Born in London, England, in 1882, Virginia Woolf was one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century. Her use of stream-of-thought writing and nonlinear storytelling influenced the development of modernist literature. A founding member of the Bloomsbury Group, a gathering of writers, intellectuals, and artists who challenged social norms and standards, Woolf addressed such issues in her writings as women’s rights, mental illness, war, and fascism.