By Nikki D. Bosompem. Authors of urban literature, also known as street literature, have steadily made a formidable presence on bookshelves since its humble beginnings in the early 1970’s. The pioneers of urban literature boast such authors like Iceberg Slim and Donald Goines who opened the doors to a world of survival on the streets by doing whatever was necessary. For them, that meant unabashedly writing stories about what really went on in their lives as hustlers.