A tiny blip in the continuum

“Writers who are blessed with inborn talent can write easily, no matter what they do—or don’t do. Like water from a natural spring, the sentences just well up, and with little or no effort these writers can complete a work. Unfortunately, I don’t fall into that category. I have to pound away at a rock with a chisel and dig up a deep hole before I can locate the source of my creativity. Every time I begin a new novel, I have to dredge out another hole. As soon as I notice one source drying up, I move on to another. If people who rely on a natural spring of talent suddenly find they’ve exhausted their source, they’re in trouble.

“In other words, let’s face it: life is basically unfair. But, even in a situation that’s unfair, I think it’s possible to seek out a kind of fairness.”

- Haruki Murakami, The Running Novelist: Learning How to Go the Distance, The New Yorker, The Summer Fiction Issue