The joys & challenges of being a writer are explored in this inspiring assemblage of wit wisdom & hard-won practical advice from some of the world's greatest authors musing on the art of writing & how they came to define themselves as writers From Samuel Johnson in eighteenth-century London to Lorrie Moore in twenty-first-century Wisconsin the contributors range from the canon to contemporary covering more than 250 years & come from all over the world Beautifully illustrated throughout this stunning anthology explores & illuminates the pleasures & pitfalls of the compulsion to write with advice about the whole messy business of writing literature & what it takes to be a writer The perfect gift for aspiring writers curious readers & anyone interested in what the world's greatest authors have to say about the art of writing