Skiathos was the birthplace of famous 19th-century Greek novelist and short-story writer Alexandros Papadiamantis, who is looked on as the father of modern Greek literature, and whose writings draw upon the hard lives of the islanders he grew up with (many are inspired by or set in the old capital, Kastro). His plain, whitewashed, wood-floor 1860 house is now a small and charming museum with books, paintings and photos of the author and his family.
Bleak and ballad-like novella The Murderess, set on Skiathos, is Papadiamantis' most renowned work.