so you want to be a writer?

　　by Charles Bukowski

　　 if it doesn't come bursting out of you

　　 in spite of everything，

　　 don't do it.

　　 unless it comes unasked out of your

　　 heart and your mind and your mouth

　　 and your gut，

　　 don't do it.

　　 if you have to sit for hours

　　 staring at your computer screen

　　 or hunched over your

　　 typewriter

　　 searching for words，

　　 don't do it.

　　 if you're doing it for money or

　　 fame，

　　 don't do it.

　　 if you're doing it because you want

　　 women in your bed，

　　 don't do it.

　　 if you have to sit there and

　　 rewrite it again and again，

　　 don't do it.

　　 if it's hard work just thinking about doing it，

　　 don't do it.

　　 if you're trying to write like somebody

　　 else，

　　 forget about it.

　　 if you have to wait for it to roar out of

　　 you，

　　 then wait patiently.

　　 if it never does roar out of you，

　　 do something else.

　　 if you first have to read it to your wife

　　 or your girlfriend or your boyfriend

　　 or your parents or to anybody at all，

　　 you're not ready.

　　 don't be like so many writers，

　　 don't be like so many thousands of

　　 people who call themselves writers，

　　 don't be dull and boring and

　　 pretentious， don't be consumed with self-

　　 love.

　　 the libraries of the world have

　　 yawned themselves to

　　 sleep

　　 over your kind.

　　 don't add to that.

　　 don't do it.

　　 unless it comes out of

　　 your soul like a rocket，

　　 unless being still would

　　 drive you to madness or

　　 suicide or murder，

　　 don't do it.

　　 unless the sun inside you is

　　 burning your gut，

　　 don't do it.

　　 when it is truly time，

　　 and if you have been chosen，

　　 it will do it by

　　 itself and it will keep on doing it

　　 until you die or it dies in you.

　　 there is no other way.

　　 and there never was.