Flannery O'Connor liked to say: "When you get to Rome, do as you did in Milledgeville." » O'Connor was born in Savannah, Georgia, but spent most of her life in Milledgeville, and it was her southern heritage that influenced her and made her writing extremely distinctive in literary history American. As a Roman Catholic from the predominantly Protestant South, she was often confronted with the differences between her environment and herself, a theme that recurs often in her writing. O'Connor was diagnosed with lupus, a hereditary disease that also killed her father, so she was constantly aware of her own impending death. It is for this reason that many of his fictional stories deal with death and the grace that can be found in the face of it. Flannery O'Connor is a notable 20th-century American writer who was influenced by her religion and heritage, wrote impressive fiction with unique characters, and made considerable and relevant contributions to American literature. Flannery O'Connor's writings were greatly influenced by a pivotal mentor during her college years, her Southern heritage, and her Catholic faith. After growing up with her family in Milledgeville, Georgia, O'Connor attended Georgia State College for Women, just a block from her home. After graduating from college, O'Connor met Paul Engle, director of the University of Iowa Writing Workshop, who was immediately impressed by her writing and encouraged her enrollment (Scott 45). O'Connor's talent was greatly recognized here and encouraged by both Engle and his classmates. O'Connor's southern heritage was another element that inspired her to write. "Southern people tend to pay... middle of paper ... When she finally succumbed to the disease at just thirty-nine years old in 1964, she was buried next to her father. Fortunately for readers, she had already established herself among America's top writers through the work she was able to produce during her short life. Works Cited Galloway, Patrick. “The Dark Side of the Cross: Flannery O'Connor's Short Fiction.” » Pat's Lit Page. PATWEB. February 8, 2010. http://www.cyberpat.com/essays/flan.html Grimshaw, James. The Flannery O'Connor Companion. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1981. Holman, C. Hugh. “Flannery O’Connor: Overview.” Reference guide to American literature. Ed. Jim Camp. 3rd ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994. LiteratureResources from Gale. Internet. February 9, 2010. Scott, Neil. The Encyclopedia of the Irish in America. Ed. Michael Glazer. Notre Dame University Press, 1999.