This is a list of Black American authors and writers who are part of African-American literature and have Wikipedia pages. Additionally, the list includes non-American authors living in the United States and American writers of African descent.

A

• Aberjhani (born 1957), historian, writer of articles, novelist, poet, artist, and editor
• Mumia Abu-Jamal (born 1954), advocate for social change and writer of news articles
• Linda Addison (born 1952), author and poet
• Tomi Adeyemi (born 1993), author and teacher who helps others write stories
• Ai, also known as Ai Ogawa (born 1947, died 2010), poet, winner of the NBA for poetry in 1999
• Rochelle Alers (born 1943), author and artist
• Elizabeth Alexander (born 1962), poet, writer of essays, and playwright
• Kwame Alexander (born 1968), writer of poetry and stories for children
• Larry D. Alexander (born 1953), author and artist
• Lewis Grandison Alexander (born 1898, died 1945), poet, actor, and playwright
• Candace Allen (born 1950), novelist, writer who analyzes culture, and screenwriter
• Clarissa Minnie Thompson Allen (born 1859, died 1941), author and teacher
• Robert L. Allen (born 1942, died 2024), advocate for change, writer, and teacher at a university
• Garland Anderson (born 1886, died 1939), playwright
• Maya Angelou (born 1928, died 2014), author and poet
• Tina McElroy Ansa (born 1949, died 2024), novelist, filmmaker, teacher, and journalist
• Ray Aranha (born 1939, died 2011), actor, playwright, and stage director
• Chalmers Archer (born 1928, died 2014), author, soldier, and teacher
• M. K. Asante Jr. (born 1982), author, poet, screenwriter, and university professor
• Jabari Asim (born 1962), poet, playwright, and university professor
• Russell Atkins (born 1926, died 2024), musician, playwright, and poet
• William Attaway (born 1911, died 1986), novelist, writer of short stories, essayist, songwriter, playwright, and screenwriter

B

• Calvin Baker (born 1972) – novelist
• Nikki Baker, also known as Jennifer Dowdell (born 1962) – novelist
• James Baldwin (1924–1987) – novelist, playwright, essayist, poet, and activist
• Toni Cade Bambara (1939–1995) – author, filmmaker, and activist
• Leslie Esdaile Banks (1959–2011)
• Amiri Baraka (1934–2014) – wrote poetry, plays, fiction, essays, and music reviews
• Aja Barber (living) – fashion activist and writer
• Shauna Barbosa (born c. 1988) – poet
• Steven Barnes (born 1952)
• Amy DuBois Barnett (born 1969)
• Lindon W. Barrett (1961–2008)
• Samuel Alfred Beadle (1857–1932)
• Paul Beatty (born 1962)
• Robert Beck (1918–1992)
• Christopher C. Bell (born 1933)
• Derrick Bell (1930–2011)
• Brit Bennett (living) – novelist
• Gwendolyn Bennett (1902–1981)
• Hal Bennett (1936–2004) – novelist
• Lerone Bennett Jr. (1928–2018)
• Bertice Berry (born 1960)
• Venise T. Berry (living) – novelist
• Henry Bibb (1815–1854)
• Uché Blackstock (born 1977 or 1978) – physician, professor, and author
• Eleanor Taylor Bland (1944–2010) – writer of crime fiction
• Marita Bonner (1899–1971) – essayist and playwright
• Arna Bontemps (1902–1973) – poet, novelist, and librarian
• James Boggs (1919–1993)
• Hannah Crafts (born c. 1830s)
• Demico Boothe (living) – writer on civil rights
• 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)
• Roseanne A. Brown (born 1995) – writer of fantasy, science fiction, and young adult fiction
• Sterling A. Brown (1901–1989) – poet, literary critic, professor, and poet laureate of the District of Columbia
• William Wells Brown (1814–1884) – wrote the first novel published by an African American, Clotel (1853)
• Anatole Broyard (1920–1990)
• Ashley Bryan (1923–2022)
• Niobia Bryant (born 1972) – author of romance and mainstream fiction novels
• Ed Bullins (1935–2021)
• Olivia Ward Bush (1869–1944)
• Octavia Butler (1947–2006)
• Roderick D. Bush (1945–2013) – sociologist, activist, and author

