Luo Ben (c. 1330–1400,[1] or c.1280–1360[2]), better known by his courtesy name Guanzhong (Mandarin pronunciation: [lwo kwanʈʂʊŋ]), was a Chinese novelist who lived during the Ming dynasty.

[7] According to recent research, there were two people named Luo Guanzhong during this time (陈辽，Chen Liao[2]): one was a drama artist who came from Taiyuan, and the other was the author of the novel who came from Dongping.

The stories forming the bulk of Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margin are thought[citation needed] to have been developed by many independent storytellers.

Shi Nai'an is thought[9] to be the first to assemble Water Margin into a unified work, and Luo subsequently brought it to the current form of 100 chapters.

The Three Sui Quash the Demons' Revolt (平妖傳) is a shenmo fantasy story attributed[citation needed] to Luo with 20 chapters, developed from the original pieces of storytelling based on a rebellion at the end of the Northern Song, and later expanded by Feng Menglong (馮夢龍)[citation needed] into 40 chapters.