Thomas Pynchon

Author Tom Clancy, seen in 2004, was an insurance agent before publishing The Hunt For Red October in 1984. Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images hide caption

British authors such as Hilary Mantel will soon have some competition from across the pond, according to organizers of the Man Booker Prize. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

Kelly Clarkson bought a ring once owned by Jane Austen at auction, but the U.K. is trying to keep it in the country. Harper Smith hide caption

Hilary Mantel attends the Costa Book of the Year awards in London, England. Stuart Wilson/Getty Images hide caption

William Shakespeare, brilliant playwright and cutthroat businessman? Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling wrote novels, poems and short stories, mostly set in India and Burma during British rule. Evening Standard/Getty Images hide caption