I've just finished reading John Gardner's The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers. Excellent book, demanding at times (as Gardner was), but filled with some really good stuff. Near the end, Gardner makes this wonderful assertion that really struck me: "Every true apprentice writer has, however he may try to keep it secret even from himself, only one major goal: glory. The shoddy writer wants only publication." I guess now that modesty's out of the way, we can get down to the important business of becoming famous.