Categorization guidelines for American novelists
Per current consensus, this category should not directly include any American novelists. All American novelists should be in one or more by-century categories based on when they wrote novels:

• Category:18th-century American novelists (1701–1800)
• Category:19th-century American novelists (1801–1900)
• Category:20th-century American novelists (1901–2000)
• Category:21st-century American novelists (2001–2100)

This is a container category. Due to its scope, it should contain only subcategories.

For a list of all American novelists, including those in all sub-categories of American novelists, click this link.

Novelists should also be placed into Category:American women novelists or Category:American male novelists as appropriate, and into any relevant genre or ethnic/national categories as well. However, a novelist should never only be in a genre, ethnic, or gender-based category – all novelists should be in the century-categories at a minimum.

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