influences include toni morrison, bertha harris, and audre lorde. allison says "the bluest eye" helped her to write about incest. in 1975, allison took a class from harris at sagaris, a feminist theory institute in plainfield, vermont. harris told her to be "honest and fearless, especially when writing about lesbianism." in the early 1980s, allison met lorde at a poetry reading. after reading what would eventually become her short-story "river of names," lorde approached her and told her that she simply must write.