C

• George Cain (1943–2010), novelist
• Bebe Moore Campbell (1950–2006), author, journalist, and teacher
• Clay Cane, journalist, author, political commentator, and radio host
• Stokely Carmichael (1941–1998)
• Ben Carson (born 1951)
• Jennie Carter (1830–1881), journalist and essayist
• Stephen L. Carter (born 1954), legal scholar
• Cyrus Cassells (born 1957), poet and professor
• Kashana Cauley (living), comedy writer and novelist
• Lady Chablis (1957–2016), actress, author, and drag performer
• Charles W. Chesnutt (1858–1932), novelist and short-story writer
• Alice Childress (1916–1994), playwright and novelist
• Paulette Childress (born 1948), poet and short story writer
• P. Djèlí Clark, also known as Dexter Gabriel or Phenderson Djèlí Clark (born 1971), author and historian
• Breena Clarke (living)
• Cheril N. Clarke (born 1980)
• Cheryl Clarke (born 1947)
• John Henrik Clarke (1915–1998)
• Stanley Bennett Clay (born 1950), writer, director, actor, and publisher
• Troy CLE (living), fiction writer
• Pearl Cleage (born 1948), playwright, essayist, novelist, poet, and activist
• Eldridge Cleaver (1935–1998)
• Michelle Cliff (1946–2016), novelist
• Lucille Clifton (1936–2010), poet and educator
• Wendy Coakley-Thompson (born 1966)
• Ta-Nehisi Coates (born 1975), author, journalist, and activist
• Wanda Coleman (1946–2013), poet
• Marvel Cooke (1903–2000), journalist, writer, and civil rights activist
• Anna J. Cooper (1858–1964)
• Clarence Cooper Jr. (1934–1978), novelist
• J. California Cooper (1931–2014), playwright and author
• James Corrothers (1869–1917), poet and journalist
• Jayne Cortez (1934–2012), poet and activist
• Bill Cosby (born 1937)
• S.A. Cosby (born 1973), author
• Joseph Seamon Cotter Sr. (1861–1949)
• Donald Crews (born 1938), children's book author
• Stanley Crouch (1945–2020), poet, critic, columnist, novelist, and biographer
• Harold Cruse (1916–2005), academic and social critic
• Countee Cullen (1903–1946), poet, novelist, children's writer, and playwright
• Waring Cuney (1906–1976), poet
• Christopher Paul Curtis (born 1953), children's book author

D

• Jeffrey Daniels (currently alive), poet
• Meri Nana-Ama Danquah (born 1967)
• Christopher Darden (born 1956)
• Angela Davis (born 1944), political activist, writer, and professor
• Frank Marshall Davis (1905–1987)
• Milton Davis (currently alive)
• George Dawson (1898–2001)
• Samuel R. Delany, novelist, author, editor, professor, and literary critic
• Tracy Deonn
• Eric Jerome Dickey (1961–2021)
• Anita Doreen Diggs (born 1966)
• Nahshon Dion (born 1978), creative non-fiction writer
• Lonnie Dixon (1932–2011)
• Frederick Douglass (1818–1895)
• Rita Dove (born 1952), poet and educator. The youngest person and first Black American to hold the position of U.S. Poet Laureate and Consultant in Poetry at the Library of Congress.
• Sharon Draper (born 1948)
• W. E. B. Du Bois (1868–1963), writer, sociologist, and activist, who was a founding member of the NAACP. His most notable work is The Souls of Black Folk.
• Tananarive Due (born 1966), writer specializing in Black speculative fiction, and professor of Black Horror and Afrofuturism
• Henry Dumas (1934–1968)
• Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872–1906), poet
• Alice Dunbar-Nelson (1875–1935)
• David Anthony Durham (born 1969)
• Richard Durham (1917–1984), wrote radio series Destination Freedom
• Michael Eric Dyson (born 1958)

