He Was an Established Writer of Some Renown

An older writer is surprised by the response he receives from a young writer that admires him.

He was an established writer of some renown - you'd recognize his name if you heard it �" and you might have even read one of his books. He was talking with a young writer, and they were sharing their love/hate relationship with writing.  Feeling wise and experienced, he encouraged the youth to persevere through the challenges, and to not let bad writing on occasion define how he sees himself.  "We’ve all written pieces that later on just left us aghast at the work."

They changed subjects, speaking of some current issues, one of which the older man had just written a short essay on that sliced and diced the matter with wit, wisdom and insight.  He had felt pride swelling in his chest as he’d finished the rough draft �" oh! the bliss of writing when you know it’s good!

Since he’d said it so well in the essay, and the kid was so eager to learn, he decided to let the young buck read it then and there, even before it was published.  He handed a copy of the work across the table to him, and leisurely sipped his coffee as the kid read it.  When the younger writer had finished, he looked up from the papers, his face all aglow.  “Thank you for letting me read this!  If someone as famous and successful as you can write dribble like this at times, then there really is hope for the likes of me!”  The young man jumped up, gave the older mad a quick hug and dashed off, as the famous writer, remaining seated, sat there stunned.

It was awhile before he stirred in his seat, and even longer before he smiled.