Words and expressions

1. The sentence is so folksy that we imagine ourselves sitting on the porch of White’s house in Maine.

folksy: friendly and informal

仿写: Some readers might be put off by the folksy style of these discussions.

2. Nobody wants to be patronized.

patronize: to talk to someone in a way which seems friendly but shows that you think they are not as intelligent or do not know as much as you

仿写: The program focuses on kids’ interests without patronizing them.

3. Sometimes you will tap a vein of eloquence or racial memory that gives your writing a depth it could never attain on its own.

eloquence: powerful and effective language

仿写: He is gifted with rare eloquence.

4. From their comments I realized that several of them thought I was being facetious. 

facetious: cleverly amusing in tone

仿写: Don’t be so facetious!

Reflection

My commodity as a  writer, whatever I’m writing about, is me. And your commodity is you. Don’t alter your voice to fit your subject.  这段话其实作者再次强调了写作中的be yourself

Imitation is part of the creative process for anyone learning an art or a craft. 这句话让我想起了中文里的“天下文章一大抄”，但不是完全的复制粘贴，所谓熟读唐诗三百首，不会写诗也会吟，作者表达的是需要有不断的看的输入，不断学习和不断模仿，我们才能成长，形成自己的风格和特色