Telling a writer to relax is like telling a man to relax while being prodded for a possible hernia.

The writers job is like solving a puzzle, and finally arriving at a solution is a tremendous satisfaction.

Rewriting is the essence of writing well - where the game is won or lost.

Every successful piece of nonfiction should leave the reader with one provocative thought that he or she didn't have before. Not two thoughts, or five - just one. So decide what single point you want to leave in the reader's mind.

Ultimately the product that any writer has to sell is not the subject being written about, but who he or she is.

Good writing has an aliveness that keeps the reader reading from one paragraph to the next, and it's not a question of gimmicks to "personalize" the author.

But nothing has replaced the writer. He or she is still stuck with the same old job of saying something that other people will want to read.