“The true end of literature is to enable the reader better to enjoy
life, or better to endure it”. So said Samuel Johnson; not to be confused with Samuel Whiskers, who said “Anna Maria, make me a roly-poly pudding”. An
equally laudable statement and probably, let's face it, one with more
popular appeal.
Since it’s likely that more people enjoy puddings than enjoy reading,
why be a writer? Why not become a pudding chef? In my case (as my
friends and family are well aware) because the results of my cooking would
be, like Anna Maria’s pudding string, “very indigestible”. And I
hate doing it. On the other hand, I love writing. And life is too
short not to do what you love.
