On Writers…
Writers aren't supposed to be life models or religious prophets, clean of mind, clean of body. Nor are they supposed to be loved. Their only job is to make language work for the reader. That is the basis of free speech. Whatever the vested interests of the day may be, they invariably favour an obscure language of insider's dialects and received wisdom. So the writer turns nasty. It's a public service.
—John Ralston Saul, Canadian essayist, novelist, and critic, "The Doubter's Companion", 1994
"It's a public service." I like that… I'm not just mouthing off here, I'm performing a public service! (And before you ask, no, I don't have any modesty issues.)
Writers aren't supposed to be life models or religious prophets, clean of mind, clean of body. Nor are they supposed to be loved. Their only job is to make language work for the reader. That is the basis of free speech. Whatever the vested interests of the day may be, they invariably favour an obscure language of insider's dialects and received wisdom. So the writer turns nasty. It's a public service.
—John Ralston Saul, Canadian essayist, novelist, and critic, "The Doubter's Companion", 1994
"It's a public service." I like that… I'm not just mouthing off here, I'm performing a public service! (And before you ask, no, I don't have any modesty issues.)
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