Lee, novelist and memoirist
- Julius Lester (born 1939)
- David Levering Lewis (born 1936)
- Alain Locke (1885-1954)
- Attica Locke, novelist
- Audre Lorde (1934–1992), author, poet, activist
- Glenville Lovell, novelist and playwright
M
- Nathaniel Mackey, poet, novelist, anthologist, literary critic and editor
- Naomi Long Madgett (born 1923), poet
- Haki R. Madhubuti (born 1942)
- Clarence Major (born 1936), poet, painter and novelis
- Raynetta Manees, novelist
- Manning Marable (1950–2011)
- John Marrant (1755–1791)
- Paule Marshall (born 1929)
- Hans Massaquoi (1926–2013)
- Brandon Massey
- Victoria Earle Matthews (1861–1907), essayist, newspaperwoman, activist
- Julian Mayfield (1928–1984)
- Nathan McCall (born 1955)
- Claude McKay (1889–1948)
- Patricia McKissack (born 1944)
- Reginald McKnight
- Kim McLarin, novelist
- Terry McMillan (born 1951), novelist
- James Alan McPherson (born 1943)
- Tony Medina
- Louise Meriwether (born 1923), novelist, essayist, journalist and activist
- Oscar Micheaux (1884–1951)
- E. Ethelbert Miller (born 1950), poet
- May Miller, poet and playwright
- Mary Monroe, novelist
- Anne Moody (born 1940)
- Jessica Care Moore (born 1971), poet
- Toni Morrison (born 1931), author, Nobel laureate 1993
- E. Frederic Morrow, first black American appointed to a president's administration (1955-1960)
- Walter Mosley (born 1952), novelist
- Thylias Moss (born 1954)
- Willard Motley (1909–1965)
- Jess Mowry (born 1960)
- Albert Murray (1916–2013)
- Pauli Murray (1910–1985)
- Walter Dean Myers (1937–2014), writer of children's books
N
- Tariq Nasheed (born 1977)
- Gloria Naylor (born 1950)
- Larry Neal (1937–1981)
- Barbara Neely, novelist, short-story writer and activist
- Huey P. Newton (1942–1989)
- Richard Bruce Nugent (1906–1987)
O
- Bayo Ojikutu (born 1971)
- Mwatabu S. Okantah (born 1952)
- Gabriel Okara (born 1921)
- Nnedi Okorafor
- Roscoe Orman (born 1944)
- Ewuare Osayande
- Brenda Marie Osbey (born 1957), poet
P
- ZZ Packer (born 1973)
- Gordon Parks (1912–2006)
- Tyler Perry (born 1969)
- Eric Pete, novelist and short-story writer
- Ann Petry (1908–1997)
- William Pickens (1881–1954)
- Ann Plato (born c. 1824)
- Sterling Plumpp (born 1940), educator and author
- Carlene Hatcher Polite (1932–2009)
- Alvin F. Poussaint (born 1934)
R
- Aishah Rahman (born 1936), playwright
- Alice Randall, author and songwriter
- Dudley Randall (1914–2000), poet and publisher
- Nahshon Ratcliff (born 1978), nonfiction and screenwriter
- Francis Ray, fiction, romance, mainstream, women's fiction
- Andy Razaf (1895–1973), poet, composer and lyricist
- Ishmael Reed (born 1938), poet, essayist and novelist
- Christopher Reel (born 1979), novelist
- Willis Richardson (1889–1977), playwright
- Florida Ruffin Ridley (1861–1943), essayist and short story writer
- Carolyn Rodgers (1940–2010), poet
- Octavia V. Rogers Albert (1853–c. 1890)
- Al Roker (born 1954)
- Fran Ross (1935–1985)
- Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin (1842–1924), journalist
- Rachel Renee Russell (born 1959), author of the Dork Diaries series of children's novels
- Carl Hancock Rux, poet, essayist, playwright, novelist
S
- Kalamu ya Salaam (born 1947)
- Sonia Sanchez (born 1934), poet
- Dori Sanders, (born 1935?) novelist
- Sapphire (born 1950)
- Charles R. Saunders, (born 1946) author and journalist
- Arturo Alfonso Schomburg (1874–1938), historian, writer, and activist
- George Schuyler (1895–1977), author, journalist and social commentator
- Gil Scott-Heron (1949–2011)
- Sandra Seaton, playwright and librettist
- Victor Séjour (1817–1874)
- Tupac Shakur (1971–1996)
- Ntozake Shange (born 1948), playwright and poet
- Nisi Shawl (born 1955)
- Sister Souljah (born 1964)
- Iceberg Slim (1918–1992)
- Amanda Smith (1837–1915)
- Charles Smith, playwright
- Effie Waller Smith (1879–1960), poet