E

• Cornelius Eady was born in 1954.
• Sarah Jane Woodson Early was born in 1825 and died in 1907. She was an educator, activist, and author.
• Junius Edwards was born in 1929 and died in 2008.
• Ralph Ellison was born in 1913 and died in 1994. He was a novelist, best known for writing the book Invisible Man.
• Olaudah Equiano was born around 1745 and died in 1797.
• Don Evans was born in 1938 and died in 2003. He was a playwright.
• Mari Evans was born in 1919 and died in 2017. She was a poet.
• Percival Everett was born in 1956. He is a novelist.
• Eve Ewing was born in 1986. She is an author, educator, poet, and sociologist.

F

• Sarah Webster Fabio (1928–1979)
• Ronald Fair (1932–2018)
• Sarah Farro, 19th-century novelist
• John M. Faucette (1943–2003), science-fiction author
• Arthur Huff Fauset (1899–1983)
• Jessie Fauset (1882–1961), editor, poet, essayist and novelist
• London R. Ferebee (1849–1883), preacher and author
• Lolita Files (living), author, screenwriter and producer
• Antwone Fisher (born 1959)
• Rudolph Fisher (1897–1934), novelist, short story writer and dramatist
• Sharon G. Flake (born 1955), writer of young adult literature
• Robert Fleming (living), journalist and writer of erotic fiction and horror fiction
• Angela Flournoy, author
• Mary Weston Fordham (c. 1862 –1905), poet
• Namina Forna (born 1987), author and screen writer
• Leon Forrest (1937–1997), novelist
• Tonya Foster (living), poet, essayist and educator
• J. E. Franklin (born 1937), playwright
• John Hope Franklin (1915–2009), historian, sociologist, memoirist
• Hoyt W. Fuller (1923–1981)
• Nina Foxx (living), novelist, playwright and screenwriter

G

• Ernest Gaines (1933–2019), fiction writer
• Ruth Gaines-Shelton (1872–1938), educator and playwright
• Marcus Garvey (1887–1940)
• Tony Gaskins (born 1984), motivational and self-help writer
• Henry Louis Gates Jr. (born 1950)
• Roxane Gay (born 1974)
• Nikki Giovanni (1943–2024)
• Roy Glenn (1914–1971), fiction writer known for Is It a Crime and Payback
• Donald Goines (1936–1974)
• Marita Golden (born 1950)
• Edythe Mae Gordon (c. 1897–1980), poet and fiction writer
• Eugene Gordon (1891–1972), journalist
• Charles Gordone (1925–1995), playwright
• Amanda Gorman (born 1998), poet
• Lawrence Otis Graham (born 1962)
• Moses Grandy (born c. 1786)
• Ayana Gray (born 1993)
• Victor Hugo Green (1892–1960), travel writer
• Eloise Greenfield (1929–2021), children's book author
• Sam Greenlee (1930–2014), novelist and poet, best known for The Spook Who Sat by the Door
• Bonnie Greer (born 1948), novelist, playwright, and critic
• Deborah Gregory, author of The Cheetah Girls book series
• Dick Gregory (1932–2017)
• Sutton E. Griggs (1872–1933)
• Nikki Grimes (born 1950), children's book author and poet
• Angelina Weld Grimké (1880–1958)
• Charlotte Forten Grimké (1837–1914)
• Rosa Guy (1922–2012)
• John Langston Gwaltney (1928–1998), anthropologist and author of Drylongso
• Yaa Gyasi (born 1989), Ghanaian-American novelist, known for Homegoing

