Writers

"Oh, hello. I didn't see you there. I was just catching up on my latest diary entry."

Samuel Pepys Was England's First Blogger

The famed blogger—okay, diarist—told historians so much about 17th-century daily life in England, but he could have told us so much more

Edith Wharton moved to Paris and stayed put during World War I, unlike many of her friends who fled.

Edith Wharton Recruited the World’s Greatest Artists to Raise Money for WWI Refugees

A century ago, the famous author took it upon herself to help those left behind by the war’s carnage

Wanted: modern takes on a classic group of plays.

Battle the Bard in Shakespeare Remix Competition

$25,000 is on the line—along with some serious bragging rights

An artist's rendering of a meteor passing over the British Isles in 1783. Unlike the L'Aigle meteor a few decades later, the meteorites from this event were not witnessed falling to the ground, and thus meteorites remained a scientific mystery for another 20 years.

Scientists Didn't Believe in Meteorites Until 1803

The l'Aigle meteorite fall involved more than 3,000 pieces of rock and numerous witnesses, and it changed everything

“Very, very early in my boyhood,” Hudson wrote, “I had acquired the habit of going about alone.”

The Naturalist Who Inspired Ernest Hemingway and Many Others to Love the Wilderness

W.H. Hudson wrote one of the 20th century’s greatest memoirs after a fever rekindled visions of his childhood.

This Artificial Neural Network Generates Absurd Pickup Lines

But the technology probably won't be able to land you a date anytime soon

Was sticking an eraser on the back of a pencil common sense, or a new invention?

Happy Birthday to the Modern Pencil

The patent for this supremely convenient invention didn't last long

The University of London's Senate House inspired Orwell's description of the Ministry of Truth. Orwell's wife Eileen Blair worked in the building during World War II, when it was the real headquarters of the Ministry of Information.

George Orwell Wrote '1984' While Dying of Tuberculosis

Orwell, like thousands around the globe today, struggled with tuberculosis for many years before finally succumbing to the disease

A new VR game puts you inside a James Joyce novel.

This Game Turns James Joyce’s Most Notorious Novel Into Virtual Reality

But will it make you want to finish <i>Ulysses</i>?

Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson Was Fiercer Than You Think

A new biopic shows the poet as more than a mysterious recluse

One Writer Used Statistics to Reveal the Secrets of What Makes Great Writing

In his new book, data journalist Ben Blatt takes a by-the-numbers look at literary classics and finds some fascinating patterns

Obama's Powerful Tribute to a Defining Civil Rights Moment

On the 50th anniversary of the march from Selma to Montgomery, the first African American president paid tribute to an event in civil rights history

Most players of “Walden” go straight to survival tasks, admits Fullerton.

Can a Video Game Capture the Magic of Walden?

Henry David Thoreau's famed retreat gets pixelated

Because donkeys definitely belong on Valentine's Day cards.

Nothing Says ‘I Hate You’ Like a ‘Vinegar Valentine’

For at least a century, Valentine’s Day was used as an excuse to send mean, insulting cards

Channel Parker's vicious wit in the coat she wore for decades.

Fans of Dorothy Parker Can Pay to Wear Her Mink Coat

It’s all in the name of preservation

This photograph of Abigail Scott Dunway features the words "Yours for Liberty,"—the phrase she always used when she signed her name.

This Hell-Raising Suffragist’s Name Will Soon Grace an Oregon Hotel

Abigail Scott Duniway staged a lifelong fight for women's rights

Beatrix Potter Books

How Beatrix Potter Invented Character Merchandising

Faced with rejection, the author found her own path to fame and fortune

Margaret at Stafford House on Cumberland Island, holding her first copy of Fox Eyes, illustrated by Jean Charlot. This story was inspired by her time on Cumberland as a teenager.

The Surprising Ingenuity Behind “Goodnight Moon”

Author Margaret Wise Brown used new theories in childhood education to write the classic children’s book

Samuel Clemens often told stories to his children, but only one has survived.

New Mark Twain Fairy Tale Unearthed

The previously unknown—and unfinished—story was hiding in plain sight

Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michael Basquiat won the 2017 Randolph Caldecott Medal.

American Librarians Just Chose 2017’s Best Books for Children and Young Adults

Meet the 2017 Newbery, Caldecott and Printz award winners

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