The childhood of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, significantly developed his writing. Growing up in Missouri, Twain was exposed to a diverse range of characters and stories, which fueled his imagination. His experiences as a riverboat pilot and gold prospector provided rich material for his later works. The culture and societal issues of the time, including slavery and class differences, influenced his critical viewpoints and storytelling. Twain's keen observations of human nature, drawn from his youth, became foundational elements in his beloved novels, such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.