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
• Joyce Hansen (born 1942), author of children's books
• Vincent Harding (1931–2014), historian and social activist
• Edward W. Hardy (born 1992), playwright
• Nathan Hare (1933–2024), sociologist, activist, academic, and psychologist
• Frances Harper (1825–1911), poet and abolitionist
• E. Lynn Harris (1955–2009)
• Juanita Harrison (1891–?)
• Saidiya Hartman (born 1961), writer and academic, known for her important work Scenes of Subjection
• Robert Hayden (1913–1980), poet, essayist, and educator
• Cheryl A. Head, author and organizer
• Essex Hemphill (1957–1995), poet and activist
• David Henderson (born 1942), poet
• Safiya Henderson-Holmes (1950–2001), poet
• Donna Hill
• Chester Himes (1909–1984), novelist
• Kameisha Jerae Hodge (born 1989), poet and publisher
• Corey J. Hodges (born 1970)
• Karla F. C. Holloway (born 1949)
• bell hooks (1952–2021), feminist and social activist
• Pauline Hopkins (1859–1930), novelist, journalist, playwright, historian, and editor
• Nalo Hopkinson (born 1960), Jamaican Canadian, now lives in California
• George Moses Horton (1798–after 1867)
• Roberta Hoskie, real-estate broker, writer, and media personality
• Tracie Howard, fiction writer
• Detrick Hughes (born 1966), poet
• Langston Hughes (1901–1967), poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist
• Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960), folklorist, anthropologist, and author of novels, short stories, plays, and essays

I

• Jordan Ifueko was born in 1993.
• Rashidah Ismaili was born in 1941. She is a poet, fiction writer, essayist, and author of plays.

J

• Brenda Jackson (born 1953)
• Jesse C. Jackson (1908–1983), writer of books for young adults
• Mae Jackson (born 1946), poet
• Harriet Jacobs (1813 or 1815–1897), author of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1861)
• T. D. Jakes (born 1957)
• Ayize Jama-Everett (born 1974), science fiction and speculative fiction writer
• John Jea (1773–after 1817)
• N. K. Jemisin (born 1972), writer of speculative fiction. First person to win three Hugo Awards for Best Novel in a row.
• Beverly Jenkins (born 1951)
• Joseph Jewell (living)
• Terri L. Jewell (1954–1995), poet, writer, and Black lesbian activist
• Alaya Dawn Johnson (born 1982)
• Angela Johnson (born 1961)
• Charles R. Johnson (born 1948)
• Georgia Douglas Johnson (1880–1966), poet
• Helene Johnson (1906–1995), poet
• James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938), writer and civil rights activist
• Mat Johnson (born 1970), fiction writer
• Varian Johnson (born 1977)
• Edward P. Jones (born 1950), novelist and short-story writer
• Gayl Jones (born 1949), novelist
• Tayari Jones (born 1970), author and academic
• June Jordan (1936–2002), poet, essayist, and activist

K

• Ron Karenga (born 1941)
• Bob Kaufman (lived from 1925 to 1986), poet
• Elizabeth Keckley (lived from 1818 to 1907)
• William Melvin Kelley (lived from 1937 to 2017), novelist
• Emma Dunham Kelley-Hawkins (lived from 1863 to 1938), novelist
• Randall Kenan (lived from 1963 to 2020)
• Adrienne Kennedy (born 1931), playwright
• Nina Kennedy (born 1960), memoirist, screenwriter
• John Oliver Killens (lived from 1916 to 1987), novelist
• Jamaica Kincaid (born 1949), novelist and essayist
• Emeline King (born 1957)
• Martin Luther King Jr. (lived from 1929 to 1968)
• Woodie King Jr. (born 1937)
• Etheridge Knight (lived from 1931 to 1991), poet
• Yusef Komunyakaa (born 1941)

L

• Pinkie Gordon Lane (1923–2008), poet, editor, and teacher
• Nella Larsen (1891–1964), novelist
• Victor LaValle (born 1972), fiction writer
• Brent Leggs (born 1972), historian and preservationist, writer, and academic
• Andrea Lee (born 1953), novelist and memoirist
• Julius Lester (1939–2018), writer and academic
• David Levering Lewis (born 1936), historian
• Willie Little (born 1961), author and multimedia artist
• Alain Locke (1885–1954), writer
• Attica Locke (born 1974), novelist
• Audre Lorde (1934–1992), author, poet, and activist
• Bettina L. Love (living), abolitionist educator and writer
• Glenville Lovell (born 1955), novelist and playwright
• Kyra Davis Lurie (born 1972), novelist

