"You should write always indepedent of your audience. Aware, but independent. You sometimes seem as if you are overly conscious of how your writing may or may not be perceived. It makes your writing seem either desperate or smug, depending on your perception of how well you have measured up. Maybe you speak to your audience too much. What great writer spoke to his audience? Or if they did, they were completely self-assured. Confidence is everything. You must know that you will be interesting.

Do not try to be different. Do not strive to be unique. Unique writing fades. More important is to be profound. But do not try to be profound. If you are thinking and feeling deeply, you will be profound.

Most of all, polish and work. Why is writing different from any other art? Musicians practice. Artists train. So must a writer. He must be in complete control."

Sage advice.