There are few tools more powerful than the written word. Writers who finely hone their craft possess the ability to spread messages, change minds, or create something lastingly beautiful. As shown in the pages of this volume, masterful writers through the ages have run the gamut from early dramatists and poets such as Aristophanes, Sophocles, and Shakespeare to successful modern-day novelists, including Toni Morrison, Salman Rushdie, and J.K. Rowling.