"I think my prose reads as if English were my second language. By the time I get to the end of a paragraph, I'm dodging bullets and gasping for breath"

Lynn Abbey's quote highlights a profound and deeply personal battle with writing, catching the intricacies and internal battles that numerous writers deal with. By recommending that her prose checks out "as if English were my 2nd language", Abbey may be expressing a sense of detach or insufficiency with her writing. This could indicate that despite English being her main language, she feels that her expression lacks fluency or flows as if crafted by someone not fully comfy with it. It's a vibrant method to convey a lack of confidence or viewed efficiency in one's composing abilities-- a belief that lots of authors, even skilled ones, frequently encounter.

The imagery of "evading bullets and gasping for breath" metaphorically represents the laborious effort and overwhelming pressure she experiences during the composing procedure. It stimulates a circumstance where each paragraph is a battlefield, and each sentence is an obstacle to conquer. The bullets she's dodging may signify criticism or self-doubt, stress and anxieties that threaten to damage her imaginative progress and self-confidence. Gasping for breath recommends the fatigue that accompanies this battle, as if finishing a paragraph is a marathon that checks her endurance and resilience.

This articulation of writing as a hard journey acknowledges the emotional labor and psychological concentration it requires. Abbey's metaphor highlights the paradox lots of writers feel: a profound love for composing paired with the frustration of it not always coming easily. It captures the charm and the monster of the imaginative process-- the intense satisfaction paired with the haunting specter of flaw.

Ultimately, Abbey's eloquent depiction serves as a testimony to the determination fundamental in writing. It advises us that even successful authors battle with sensations of insufficiency, yet they continue, changing their battles into stories that resonate on universal levels.