"A non-fiction writer pretty much has the shape of the figure in front of him or her and goes about refining it. A work of non-fiction is not as difficult to write as a work of fiction, but it's not as satisfying in the end"

This quote by Chaim Potok suggests that composing non-fiction is not as tough as composing fiction, however it is not as gratifying either. He indicates that when composing non-fiction, the writer has the fundamental structure of the piece already in front of them, and their job is to refine it. This remains in contrast to writing fiction, which requires the author to create the entire story from scratch. Potok recommends that while non-fiction may be much easier to compose, it is not as pleasing as composing fiction. This is likely because fiction enables the writer to develop something entirely new and unique, while non-fiction is more limited in its scope.