Dear kaslin,
According to the Electronic Freedom Foundation, ANYONE who has written ANYTHING, is an ‘author’ of THAT piece of work, whether it be a letter to the editor, an online article, a newspaper article, a novella, or a novel. This definition has been substantiated in court, therefore, I utilize it.
That also means that (ooom!) Pat Buchanan is no less , nor more an ‘author’ than I.
(Just like Buchanan, I was a columnist for a regional newspaper, for over 6 years.)