Morning journal and courier., 1883-11-24
Tho Process of Novel Writing.
Autobiography of Anthony TrOllOpe.l

AUTOBIOGRAPHY
 The work did during the twelve years from 1859 to 1s71-was certainly very great. I feel confident that iR amount no other wri- ter contributed 50 much during that time to English literature. Over and above my nov ela, wrote political articles, critical, social
 and sporting articles for periodicals, with out number. did the work of surveyor of the general postof6ce, and 50 did it as to give the authorities of the department ne slightest prstext fer faultfzding i hunted always at least twice week. I was frequent in the whist-rsom at the Garrick. I lived much in society in London, and was made happy by the presence Of many friends at Walt6am Cross. In addition to this we al- WAYS spent six weeks at least, out of Eng land. Few men, think, ever lived fuller | life, and attribute the power of doing this altogether to the virtue of early hours. It was my practice to be at nay table every morning at 5:30, and it was also my practice to allow myself no mercy. An old groom, | whose business it was to call me, and to l whom paid e5 year extra for the duty, allowed himself no mercy During all those years at Waltham Cross he was never once | late with the coffee which It was his duty to 1 bring me- I do not know that ought not | to feel that owe more to him than to any one else for the success I have had. By be- ginning at that hour I could complete my l literary work before dressed for breakfast. All those, think, who have lived as literary men-working daily at literary hours-will agree with me that three hours day will produce as much as a man ought to write. But then he should so have trained himself
 that he shall be able to work continuously during those three hours so have uttered his mind that it shall not be necessary for
 him to sit nibbling his pen, and gazing at the wall before him, till he shall have found the words with which he wants to express his ideas It had at this time become my cus-
 tom-and 1t still is my custom, though ot late have become little lenient to myself to write with my watch before me, and to require from nyself 250 words every guar fer of an hour I have found that the 250 words have been forthcoming as regularly as my watch went. But my three hours were not devoted entirely to wriling. I always began my task by reading the work of the day before, an operation which would take me half an hour, and which consisted chiefly
 in weighing with my ear the sound of the
 words and phrases. would strongly rec
 ommend this practice to all tyros in writing.
 That their work should be read after 1t has
 been written is matter of course that it
 should be read twice, at least, before 1t goes
 to the printers, I take to be matter of
 course. But by reading what he has last
 written, before he recommences his task, the
 writer will catch the tone and spirit of what
 he is then saving, and will avoid the fault of
 seeming to be unlike himself. This division
 of time allowed me to produce over ten pages
 of an ordinary novel volume a day, and, if
 kopt up through ten months, would have
 oiyen as It's results three novels of three vol un1es each in the year-the precise amount
 which 90 greatly acerbated the publisher in
 Paternoster row, and which must at any
 rate, be felt to be quite as much as the novel,
 readers of the world can want from ths hands
 of one man.