“This too to remember. If a man writes clearly enough any one can see if he fakes. If he mystifies to avoid a straight statement, which is very different from breaking so-called rules of syntax or grammar to make an efffect which can be obtained in no other way, the writer takes a longer time to be known as a fake and other writers who are afflicted by the same necessity will praise him in their own defense. True mysticism should not be confused with incompetence in writing which seeks to mystify where there is no mystery but is really only the necessity to fake to cover lack of knowledge or the inability to state clearly. Mysticism implies a mystery and there are many mysteries; but incompetence is not one of them; nor is overwritten journalism made literature by the injection of a false epic qulaity. Remember this too: all bad writers are in love with the epic.”

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About Ernest Hemingway

American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist

Ernest Hemingway was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His work belongs to the 20th century, and he is widely known for a spare, understated style that shaped later writers. He has 257 quotes on the site. He wrote seven novels, six short-story collections, and two works of nonfiction, several of which became classics of American literature. He was also known for an adventurous public image and a blunt, outspoken manner, and he received the 1954 Nobel Prize in Literature.

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Books by Ernest Hemingway

The Old Man and the Sea

A short novel, quick to read.

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