导读：
　　Many a young person tells me he wants to be a writer. I always K)encourage such people, but I also explain that there’s a big difference between "being a writer" and writing. In most cases these individuals are dreaming of N)wealth and fame, not the long hours alone at a typewriter.(these individuals指代的是Many a young people。) "You’ve got to want to write,"I say to them, "not want to be a writer."
　　The reality is that writing is a E)lonely, private and poor-paying affair. For every writer kissed by fortune there are thousands more whose longing is never C)rewarded.(kissed by fortune意为“受到命运之神的亲睐”，由此可推出第4题应填的词。) When I left a 20-year career in the US. Coast Guard to become a freelance writer(自由撰稿人), I had no H)prospects at all. What I did have was a friend who found me my room in a New York apartment building. (What I did... my room in...。这是一个复合句，What引导的是主语从句，who引导的定语从句修饰a friend,由此可看出，作者刚开始从事写作时的艰难。)It didn’t even matter that it was O)cold and had no bathroom. I immediately bought a used manual typewriter and felt like a B)genuine writer.
　　After a year or so, however, I still hadn’t gotten a break and began to D)doubt myself. It was so hard to sell a story that A)barely made enough to eat. But I knew I wanted to write. I had dreamed about it for years. I wasn’t going to be one of those people who die wondering, what if? I would keep putting my dream to the test----even though it meant living with I)uncertainty and fear of failture.(put... to the test意为“使.....经受考验”，此处表明了作者态度，即要成为作家必须忍受很多困难。)This is the Shadow land of hope, and anyone with a dream learn to live there.
　　全文翻译：
　　很多年轻人对我说他们想当作家。我总是鼓励这样的青年，但同时我也向他们说明“当作家”和写作的区别是很大的。在很多情况下，那些想当作家的人向往的是金钱和名誉，而不是独自守着打字机的漫长日子。我对他们说，“你必须是想写，而不应是想当作家。”
　　事实上，写作是一件令人寂寞，孤独而且报酬又不高的事情。在每一个受到命运之神青睐的作家背后，还有成百上千的不走运的作家，这些人的渴望从没有得到过回报。当我辞别了我在美国海岸警卫队20年工作成为一个自由撰稿人时，没有任何前途可言。我只有一个朋友，他在纽约的一幢公寓里给我找了一个房间。尽管房间很冷而且连洗漱间也没有，不过这都没关系。我马上买了一台旧的手动打字机，感觉自己就好像是一个真正的作家了。
　　然而，大约一年后，我仍然没有任何进展并开始怀疑自己。要卖出一篇暂且可以糊口的作品是如此之难。但我知道我有写作的欲望。这是我多年以来的梦想。我不会像有些人那样，在临终前还在想，当初如果不放弃该多好啊!我会继续接受考验，即使这意味着变化无常的生活和对失败的担心。这其实也是梦想实现以前的一种虚幻的境界，每一个有梦想的人都应该学会在这种境遇中生活。