16 Journal of a Novel
"East of Eden", "Grapes of Wrath", "Of Mice and Men", most of us have read at least one John Steinbeck novel. But few people have heard of his non ficton book "Journal of a Novel." From the end of January to the beginning of November 1951, Steinbeck wrote "East of Eden." "Jouurnal of a Novel" is in the form of a series of letters to his editor Pascal (Pat) Covici written each day as he was writing "East of Eden." It's an act of discipline and an example for anyone in any creative endeavor what it takes to keep going to completion. A passage from the book: "But sometimes in a man or a woman awareness takes place—not very often and always unexplainable. There are no words for it because there is no one ever to tell. This is a secret not kept a secret, but locked in wordlessness. The craft or art of writing is the clumsy attempt to find symbols for wordlessness." A great book from one of the world's greatest writers.