or style itself might be. This is what the families of the writers provided---the material framework, the specific foundation for a view of the world and for the rich, emotional and spiritual soil out of which a writer fashions his or her "garden," as Walker would put it. The families also significantly provide the writers with a connection among generations, giving the writers a sense of continuity in their vision of life which would be far less likely to occur without such strong family influences.
Another important, common element for each of the four writers, of course, is the development of the imagination. In the first element---the family---we found that such a group structure gives the developing writer a solid connection to the real world, with all its wealth of details and specifics. The family environment gives the writer a foundation from which his or her imagina
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