The Story Beyond Attainment, Beyond Help

I’ve confessed before that I’m not a Hemingway fan. But I was intrigued by his Nobel Prize speech and the circumstances surrounding it. He talks a little about the loneliness of writing, which I don’t tend to agree with, but I liked this part quite a bit:

“For a true writer each book should be a new beginning where he tries again for something that is beyond attainment…It is because we have had such great writers in the past that a writer is driven far out past where he can go, out to where no one can help him.”

I like this idea of being driven out beyond help, beyond what you can conceive of for yourself. Because if you’re writing, it should be because this is a story that needs to be told and hasn’t been told before. This is your challenge and we’re always pushed further than before.

Make sure to check out the whole speech.

One thought on “The Story Beyond Attainment, Beyond Help

  1. t h i n g s + f l e s h says:

    i love this quote, Annie. it reminds me that the first thing for an artist is to be not like any other. and the second thing is not to love your original self so much that you keep copying it. thank you for posting. tony

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