The creation of historically important literary works is a rare occurrence. As such, it is difficult to study using the traditional experimental paradigm. It is also an extremely complex process, one utilizing myriad skills and disparate knowledge sources which are accrued over the creator's lifetime. In order to understand an undertaking of this complexity, it is necessary to look at this enterprise in its totality, taking into account the many variables that will enter into the creative process. This is best accomplished through a careful study of the process in action, as it occurs in the "real world", using the cognitive case study as methodology. To that end, this study will attempt to shed light on the creation of literary texts through a detailed examination of the creative activity of Flannery O'Conner, a twentieth century Southern Writer. However, this study seeks to explain not only O'Connor's creativity, but also literary creativity in general. A cognitive model of the process of literary creation will therefore be proposed, using O'Connor as a case study. Her acts of creation will thus be explicated using the model as an organizational framework and explanatory schema. At the same time, the empirical findings from the study will inform the evolution of the model itself, as the data are tested against the proposed model.