A writer is obviously at his most natural and relaxed when he writes in the first person. Writing is a personal transaction between two people, conducted on paper, and the transaction will go well to the extent that it retains its humanity.

Nobody told all the new e-mail writers that the essence of writing is rewriting. Just because they are writing with ease and enjoyment doesn't mean they are writing well.

Today the outlandish becomes routine overnight. The humorist is trying to say that it's still outlandish.

A simple [writing] style is the result of very hard work.

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.

The secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components.

Writers must constantly ask: what I am trying to say? Surprisingly often, they don't know.