Editing Writer (section)

==Authorship==
[[File:Autographe de Marianne Alcoforado (Maria Anna Alcoforada), comme écrivain du couvent de Béja.jpg|thumb|Signature of [[Mariana Alcoforado]] (Maria Anna Alcoforada), once thought to be the writer of the [[Epistolary novel|epistolary fiction]], ''[[Letters of a Portuguese Nun]]''. ]]

===Pen names===
Writers sometimes use a [[pseudonym]], otherwise known as a pen name or "nom de plume". The reasons they do this include to separate their writing from other work (or other types of writing) for which they are known; to enhance the possibility of publication by reducing prejudice (such as against women writers or writers of a particular race); to reduce personal risk (such as political risks from individuals, groups or states that disagree with them); or to make their name better suit another language.

Examples of well-known writers who used a pen name include: [[George Eliot]] (1819–1880), whose real name was Mary Anne (or Marian) Evans; [[George Orwell]] (1903–1950), whose real name was Eric Blair; [[George Sand]] (1804–1876), whose real name was Lucile Aurore Dupin; [[Dr. Seuss]] (1904–1991), whose real name was Theodor Seuss Geisel; Stendhal (1783–1842), whose real name was Marie-Henri Beyle; and [[Mark Twain]] (1835–1910), whose real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens.

Apart from the large numbers of works attributable only to "Anonymous", there are a large number of writers who were once known and are now unknown. Efforts are made to find and re-publish these writers' works. One example is the publication of books like ''Japan As Seen and Described by Famous Writers'' (a 2010 reproduction of a pre-1923 publication) by "Anonymous".<ref>{{cite book|last=Anonymous|title=Japan As Seen and Described by Famous Writers (published pre-1923)|year=2010 |publisher=BiblioLife|isbn=9781142479084}}</ref> Another example is the founding of a Library and Study Centre for the Study of Early English Women's Writing in Chawton, England.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.chawton.org/| title = Chawton House Library {{!}} Home to early English women's writing}}</ref>

[[File:CumaeanSibylByMichelangelo.jpg|thumb|[[Cumaean Sibyl]] by [[Michelangelo]]]]

===Fictional writers===
Some fictional writers are very well known because of the strength of their characterization by the real writer or the significance of their role as writer in the plot of a work. Examples of this type of fictional writer include Edward Casaubon, a fictional scholar in George Eliot's ''[[Middlemarch]]'', and Edwin Reardon, a fictional writer in [[George Gissing]]'s ''[[New Grub Street]]''. Casaubon's efforts to complete an authoritative study affect the decisions taken by the protagonists in Eliot's novel and inspire significant parts of the plot. In Gissing's work, Reardon's efforts to produce high quality writing put him in conflict with another character, who takes a more commercial approach. [[Robinson Crusoe]] is a fictional writer who was originally credited by the real writer ([[Daniel Defoe]]) as being the author of the confessional letters in the work of the same name. [[Bridget Jones]] is a comparable fictional diarist created by writer [[Helen Fielding]]. Both works became well-known and popular; their protagonists and story were developed further through many adaptations, including film versions. [[Cyrano de Bergerac]] was a real writer who created a fictional character with his own name. The ''[[Sibylline Books]]'', a collection of prophecies were supposed to have been purchased from the [[Cumaean Sibyl]] by the last king of Rome. Since they were consulted during periods of crisis, it could be said that they are a case of real works created by a fictional writer.

===Writers of sacred texts===
[[File:Ethiopian - John the Evangelist - Walters W850153V - Open Reverse.jpg|thumb| [[John the Evangelist]] Ethiopian c. 1540]]
[[Religious text]]s or scriptures are the texts which different religious traditions consider to be [[sacred]], or of central importance to their religious tradition. Some religions and [[Spirituality|spiritual]] movements believe that their sacred texts are [[divinity|divinely]] or [[supernatural]]ly [[revelation|revealed or inspired]], while others have individual authors.