Monstrous

(I don't know if there is already a topic on this...)
Mine are

Terry Pratchett- Funny, creative, and has a little bit of everything for everybody.

J.K. Rowling- Also creative and has set up a great world of her own

Lemony Snicket- An interesting childrens author, violent and devious but innocent at the same time.

Lovecraft and Company- Infulenced my imagination more than any other author. After reading any of stories in the Lovecraft world makes you sit and think.

J.R.R. Tolkien- Amazing, the only word I can think of for someone this creative.

Algernon Blackwood- Lovecraft'ish, but at the same time at his own drift.

Yeah, one cannot argue with that. Let me add my list:

Anne Rice - She gives the meaning of vampires, emotion and feeling a different way. Not to mention of the constant appearances of phisical attraction.

Bram Stoker - The lord of the Count himself, prince of darkness Dracula.

Edgar Allan Poe - Creative and incredible. Breath-taking.

Errr... whoever I forgot to mention - forgive me for my lack of memory.

Tolkien, Lovecraft, Poe, Pratchett.

My favs tend to be a bit... canonical: Milton, Dante, Blake, Shakespeare

But I do have a few writers of popular fiction I like, namely:

Frank Herbert: Dune is a masterpiece

George Orwell: Read 1984, do it

Herman Melville: Moby Dick is quite a book. It's actually entertaining. I promise.

Oh, I forgot the man who got me into Sci-Fi, H.G. Wells. War of the Worlds.  :-D

Richard Laymon       the auther who got me interested in reading
Stephen King           when he's good, he's very very good
Bernard Cornwell     the best historical/alternative historical writer (in my opinion)
Robin Hobb              her assasin trilogy is probabley the best stuff ive ever read
Laurell K Hamilton    her first five Anita Blake books are prety good
H P Lovecraft           no one else writes like him (they just waste their time when they try)

Douglas Clegg--Anyone who could convince me to like Mordred's gotta be good. Also the Vampyricon series.

Neil Gaiman--Sandman comics, MirrorMask, many short stories and some excellent poetry.

Clive Barker--Abarat's a weird book, but I like it.

 Thank you for mentioning Laurell K Hamilton! But I'm addicted to her "Mery Gentry" series. Blood, gore, monsters, magic, and orgies... what more can you ask for in a book?
 Other favorites include:
 Poe (of course)
 Garth Nix
 and Lisa Jackson... although her monsters are all too human.

 I forgot one last time... I also love Judith Merkle Riley

Garth Nix: for his great epic of a book Sabriel

C.S. Lewis: brethtaking imagery great story telling

Micheal Moorcock: the Elric saga, if you haven't read it.... DO

Terry Goodkind: excellent story telling

And last but most certianly not least:

PIERCE ANTHONY: The Xanth novels are the best.

Stephen King: when he's in the mood, he's just the real thing
Laurell K. Hamilton: I used to like her more at the very beginning of the Anita Blake saga. Now it's all too far based on sex (there is Merry Gentry series for that...)
Robert Crais: yeah, he's funny. I adore the Elvis Cole series. For those who haven't had the pleasure to read about Mr. Cole he's a p.i. from LA. Very nice.
Dean Koontz: no need to say more. He's just brilliant.
Roland Barthes: French philosopher and author.
Jeffrey Eugenides: I think the beginning of Middlesex is one of the best ever.
Noam Chomsky
Anne Rice, of course.
Chuck Palahniuk: my favourite at the moment. I just love his writing skills, the way he plays with words, his imagination. Great talent.
I'm sure I forgot quite a few hundreds...

In fact, I forgot to mention Mr. Richard Laymon.

Laurell K Hamilton
Sherrilyn Kenyon
Lynsay Sands
Jim Butcher
Simon R Green
Keri Arthur
CJ Barry
Charlaine Harris
Lora Leigh
Kate Douglas

Clive Barker- A magnificent blood bath of words.

Stephen King- The Shining is a masterpiece.

Edgar Allen Poe- Dark poetry.

HP Lovecraft- The graveyard master

Robert Bloch- Godfather of the human monster (Psycho)

Anne Rice- The Queen.

Brian Keene- The zombie author

Favorite authors with a book/series title:

Anne Bishop- Black Jewel Trilogy
Laurell K. Hamilton- Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series
Russell Moon- Witch Boy Trilogy (sadly that's all he's written)
R.A. Salvatore- yay for the Drizzit!
Novala Takemoto- Kamikaze Girls
John Peel: Diadem (fav childhood series ^_^)
Frank Peretti- This Present Darkness
Chris Wooding-The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray

Anne Bishop- The Black Jewels Trilogy is on of my fav series books of all time. It is  a wonderful story one which I would recommend to anyone who like fantasy vampires, and women with power, and most of all true love. This is not a romance novel, it is everything rolled into one

Edgar Allen Poe- He is brilliant

Stephen King- because for sheer detail the man can paint a gruesome picture one that you cannot fail to imagine.

JK Rowling- because as someone as stated she has one heck of an imaginary world

Clive Barker- He is every bit as twisted as SK and maybe a bit more so

Anthony Burgess- Because A Clockwork Orange is one of the best books I have ever read, still stirs me to this day

I am sure there are more, but for now thats about all I can think of

Jeff Noon, 'Vurt' or 'falling out of cars'