Why a Writer Should Write
Great passage from a 1999 interview with Joseph Epstein. I've emphasized the last sentence because (i) it parallels the Samuel Johnson quote that has graced the top of the TDE page for nearly ten years, and (ii) it's what I try (with, at best, uneven success) to do here most days.
There are two kinds of writers. (Robert Benchley once said there are two kinds of people: those who divide the world into two kinds of people and those who don't.) One is a writer who's always telling you things you never thought of, or didn't know before. The other is a writer who's telling you things that you do know but that you've never quite formulated for yourself. I'm the latter kind of writer. People are often saying to me, "You know, I've always felt that, but I never really thought to put it that way." It's pleasing when that happens. Simply to give pleasure at a fairly high intellectual level makes my day.
Your talents are meant to assist others, whether it's financially through your job, or socially through your conversation and jokes, or intellectually through your writings. Make that the goal, then don't worry about whether you're succeeding. If that's your goal, you're taking a well-aimed shot. That's all you can do.
(The above is half-preaching and half-personal memorandum to myself.)
