Flannery O' Connor

Mary Flannery O' Connor, an American Writer from Southern American, is considered one of the best short story authors of 20th century. She wrote two novels and thirty-two short stories.

Flannery O' Connor was born on March 25, 1925, in Savannah, Georgia. During her teenage years, she lost her father, who died of systemic lupus erythematosus. When she was studying at Georgia State College for Women, she showed her talents at writing for school publications by working for student newspaper and literary magazine. She then attended University of Iowa for master degree on writing workshop. Her first story, "The Geranium" was published in 1946 while she began to write her first novel, Wise Blood, which was published in 1952. 

Flannery O' Connor spent several months at Yaddo, a Saratoga Springs, New York artists' retreat, to pursue her writing after graduated in 1947. She was diagnosed with lupus at the age of twenty-five. She then moved to live with her mother in Andalusia. Everything That Rises Must Converge, her second volume of short stories, was published posthumously in 1965. Religion was a major theme in her writings, which was informed by her experiences growing up as a Catholic in the South. Her writings reflect morality, ethics and her Roman Catholic faith.

Flannery O'Connor died on August 3, 1964, in Milledgeville, Georgia, because of lupus, an autoimmune disease. Everything That Rises Must Converge, O' Connor's second volume of short stories, was published posthumously in 1965. She received many prizes for her writings, including an O. Henry Award in 1957 and the National Book Award in 1972. She was best-known for her short stories, including A Good Man Is Hard To Find and Other Stories(1955) and Everything That Rises Must Converge (1965).

Citation:

"Flannery O'Connor." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2014. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on A Good Man Is Hard to Find.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2007. Web. 26 Oct. 2014.