On Writing Well Day 8

一 words and expressions

1. I knew that the host had been briefed about what kind of writers we were and what we wanted to discuss.

brief这里用作动词：to give someone all the information about a situation that they will need为…提供资讯

2. What I’m saying is that I have no patience with the snobbery that says nonfiction is only journalism by another name and that journalism by any name is a dirty word.

snobbery：behavior or attitudes which show that you think you are better than other people, because you belong to a higher social class or know much more than they do – used to show disapproval势利（行为），自命不凡〔含贬义〕

3. that you will quail at the prospect of keeping your readers, or even yourself, awake.

quail：to be afraid and show it by shaking a little bit or moving back slightly害怕; 畏缩

4. or the people being interviewed will veer off at an angle you couldn’t have foreseen.

veer：to change direction改变方向，转向。此外，还可以形容〔观点、主意、态度等〕转变，改变。

二 thoughts

Writing is a public trust. The nonfiction writer’s rare privilege is to have the whole wonderful world of real people to write about. When you get people talking, handle what they say as you would handle a valuable gift.

Interviewing people is a critical skill for us to develop. Just as writer said, "When you get people talking, handle what they say as you would handle a valuable gift." Each time we interview or communicate with other, we can learn some valuable lessons from them. 

 For most people learning to write, that path is nonfiction. It enables them to write about what they know or can observe or can find out. This is especially true of young people and students. They will write far more willingly about subjects that touch their own lives or that they have an aptitude for. Motivation is at the heart of writing. If nonfiction is where you do your best writing, or your best teaching of writing, don’t be buffaloed into the idea that it’s an inferior species. The only important distinction is between good writing and bad writing. Good writing is good writing, whatever form it takes and whatever we call it.

It is true that there is no distinction between fiction and nonfiction. In my childhood, I preferred to read novels and write daily diaries. Now, as a college student, I  need to read a range of papers about my majors. These papers are nonfictions. In turn, I also need write papers. Therefore, it is important for me to learn to write nonfictions well. In this stage, nonfiction is my own priority.