M

• Christopher Mwashinga (born 1965), poet, theologian, and essayist
• Nathaniel Mackey (born 1947), poet, novelist, editor of collections, literary critic, and editor
• Naomi Long Madgett (1923–2020), poet
• Haki R. Madhubuti (born 1942), author, teacher, poet, and publisher
• Clarence Major (born 1936), poet, painter, and novelist
• Raynetta Manees (still living), novelist
• Manning Marable (1950–2011)
• John Marrant (1755–1791)
• Paule Marshall (1929–2019)
• Ora Mae Lewis Martin (1889–1977), journalist and writer
• Hans Massaquoi (1926–2013)
• Brandon Massey (born 1973)
• Victoria Earle Matthews (1861–1907), essayist, newspaper writer, and activist
• Julian Mayfield (1928–1984)
• James McBride (born 1957), writer
• Nathan McCall (born 1955)
• Bernice McFadden (born 1965), novelist
• Claude McKay (1889–1948)
• Mia McKenzie, author and activist
• Patricia McKissack (1944–2017)
• Reginald McKnight (born 1956)
• Kim McLarin (born 1964), novelist
• Terry McMillan (born 1951), novelist
• James Alan McPherson (1943–2016)
• Louise Meriwether (1923–2023), novelist, essayist, journalist, and activist
• Oscar Micheaux (1884–1951)
• Penny Mickelbury (born 1948), playwright, short story writer, and novelist
• E. Ethelbert Miller (born 1950), poet
• May Miller (1899–1995), poet and playwright
• Arthenia J. Bates Millican (1920–2012), poet, essayist, and teacher
• Mary Monroe (still living), novelist
• Anne Moody (1940–2015)
• Jessica Care Moore (born 1971), poet
• Toni Morrison (1931–2019), author and Nobel Prize winner in 1993
• Bethany C. Morrow, author
• E. Frederic Morrow (around 1909–1994), first African American appointed to a president's administration from 1955 to 1960
• Walter Mosley (born 1952), novelist
• Thylias Moss (born 1954), poet, filmmaker, and playwright
• Willard Motley (1909–1965)
• Jason Mott, novelist and poet
• Leila Mottley (born 2002), novelist and poet
• Jess Mowry (born 1960)
• Albert Murray (1916–2013)
• Pauli Murray (1910–1985), civil rights activist, legal scholar, and author
• Walter Dean Myers (1937–2014), writer of children's books

N

• Tariq Nasheed (currently alive)
• Gloria Naylor (1950–2016), novelist
• Larry Neal (1937–1981)
• Barbara Neely (1941–2020), novelist, writer of short stories, and activist
• Huey P. Newton (1942–1989)
• Richard Bruce Nugent (1906–1987) /think

O

• Mwatabu S. Okantah (born in 1952) is a poet and professor.
• Gabriel Okara (born in 1921 and died in 2019) was a poet and novelist.
• Nnedi Okorafor (born in 1974) is a writer of science fiction and fantasy.
• Marc Olden (born in 1933 and died in 2003) was an author of mystery and suspense.
• Porsha Olayiwola (born in 1988) is a poet.
• Rita Omokha (still alive) is a journalist and author.
• Terry a. O'Neal (born in 1973) is a poet, novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and educator.
• Tochi Onyebuchi (born in 1987) is a science fiction and fantasy writer and former civil rights lawyer.
• Roscoe Orman (born in 1944).
• Ewuare Osayande (still alive).
• Brenda Marie Osbey (born in 1957) is a poet.
• Candace Owens (born in 1989) is a political activist.

