The 21st Century has seen defining moments in literature, with authors redefining genres, bringing forth provocative themes, and entertaining like never before. Here you will find the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
10 Most Prolific Authors to Not Miss
1. Stephen King
While Stephen King’s first novel, Carrie, was published in 1974, King has been one of the 10 most prolific authors in the 21st century. Publishing bestsellers like Doctor Sleep in 2013, a sequel to The Shining, and a horror classic, both have been adapted into hit movies. Stephen King is a one-of-a-kind writer who is unparalleled by any other author of his time. He revolutionized the horror genre, creating stories and characters that are memorable and have a cult following. He has published 64 novels, and his books have sold over 400 million copies worldwide, making him one of the most successful authors in the world.
King has also been a major influence in horror movies, with his works being adapted into more than 80 films and TV series. Stephen King is considered one of the most adapted authors of all time, helping to produce iconic movies like The Shawshank Redemption, The Shining, and IT (which was released in 1990 and remade in 2017, with IT Chapter Two released in 2019). His most recent adaptation into movies is his short story The Monkey, which has already received critical acclaim. Stephen King is one of the 10 most prolific authors of the 21st century.
2. Margaret Atwood
Canadian author and poet Margaret Atwood makes our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century for her bold dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale. While it was published in 1985, it has been adapted into a successful TV series that is now in its sixth and final season. Approaching themes of sexism and oppression, The Handmaid’s Tale is a literary work of art, expertly crafted with strong characters, a superbly descriptive setting, and thought-provoking scenes. Atwood has gone on to publish other great works, such as Alias Grace, also adapted into a Netflix Limited Series that is considered a hidden gem.
Her novel Oryx and Crake, published in 2003, is the first book in a science fiction trilogy dealing with themes from the not-so-distant future of genetic engineering and environmental collapse. Atwood published the sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, The Testaments, in 2019. She won the Booker Prize in 2000 and 2019, and invented LongPen, a device for remote writing. Margaret Atwood is by far one of the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
3. Khaled Hosseini
Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, and is of Afghan American descent. Hosseini belongs on our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century for gaining widespread critical acclaim for his novel The Kite Runner, published in 2003. The Kite Runner is a deeply moving novel that delves into themes of friendship and betrayal and takes place in Afghanistan. Hosseini does an amazing job of vividly describing the hardships of the country and the struggles of its people.
He has gone on to publish A Thousand Splendid Suns and And the Mountains Echoed. His books sold over 40 million copies worldwide and were written in 70 different languages, making Khaled Hosseini one of the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st century.
4. Gillian Flynn
Known for her dark subject matter and skilled suspense plots, Gillian Flynn makes our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century. Her novel Gone Girl, published in 2012, is her most popular book, a psychological thriller with a gasp-worthy twist. Gone Girl became a bestseller and was adapted into an equally successful film in 2014. Gone Girl is not Flynn’s only noteworthy work, however; her debut novel, Sharp Objects, about a journalist investigating murders in her hometown, was adapted into an HBO limited series.
She also wrote Dark Places in 2009, which explores themes of memory, trauma, family, and murder, and was adapted into a film starring Charlize Theron in 2015. Gillian Flynn creates suspense and unease in her novels and brings complex characters to life, giving her a spot on our 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century list.
5. Suzanne Collins
Suzanne Collins took the literary world by storm with her young adult fantasy trilogy The Hunger Games. Selling over 100 million copies worldwide, and adapted into four successful movies, giving Collins a place on our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century. Her books continue to be insanely popular with young adult readers, as well as adult book lovers. She artfully explored themes of oppression, social angst, violence, and the will to survive.
Her dystopian setting is skillfully described and vividly imagined. Collins has gone on to create another fantasy series, Underland Chronicles, and has won numerous accolades, including the Newbery Honor Award, the Carnegie Medal, and the Margaret A. Edwards Award. Suzanne Collins certainly belongs in the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
6. J.K. Rowling
OK, we can’t have a list of the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century without mentioning J.K. Rowling. Her extraordinarily successful Harry Potter series has become a worldwide phenomenon, with critically acclaimed movie adaptations, merchandise, and even its own “world” at Universal Studios Orlando. Harry Potter became a household name in 1997 with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone; she published six more books in the series between 1997 and 2007.
The fantasy series is brilliantly written, with rich descriptive prose, stunning character development, and inventive scenes. Harry Potter ingrained a love for reading and books into children all over the world. Rowling wrote other successful novels, including Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and The Tales of the Beedle Bard. J.K. Rowling is a fantasy writing legend and one of the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
7. Colson Whitehead
Colson Whitehead makes our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century for his talented writing in various genres and his historical bestseller The Underground Railroad (2016), which discusses provocative themes of slavery and social issues. The Underground Railroad is a reimagined underground railroad that is an actual subterranean train. Whitehead won awards for this novel, including the National Book Award and a Pulitzer Prize.
He also wrote The Nickel Boys, published in 2019, and another Pulitzer Prize winner, The Nickel Boys, is inspired by the real horrors of growing up in a Florida reform school. Whitehead is one of only four authors to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction twice, and he is celebrated for his originality and continues to be a leading voice in contemporary fiction, earning him a solid spot on our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
8. James Patterson
James Patterson is one of the most prolific authors of all time, and one of the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century. Patterson is wildly successful in the literary world with over 200 novels published, many of which have become bestsellers. Patterson was even named in the Guinness Book of World Records for the most #1 New York Times Bestsellers by a single Author, and he was the first author to sell over 100 million eBooks.
Patterson’s famous Alex Cross novels have been adapted into several successful movies, such as Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider, both starring Morgan Freeman as Alex Cross, and Tyler Perry takes over the role of Alex Cross in the Alex Cross series in 2012. With so much success, it’s no wonder that James Patterson is considered one of the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
9. Karin Slaughter
Karin Slaughter is a beloved American writer known for her outstanding crime thrillers set in her hometown of Georgia. Slaughter makes our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century for her sophisticated stories, fascinating characters, and suspenseful plots. She helps to make the crime thriller genre a tremendous success. Her debut novel, Blindsighted, published in 2001, was a big hit and instantly successful, earning her a nomination for the Crime Writers Association Dagger Award for best thriller debut. She went on to expand the series with Kisscut and Beyond Reach, also extraordinarily successful novels.
Her Will Trent series features fictional Georgia Bureau of Investigations Agent Will Trent and has been adapted into a TV show for ABC, and one of her stand-alone novels, Pieces of Her, has been adapted as a Netflix limited series starring Toni Collett. Besides being a powerhouse thriller writer, Slaughter is an advocate for public libraries and founded the Save the Libraries Project. Karin Slaughter earns her spot on our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
10. Cormac McCarthy
An Icon in American Fiction, Cormac McCarthy concludes our list of 1the 0 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century. His writing is diverse, covering a variety of genres such as Western, Southern Gothic, and post-apocalyptic fiction. He is well known for exploring powerful topics such as violence, morality, and human nature. McCarthy wrote No Country for Old Men in 2005, a western novel that was adapted into an Academy Award-winning film.
The Road was published in 2006, a post-apocalyptic story that won McCarthy a Pulitzer Prize and was also adapted into a critically acclaimed movie. While McCarthy passed away in 2023, at the age of 89, he will go on to impress readers around the world with his works, giving him a place on our list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century.
The 21st Century has seen the development of quite a few outstanding authors; this concludes our list of the 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century. Do you agree with our list? Or do you have your own list of 10 Most Prolific Authors of the 21st Century? Let us know what your thoughts are!
