Learning to write publishable material is essentially a social process. It’s like learning to say, ‘Oh not so bad, not so bad,’ when someone asks you how you are, rather than actually telling them anything.
“Henry James wanted to write a book in the shape of an hourglass. Flaubert wanted to write a novel about nothing. What I’ve learned is that the muses’ decision to sing or not to sing is not based on the elevation of your moral purpose — they will sing or not regardless.”
John Barth