Input (grade 13): Horace was a member of a literary circle that included Virgil and Lucius Varius Rufus, who introduced him to Maecenas, friend and confidant of Augustus.
Output (grade 8): His friends, Lucius Varius Rufus and Virgil, who were also writers, introduced him to Maecenas. Maecenas was a close friend of Augustus, the emperor of Rome.