Music and time have such an interesting relationship. Music makes time fall away like almost nothing else. You hear a song from another moment of your life and it really is like you're still there. That's why the music of our youth ends up being particularly powerful. The coming of age music that you grab a hold of as the symbol or the expression of your independence and hopes for the future and anger and rebellion or whatever it is you're feeling is so powerful for the rest of your life when you hear it.
Jennifer EganI havenโt had trouble with writerโs block. I think itโs because my process involves writing very badly. My first drafts are filled with lurching, clichรฉd writing, outright flailing around. Writing that doesnโt have a good voice or any voice. But then there will be good moments. It seems writerโs block is often a dislike of writing badly and waiting for writing better to happen.
Jennifer EganThere are so many ways to go wrong. All we've got are metaphors, and they're never exactly right. You can never just Say. The. Thing.
Jennifer Egan