| Every writer has to find his way. That is the nub | | | | money during long periods of his life, but he |
| of writing fiction. There is no clear path generally | | | | managed to mix it up with just about every |
| speaking and so it becomes a make it up as you | | | | major writer of his time. This is an amazing thing |
| go right from the start. When you read a | | | | for a writer. This cross-polinization is critical for |
| biography of a writer, part of the mystery and | | | | developing writers at any stage but particularly in |
| the curiosity centers around how did he or she do | | | | the early years. Surely the Hemingway years on |
| it and what type of path did they follow to | | | | the Left Bank proved the point. And Carver |
| publication and beyond. After reading Ray Caver's | | | | certainly had his own Left bank between the |
| biography, I came away with one overpowering | | | | University of Iowa and Universities in California. |
| sentiment for the aspiring writer--Go West Young | | | | For the rest of us who hacked out our path in |
| Man. Go to Iowa. Go to California. | | | | major cities like Chicago we can only wonder at |
| For those of us who did not follow this mantra | | | | the great good fortune of someone like Raymond |
| we are forever wondering what if. John Irving, | | | | Carver who went through hell in his personal life, |
| Cheever, Wolff, Oates, There were so many | | | | but seemed to be at the nexus of literary good |
| writers at Iowa Writers Workshop during Carvers | | | | fortune at precisely the right moments. Still, one |
| time it is hard to read because he had such good | | | | has to follow the path given and so it is useless |
| fortune to be around them and one hears the | | | | really to second guess the career of any writer. |
| drum again of now why didn't I do that? Of | | | | Certainly few could have survived the searing hell |
| course the biggest plum for Carver was meeting | | | | of alcoholism that Raymond Carver went though. |
| Gordon Lish who then went onto New York to | | | | But at the end, after his early death from lung |
| publish Carver in Esquire and then at Knopf. During | | | | cancer, he left behind a sizable amount of work |
| all this Raymond Carver is a raging alcoholic and | | | | and an incredible legend and if I had to pull one |
| still his career marched on. | | | | salient lesson from his life, it would be to go |
| Ray Carver had very hard times. Extremely hard | | | | where the action is...go where great writers are |
| times. He nearly killed his wife in a drunken rage, | | | | trying to do great things. Just go. |
| his family was torn apart, he literally had no | | | | |