Since I have yet to find anyone who reads outside of my Reddit threads, I can only speak from that perspective. So…I almost never see anything by
Tanith Lee - Tales from the Flat Earth (and so many others!)
Frank M Robinson - The Dark Beyond the Stars, one of the first sci-fi books I actually enjoyed, opening up my reading world
Charles de Lint - Dreams Underfoot (the first of the Newford world I believe)
Brom - Child Thief (I’ve always been a fan of his art work)
Nnedi Okorafor has written a few series I would consider epic and short. They’re Afro futuristic
Tomi Aneyemi - series starting with Children of Blood and Bone
Rebecca Roanhorse - Between Earth and Sky series
Sharon Shinn - Samaria series (sci-fi/fantasy mix)
Science fiction:
Anne Leckie Ancillary series
Martha Wells Murderbot Diaries
For more standard fantasy style epics:
Joe Abercrombie
John Gwynne
Tad Williams has a few series, some longer than others
A Spell for Chameleon by Piers Anthony. Not because it in itself is an wonderful life changing book, but it’s the first real book I read. From there my love of books took hold and has only grown richer and more fulfilling. It’s also interesting that the person who started me on it and my love of reading was not a great man overall. So it reminds me that people are complex. Sometimes the worst people can lead you to your best self.
I didn’t even know edgelord was a word. It’s a good one, thank you