| 100% | GEORGEORWELL | 12 | Pen name of Eric Blair, who wrote "Animal Farm": 2 wds. |
| 59% | LEMONYSNICKET | 13 | Pen name of Daniel Handler, who wrote "A Series of Unfortunate Events": 2 wds. |
| 59% | LEWISCARROLL | 12 | Pen name of Charles Dodgson, who wrote "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland": 2 wds. |
| 54% | LEECHILD | 8 | Pen name of the British novelist who writes the Jack Reacher novel series (2 wds.) |
| 47% | MARKTWAIN | 9 | Pen name of Samuel Clemens who is famous for his book "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer": 2 wds. |
| 45% | ORWELL | 6 | Pen name of Arthur Eric Blair: George __ |
| 44% | ISAKDINESEN | 11 | Pen name of the author of 19-Across: 2 wds. |
| 43% | MARKTWAIN | 9 | Pen name of the American writer born Samuel Clemens: 2 wds. |
| 42% | LEMONYSNICKET | 13 | Pen name of the author of "A Series of Unfortunate Events": 2 wds. |
| 42% | KARENBLIXEN | 11 | Danish author who wrote 17-Across and 30-Across under the pen name Isak Dinesen (2 wds.) |
| 40% | MURIELSPARK | 11 | Scottish author who wrote "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie": 2 wds. |
| 40% | CHARLESDARWIN | 13 | Medical school dropout who wrote "On the Origin of Species": 2 wds. |
| 40% | JOANNEROWLING | 13 | Author of the "Harry Potter" series who has written novels under the pen name Robert Galbraith: 2 wds. |
| 39% | LENADUNHAM | 10 | "Girls" actress who wrote the memoir "Not That Kind of Girl": 2 wds. |
| 39% | RICHARDBACHMAN | 14 | Stephen King's pen name under which he wrote "The Running Man": 2 wds. |
| 39% | BETTYFORD | 9 | First Lady who wrote the 1978 memoir "The Times of My Life": 2 wds. |
| 38% | LENADUNHAM | 10 | "Girls" actress/creator who wrote the 2014 memoir "Not That Kind of Girl": 2 wds. |
| 38% | CHUCKBARRIS | 11 | TV program creator and host who wrote the memoir "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind": 2 wds. |
| 38% | DAVIDHEWSON | 11 | Paul ___, real name of U2's lead vocalist Bono who is also a philanthropist: 2 wds. |
| 38% | POPSMOKE | 8 | Stage name of rapper Bashar Jackson, who performed 21-Across and 35-/42-Across: 2 wds. |
| 38% | MRT | 3 | Professional name of Laurence Tureaud who acted in "Rocky III": 2 wds. |
| 37% | STACEYABRAMS | 12 | Voting rights activist who writes legal thrillers such as 14-Across under her own name and romance novels under the pen name Selena Montgomery (2 wds.) |
| 37% | STEPHENCHBOSKY | 14 | Author who wrote the film adaptation of his own "The Perks of Being a Wallflower": 2 wds. |
| 37% | EMMALAZARUS | 11 | Female US poet who wrote "The New Colossus" (the poem on the Statue of Liberty): 2 wds. |
| 37% | CHADOCHOCINCO | 13 | Former name of an NFL player who appeared on "Dancing With the Stars" in 2010: 2 wds. |
| 37% | THEWEEKND | 9 | Stage name of "Starboy" singer who used the name for anonymity on YouTube: 2 wds. |
| 37% | AUGUSTWILSON | 12 | Playwright of the month who wrote "Fences" and "The Piano Lesson": 2 wds. |
| 37% | MARYANNEEVANS | 13 | Author of "The Mill on the Floss" who wrote under the pen name George Eliot: 3 wds. |
| 37% | FRANZKAFKA | 10 | German-language novelist who wrote "The Metamorphosis," most of whose work got published after his death: 2 wds. |
| 37% | SHERMANALEXIE | 13 | Native American novelist who wrote 2007's "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian": 2 wds. |