Stripping it Down to the Essentials

'Because I'm good at it.'
--the writer Flannery O'Connor, when asked by an interviewer why she writes.

'A writer's successes bring him more than praise, publication, or money: they also help him toward confidence. With each success, writers, like stunt riders and ballet dancers, learn to dare more.'
--John Gardner, a writer, social activist and founder of Common Cause