P

• ZZ Packer (born 1973), writer of short stories
• Gordon Parks (1912–2006), photographer, writer, and filmmaker
• Suzan-Lori Parks (born 1963), writer of plays, screenplays, and novels
• Tyler Perry (born 1969), actor, filmmaker, and writer of plays
• Eric Pete (still alive), writer of novels and short stories
• Ann Petry (1908–1997), writer of novels, short stories, children’s books, and news articles
• Delores Phillips (1950–2014), writer of poetry and novels
• Gary Phillips (born 1955), writer, editor, and community organizer
• Steve Phillips (born 1964), writer, newspaper columnist, and political thinker
• Deesha Philyaw (born 1971), writer, newspaper columnist, and public speaker
• William Pickens (1881–1954), speaker, teacher, journalist, and writer of essays
• Leonard Pitts (born 1957), writer of novels, journalist, and newspaper columnist
• Ann Plato (about 1824 – unknown), teacher and writer
• Sterling Plumpp (born 1940), teacher and writer
• Carlene Hatcher Polite (1932–2009)
• Alvin F. Poussaint (1934–2025), writer, doctor, and teacher
• Jewel Prestage (1931–2014), first African-American woman to earn a Ph.D. in political science and former Dean of the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs at Southern University
• Robert Earl Price (1942–2025), writer of plays and poetry

R

• Emily Raboteau (born 1976), fiction writer, essayist, and professor of creative writing
• Aishah Rahman (1936–2014), playwright
• Alice Randall (born 1959), author and songwriter
• Dudley Randall (1914–2000), poet and publisher
• Cordelia Ray (1852–1916), poet and teacher
• Francis Ray (1944–2013), writer of romance fiction
• Andy Razaf (1895–1973), poet, composer, and lyricist
• Ishmael Reed (born 1938), poet, essayist, and novelist
• Kiley Reid (born 1987), novelist
• Jason Reynolds (born 1983), YA/Middle-Grade novelist and poet
• Willis Richardson (1889–1977), playwright
• Florida Ruffin Ridley (1861–1943), essayist and short-story writer
• Vanessa Riley, novelist
• Harrison David Rivers (born 1981), playwright
• Cliff Roquemore (1948–2002), writer, producer, and director
• Carolyn Rodgers (1940–2010), poet
• Octavia V. Rogers Albert (1853–about 1890)
• Al Roker (born 1954), journalist and author
• Fran Ross (1935–1985), novelist
• Shawn Stewart Ruff (born 1959), novelist
• Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin (1842–1924), journalist
• Malinda Russell (about 1812–unknown), author of the first known cookbook by a Black woman in the United States
• Rachel Renee Russell (born 1959), author of the Dork Diaries series of children's novels
• Carl Hancock Rux, poet, essayist, playwright, and novelist
• Rupaul (born 1960), actor, author, drag performer, and TV show host
• Kennedy Ryan, novelist

S

• Kalamu ya Salaam (born 1947), poet, author, filmmaker, teacher, and activist
• Sonia Sanchez (born 1934), poet
• Dori Sanders (born 1934), novelist
• Sapphire (born 1950)
• Charles R. Saunders (1946–2020), 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), poet and musician
• Clara Johnson Scroggins (1931–2019), author and collector
• Sandra Seaton (living), playwright and librettist
• Victor Séjour (1817–1874)
• Fatima Shaik (living), author
• Tupac Shakur (1971–1996)
• Ntozake Shange (1948–2018), playwright and poet
• Nisi Shawl (born 1955)
• Sister Souljah (born 1964)
• Iceberg Slim (1918–1992)
• Amanda Smith (1837–1915)
• Danez Smith (living), poet
• Effie Waller Smith (1879–1960), poet
• William Gardner Smith (1927–1974), journalist, novelist, and editor
• Thomas Sowell (born 1930), economist, social theorist, and 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 (1803–1879), journalist, lecturer, abolitionist, and women’s rights activist
• Jeffrey C. Stewart (born 1950), professor and Pulitzer Prize winner
• Nic Stone (born 1985)

