writing book thoughts from robert

Writing a Book: Thoughts from Robert Harris

From "The Ghost" by Robert Harris. The title of the book refers to the

narrator, a ghostwriter, who is assigned to write a former British

prime minister's memoirs:

"Of all human activities, writing is the one for which it is easiest

to find excuses not to begin--the desk's too big, the desk's too

small, there's too much noise, there's too much quiet, it's too hot,

too cold, too early, too late. I had learned over the years to ignore

them all and simply to start. I plugged in my laptop, switched on the

lamp and contemplated the blank screen and its pulsing cursor.

"A book unwritten is a delightful universe of infinite possibilities.

Set down one word, however, and immediately it becomes earthbound. Set

down one sentence and it's halfway to being just like every other

bloody book that's ever been written. But the best must never be

allowed to drive out the good. In the absence of genius there is

always craftsmanship."

Labels: writing

posted by Jane Ciabattari 11:38 AM

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