Books
Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards.
— Robert Heinlein · Time Enough for Love
Behind the line May contain spoilers.
Our reading
An editorial interpretation.
The opening offers writers a qualified reassurance, then immediately undermines it. Privacy and handwashing are presented as necessary precautions, as though writing were a grubby habit. That contradiction gives the advice its humour, treating a respectable activity with exaggerated suspicion and embarrassment.
Context reviewed