在文学创作中，和在人生中一样，一个基本原则是发现自我，做真实的自我。诚然，一个真实的自我可能是令人不愉快的，但是一个虚伪的自我早晚令人厌恶，就像一个其貌不扬的女人，涂脂抹粉过了头，会变得可怕。在写作中，伪装最终也是行不通的。正如警察指出的那样，你所说的一切都是用来对付你自己的证据。如果写字可以显示人的性格，那么写作更能显示人的性格。你不可能永远愚弄所有的读者。
大多数的文体是不够诚实的。说时容易做时难。为了给人深刻印象，一个作家也许好用长字，正像年轻人好留胡须一样。但是长字，和长须一样，常常有行骗之嫌。一个作家为了显示思想深奥，可能喜欢含糊其词。然而，路上的水坑，即使有意把它搅浑，也很快能见深浅。一个作家为了表示自己有独创性，可能好写一些稀奇古怪的文章。但是，真正具有独创性的人，不必想着如何具有独创性，他们的创新就像他们的呼吸一样，是自然要显示出来的。原文鉴赏
In literature, as in life, one of the fundamentals is to find, and be, one’s true self. One’s true self may indeed be unpleasant; but a false self, sooner or later, becomes disgusting—just as a nice plain woman, painted to the eyebrows, can become horrid. In writing, in the long run, pretense does not work.As the police put it,anything you say may be used as evidence against you. If handwriting reveals character, writing reveals it still more. You cannot fool your judges all the time.
Most style is not honest enough. Easy to say, but hard to practice. A writer may take to long words, as young men to bears—to impress. But long words like long beards, are often the badge of charlatans. Or a writer may cultivate the obscure, to seem profound. But even carefully muddied puddles are soon fathomed. Or he may cultivate eccentricity, to seem original. But really original people do not have to think about being original—they can no more help it than they can help breathing.(Frank Laurence Lucas)
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