If you ask any well-read fantasy fan—or search engine—the question “Who is the best fantasy author of all time?” you’ll get different answers from one person, or one source, to the next. Some lists rank G.R.R. Martin at the top; others point to J.K. Rowling, Robin Hobb, or Brandon Sanderson. At one point, Google—knowing me all too well—responded to this question with a snippet stating perhaps the most obvious answer, J.R.R. Tolkien.
It might shock you to discover that I disagree with all of these answers. (Yes, even Tolkien.) It’s not that they’re wrong, but they’re not completely right, either.
The Myth of the “Best” Fantasy Author
The truth is, “the best fantasy author of all time” is a myth. No such thing exists—not in the objective way we want it to, at any rate.
There is no unifying theory of greatness, in literature or any other art, that we can all agree on. Even using the same objective standards, the same rubric, two critics can arrive at two different “scores” for the same work. Why? Because questions like “Who is the best fantasy author of all time?” can only be answered subjectively.
That’s okay, though, because we’re not really looking for objective answers anyway. When we ask a question like this, what we’re actually asking most of the time is, “Who do I think is the best fantasy author of all time?”
Whether out of curiosity or risk aversion, we look to others’ answers to find our own. A flawed approach, of course, since no two people have the same tastes or standards—but it’s the only measuring stick we’ve got.
Finding Your New Favorite Fantasy Authors
So if there’s no objective way to identify who the best fantasy author is, how do you choose one for yourself?
First of all, if you’re looking for the answer to this question merely out of curiosity—with no real objective beyond naming one once and for all—then the process is simple. Review your book collection; recall your past experiences.
Whose writing has stuck with you the most over the years? Whose words called out to your heart and made it sing? Whose story changed you, not just as a reader but as a human being? There lies your answer. (You can also use a tool like PubMeeple’s Ranking Engine to force yourself to break ties if you can’t decide on your own.)
If, however, you’re looking because you wish to expand your horizons as a reader and want to find a new favorite author, you’ll have to dig a little deeper. Think about not just whose writing you like, but why you like it. Reread a bit of their writing; is it how they describe things that speaks to your soul, or is it the way they develop their characters? Or perhaps it’s something else entirely.
Spending a little time thinking about this can save you a lot of time you might otherwise spend browsing recommendations at random, as you can use what you know about your tastes to first find others who share similar—if not identical—preferences. Their measuring sticks will be much closer to yours; as such, their recommendations will be more likely to be right for you.
The Best Fantasy Authors of All Time (According to Me)
I can’t tell you which authors to love, or who will be the next best person to add to your shelf. But I can share my preferences, in the hopes that they are similar enough to yours to make my recommendations helpful for you.
I love poetic prose. Heck, I love poetry mixed into my prose. I am a sucker for idealistic worldviews and stories that, though they may run the full gamut of emotions, end with hope. I revel in characters I can feel close to and conflicts that carry as much personal weight as they do universal significance. I can easily lose myself in an eloquent description; the more I can immerse myself in a story, the happier I am.
As such, my (unsurprising) choice for the best fantasy author of all time is J.R.R. Tolkien.
My answer is not an unbiased one. The Lord of the Rings was an early read for me, my first true literary love, and thus is steeped in a deep sense of nostalgia. I can’t remember what it was like to not know what a hobbit was (or how special they are). But as I said, there is no such thing as an objective answer here.
For a few more authors to check out (if you haven’t already) here are a few runners-up, painstakingly listed in order of preference:
- Neil Gaiman
- Patrick Rothfuss
- Robin McKinley
- Anne Rice
- Philip Pullman
Of course, the contents and order of this list might change a year from now, or even tomorrow. But today, these are the fantasy authors whose words are scored the deepest on my heart, and the authors I owe the most to as both a reader and a writer.
A big “thank you” to all of them for keeping me going throughout the years. And thank you, as always, for reading. Happy hunting!
Kim Berkley is an avid fantasy lover who has penned a few of her own fantastical works of fiction as well. Click here to see what she’s published so far—and what she’ll be working on next! Or, go here to check out a few free short reads.
