What’s up with writers with writer’s block? “You have to be able to afford to be blocked because, if you are a writer, not writing is a very expensive business – and it becomes more so by the hour. Therefore, it tends not to happen on Grub Street. I myself have written three novels and averaged 2,000 words of journalism a week for 15 years without ever experiencing the kind of bank balances where a block becomes a serious possibility.”