John Updike, The Writer in Winter

My mother-in-law clipped an article for me from AARP's November/December 08 issue. "The Writer in Winter" is the title of an essay by novelist, poet John Updike.



In the entry, Updike reviews his writing career candidly. I wanted to share a few of his words and get everyone's feedback. Do you agree with him? Is this your experience?

"Memories, impressions, and emotions from your first 20 years on earth are most writers' main material; little that comes afterward is quite so rich and resonant. By the age of 40, you have probably mined the purest veins of this precious lode; after that, continued creativity is a matter of sifting the leavings. You become playful and theoretical; you invent sequels, and attempt historical novels. The novels and stories thus generated may be more polished, more ingenious, even more humane than their predecessors; but none does quite the essential earth-moving work..."

I have to say this may be my experience. Yet, as Hawthorne praised Anthony Trollope's work, I hope to continue to write works "as real as if some giant had hewn a great lump out of the earth and put it under a glass case." Even in my forties. :~) How about you?