T

• Ellen Tarry (1906–2008), journalist and author
• Nedra Glover Tawwab, mental health therapist, social worker, and author
• Brandon Taylor (born 1989)
• Mildred D. Taylor (born 1943)
• Susie Taylor (1848–1912)
• Mary Church Terrell (1863–1954)
• Lucy Terry (c. 1730 –1821)
• Michael Thelwell (born 1939), novelist and essayist
• Angie Thomas (born 1988), young adult author
• Clarence Thomas (born 1948)
• Joyce Carol Thomas (1938–2016), author, poet, playwright, and motivational speaker
• Lorenzo Thomas (1944–2005)
• Piri Thomas (1928–2011), writer and poet
• Sheree Thomas (born 1972), writer, book editor, and publisher
• Truth Thomas (living), poet
• Pamela Thomas-Graham (born 1963)
• Era Bell Thompson (1905–1986)
• Howard Thurman (1899–1981)
• Wallace Thurman (1902–1934)
• Ruth D. Todd (1878–?)
• Lynn Toler (born 1959)
• Melvin B. Tolson (1898–1966)
• Jean Toomer (1894–1967)
• Touré (born 1971), journalist
• Askia M. Touré (born 1938), poet, essayist, leading voice of the Black Arts Movement
• Quincy Troupe (born 1939)
• Sojourner Truth (c.1797–1883)
• Omar Tyree (born 1969), novelist
• Neil deGrasse Tyson (born 1958)

V

• Henry Van Dyke (1928–2011) was a novelist, editor, teacher, and musician.
• Ivan Van Sertima (1935–2009) was a professor, author, historian, linguist, and anthropologist who worked at Rutgers University.
• Bethany Veney (about 1813–1916) wrote the book Aunt Betty's Story: The Narrative of Bethany Veney, A Slave Woman in 1889.
• Olympia Vernon (born 1973) is a novelist.

W

• Alice Walker (born 1944)
• Frank X. Walker (born 1961), founding member of Affrilachian poets
• Margaret Walker (1915–1998), novelist, poet, and writer
• Michele Wallace (born 1952)
• Eric Walrond (1898–1966)
• Mildred Pitts Walter (born 1922)
• Marilyn Nelson Waniek (born 1946)
• Douglas Turner Ward (1930–2021)
• Jesmyn Ward (born 1977), novelist
• Booker T. Washington (1856–1915)
• Bryan Washington (born 1993), author
• Frank J. Webb (1828–c.1894), novelist, poet, and essayist
• Carl Weber (born 1964), author, publisher, television writer, and producer
• Ida B. Wells (1862–1931)
• Richard Wesley (born 1945), playwright and 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 (born 1969), novelist (The Intuitionist, The Underground Railroad) 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)
• Charmaine Wilkerson, journalist, writer, and author
• Isabel Wilkerson (born 1961), journalist and author
• Crystal Wilkinson (living)
• Alicia D. Williams (born 1970), children's novelist
• Chancellor Williams (1893–1992), historian and sociologist
• John Alfred Williams (1925–2015), author, journalist, and academic
• Samm-Art Williams (1946–2024), playwright
• Sherley Anne Williams (1944–1999)
• Walter E. Williams (1936–2020)
• August Wilson (1945–2005), playwright
• Harriet E. Wilson (1825–1900), author of Our Nig and the first African-American novelist
• Kathy Y. Wilson (died 2022), journalist, columnist, playwright, and commentator
• William Julius Wilson (born 1935), author of When Work Disappears, The Truly Disadvantaged, and The Declining Significance of Race
• Oprah Winfrey (born 1954), talk-show host, actress, author, and media proprietor
• Carter G. Woodson (1875–1950), historian, author, and journalist
• Jacqueline Woodson (born 1963), award-winning author of books for children and adolescents, including Brown Girl Dreaming
• David Wright (born 1964)
• Jay Wright (born 1934), poet
• Kelly Wright, author of Outed Obsession and Fatal Fixation
• Richard Wright (1908–1960), writer of novels, short stories, poems, and non-fiction
• Sarah E. Wright (1928–2009), novelist
• David F. Walker, comic book writer and novelist

Y

• Camille Yarbrough (born in 1938)
• Frank Yerby (1916–1991), a writer who wrote historical novels
• Al Young (1939–2021), a poet, novelist, essayist, screenwriter, and professor

Z

• Zane (born between 1966 and 1967), author who writes erotic fiction
• Ahmos Zu-Bolton (1948–2005), activist, poet, and playwright