What a writer can do, what a fiction writer or a poet or an essay writer can do is re-engage people with their own humanity.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
Writing is, by its nature, interior work. So being forced to be around people is a great gift for a novelist. You get to be reminded, daily, of how people think, how they speak, how they live; the things they worry about, the things they hope for, the things they fear.
My only job is to write in such a way that the reader gets a new handle on humanity.
One of the amazing things about writing fiction is that you do get to be other people.
When you are a novelist, you are used to making a narrative do what you want.
Encourage aspiring writers to continue writing when things are going against them, when it feels hard. Explain the typical obstacles that occur, and encourage and reassure them to continue, never to give up.
I'm a writer; it's not just what I do, but who I am.
Writers are born, not made. We can hone the craft. We need to try to encourage someone and make a dialogue, suggesting ways to do something differently or how to improve.
There are three things that make a person a writer: inspiration, perspiration and desperation.
Writers are used to being re-created, and need it.
Writing is a solitary occupation. Family, friends, and society are the natural enemies of the writer. He must be alone, uninterrupted, and slightly savage if he is to sustain and complete an undertaking.