After obsessively contemplating my own struggles to become a writer – and reading about the early struggles of Hemingway (A Moveable Feast) and Stephen King (On Writing) – I can’t help but wonder if this is a necessary battle imposed by the writing gods to see if I am truly willing to risk all to follow my heart: like a very difficult college “weed out” course to test my mettle. This thought keeps me going, despite the odds and frustration.