They set goals, and when they achieve them, they set new goals. They are afraid NOT to be afraid. Fear is the catalyst that pushes us to avoid complacency, to strive for the fresh and original, to question every sentence like it was a child coming in after curfew. We take chances because we are afraid not to. We polish and polish again, because of fear.
Fear can be a crippler, and many a wonderful writer has been permanently derailed by it.
But kept in check, fear can sometimes be the difference between the mundane and the extraordinary. I'm going to remind myself of this column and of Amy Tan. As always I'm finding lots of reasons to be afraid this time around. This book will be my first hardcover. It's going to be controversial.