able to use them in a controlled and effective way. Bad writing is almost inevitable.

I am implying, in effect, a roughly Freudian or depth psychol­ ogy model of a murkey unconscious pool full of powerful, threaten­ ing energy. But there is also a less lurid model that underlines what I'm saying about voice -- roughly Piagetian: that the attain­ ment of real voice is a matter of growth and development rather than mere learning. In attaining a new stage of development, you move from one mode of functioning to a more complex, sophis­ ticated mode. In the process, skills can fall apart. There are lots of things you did well with that old mode which you now bungle.^* A genuine restructuring requires a destructuring. I think I see this happening in writing: many students don't seem to get past certain levels of adequate writing without going through a stage with lots of deteriorated writing.

In short, fear of badness is probably what holds people back most from developing power in writing. Some of that fear is natu­ ral in the struggle to develop an acceptable self. But some of it results from teachers who care more about getting rid of badness than about looking for potential excellence. If you care too much about avoiding bad writing, you will be too cautious, too afraid to relinquish control. This may lead to the worst fate that can befall a writer -- feedback like this: "It seems pretty good; I liked it fairly well; I can't see anything the matter." What they are really telling you is that they were absolutely unaffected by your words.

If, on the other hand, you really seek excellence, if you seek to write things that others might actually want to read, you need to stop playing it safe: go for it, take the plunge, jump over the edge. You won't know where you are going. You will write much that is terrible. It will feel like a much longer path to tread than if you just want to get rid of badness. But you will get rewards. You will get lots of feedback and it will be interesting. People will hate some of what you write and love other parts; some people will love what others hate. If you can put up with all these things, especially the inevitable flops, you will have the satisfaction of knowing that

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