While not a poet, Marcel Proust is included here as he was one of the most important gay writers in modern history. Born in France in the late 1800's, Proust is best known for his autobiographical novel Remembrance of Things Past, written mostly in a stream-of-consciousness style. The work of Proust influenced a variety of writers around the world including Virginia Woolf and James Joyce. He is generally considered the pioneer of the modern novel.