Opening a Vein

Pulitzer-winning columnist and novelist Anna Quindlen is another writer made miserable by her calling:

I hate to write. I have to force myself every day to sit down and begin.

Amateur scribblers can barely imagine the life of a famous writer. Amateurs for the most part enjoy the act of writing and have no audience to please. Amateurs have no deadline pressure, no critics to bemoan the decline from earlier accomplishments, and no contractual obligations that force pen to paper or fingers to keyboard.

Yes, we amateur writers feel sorry for miserable Anna Quindlen, with only her riches, fame, and Pulitzer Prize to console her.

“There's nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.” - Red Smith