Many a young person tells me he wants to be a writer. I always encourage such people,

1+Many a young person tells me he wants to be a writer. I always encourage such people, but I also explain that there’s a big difference between a writer and writing. In most cases these individuals are dreaming of wealth and fame, not the long hours at a typewriter. “You have got to want to write,” I said to them, “not want to be a writer.”

The reality is that writing is a lonely, private and poor-paying affair. For every writer kissed by fortune there are thousands more whose longing is never rewarded. When I left a 20-year career in the U.S. Coast Guard to become a freelance writer, I had no prospects at all. What I did have was a friend who found for me my room in a New York apartment building. It didn’t even matter that it was cold and had no bathroom. I immediately bought a used typewriter and felt like a genuine writer.

After a year or so, however, I still hadn’t got a break and began to doubt myself. It was so hard to sell a story that barely made enough to eat. But I knew I wanted to write. I had dreamed about it for many years. I wasn’t going to be one of those people who died wondering. What if？ I would keep putting my dream to test (even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure). This is the shadow-land of hope, and anyone with a dream must learn to live there.

21、The passage is meant to _______ .

A.warn young people of the hardship that a successful writer has to experience

B.advise young people to give up their idea of becoming a professional writer

C.show young people it is unrealistic for a writer to pursue wealth

D.encourage young people to pursue a writing career

24、In “…people who died wondering”, “who” refers to those _______ .

A.who think too much of the dark side of life

B.who regret giving up their career halfway

C.who think a lot without making a decision

D.who are full of imagination even upon death

25、“Shadow-land” in the last sentence refers to _______ .

A.the wonderland one often dreams about

B.the bright future that one is looking forward to

C.the state of uncertainty before one’s final goal is reached

D.a world that exists only in one’s imagination