- William Gardner Smith (1927–1974), journalist, novelist, and editor
- Sheila Smith McKoy (born 1958), professor, prosist, poet, fiction writer and documentary film maker
- Thomas Sowell (born 1930), economist, social theorist, political philosopher
- A. B. Spellman (born 1935)
- Anne Spencer (1882–1975), poet
- Aurin Squire (born 1979), producer, playwright, screenwriter and reporter
- Theophilus Gould Steward (1843–1924)
- Maria W. Stewart (1803–1880), journalist, lecturer, abolitionist, women's rights activist
T
- Ellen Tarry (1906–2008)
- Mildred D. Taylor (born 1943)
- Susie Taylor (1848–1912)
- Mary Church Terrell (1863–1954)
- Lucy Terry (c. 1730–1821)
- Michael Thelwell (born 1939)
- Joyce Carol Thomas, author, poet, playwright, and motivational speaker
- Lorenzo Thomas (1944–2005)
- Piri Thomas (1928–2011)
- Truth Thomas
- Pamela Thomas-Graham
- Era Bell Thompson (1905–1986)
- Wallace Thurman (1902–1934)
- Lynn Toler
- Melvin B. Tolson (1898–1966)
- Jean Toomer (1894–1967)
- Touré (born 1971)
- Askia M. Touré (born 1938), poet, essayist, leading voice of the Black Arts Movement
- Quincy Troupe (born 1939)
- Sojourner Truth (died 1883)
- Harriet Tubman (c. 1822–1913)
- Omar Tyree (born 1969)
V
- Henry Van Dyke (1928–2011), novelist, editor, teacher and musician
- Ivan Van Sertima (1935–2009), professor, author, historian, linguist and anthropologist at Rutgers University
- Bethany Veney (c. 1813–1916), author of Aunt Betty’s Story: The Narrative of Bethany Veney, A Slave Woman (1889)
- Olympia Vernon (born 1973), novelist
W
- Dwyane Wade (born 1982)
- Alice Walker (born 1944)
- Frank X. Walker, founding member of Affrilachian poets
- Margaret Walker (1915–1998)
- Christopher George Latore Wallace (1972–1997)
- Michele Wallace (born 1952)
- Eric Walrond (1898–1966)
- Marilyn Nelson Waniek (born 1946)
- Douglas Turner Ward (born 1930)
- Jesmyn Ward (born 19??)
- Booker T. Washington (1856–1913)
- Frank J. Webb (1828–1894), novelist, poet, essayist
- Carl Weber
- Ida B. Wells (1862–1931)
- Richard Wesley (born 1945), playwright, screenwriter
- Valerie Wilson Wesley (born 1947)
- Cornel West (born 1953)
- Dorothy West (1907–1998), novelist
- Phillis Wheatley (1753–1784), first published African-American poet
- Walter Francis White (1893–1955)
- Colson Whitehead, novelist (The Intuitionist) and journalist
- Steven Whitehurst (born 1967), award-winning author
- Albery Allson Whitman (1851–1901), poet, minister and orator
- Anthony Whyte, writer of urban and hip-hop literature
- John Edgar Wideman (born 1941)
- Crystal Wilkinson (born 1962)
- Chancellor Williams (1893–1992), historian and sociologist
- John Alfred Williams (born 1925), author, journalist and academic
- Samm-Art Williams (born 1946), playwright
- Sherley Anne Williams (1944–1999)
- Walter E. Williams (born 1936)
- August Wilson (1945–2005)
- Harriet E. Wilson (1825–1900), author of Our Nig and the first African-American novelist
- William Julius Wilson (born 1935), author of When Work Disappears, The Truly Disadvantaged, and The Declining Significance of Race
- Oprah Winfrey (born 1954)
- Carter G. Woodson (1895–1950)
- Jacqueline Woodson (born 1963), award-winning author of books for children and adolescents, including "Brown Girl Dreaming"
- David Wright (born 1964)
- Jay Wright, poet
- Kelly Wright, author of Outed Obsession and Fatal Fixation
- Richard Wright (1908–1960)
X
- Malcolm X (1925–1965)
Y
- Camille Yarbrough (born 1938)
- Frank Yerby (1916–1991), historical novelist
- Al Young (born 1939), poet, novelist, essayist, screenwriter and professor
Z
- Zane, author of erotic fiction
- Ahmos Zu-Bolton (1948–2005), activist, poet and playwright
See also
- List of African-American nonfiction writers
- Lists of writers
- Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States
- Before Columbus Foundation