Use of English (2022)

Harlan Coben believes that if you’re a writer, you’ll find the time; and that if you can’t find the time, then writing isn’t a priority and you’re not a writer. For him writing is a [1] job—a job like any other. He has [2] it with plumbing, pointing out that a plumber doesn’t wake up and say that he can’t work with pipes today.

[3], like most writers these days, you’re holding down a job to pay the bills, it’s not [4] to find the time to write. But it’s not impossible. It requires determination and single-mindedness. [5] that most bestselling authors began writing when they were doing other things to earn a living. And today, even writers who are fairly [6] often have to do other work to [7] their writing income.

As Harlan Coben has suggested, it’s a [8] of priorities. To make writing a priority, you’ll have to [9] some of your day-to-day activities and some things you really enjoy. Depending on your [10] and your lifestyle, that might mean spending less time watching television or listening to music, though some people can write [11] they listen to music. You might have to [12] the amount of exercise or sport you do. You’ll have to make social media an [13] activity rather than a daily, time-consuming [14]. There’ll probably have to be less socialising with your friends and less time with your family. It’s a [15] learning curve and it won’t always make you popular.

There’s just one thing you should try to keep at least some time for, [16] your writing—and that’s reading. Any writer needs to read as much and as widely as they can; it’s the one [17] supporter—something you can’t do without.

Time is finite. The older you get, the [18] it seems to go. We need to use it as carefully and as [19] as we can, that means prioritising our activities so that we spend most time on the things we really want to do. If you’re a writer, that means—[20] writing.

[A]difficult

[B]normal

[C]steady

[D]pleasant

[A]combined

[B]compared

[C]confused

[D]confronted

[A]If

[B]Though

[C]Once

[D]Unless

[A]enough

[B]strange

[C]wrong

[D]easy

[A]Accept

[B]Explain

[C]Remember

[D]Suppose

[A]well-known

[B]well-advised

[C]well-informed

[D]well-chosen

[A]donate

[B]generate

[C]supplement

[D]calculate

[A]cause

[B]purpose

[C]question

[D]condition

[A]highlight

[B]sacrifice

[C]continue

[D]explore

10.

[A]relations

[B]interests

[C]memories

[D]skills

11.

[A]until

[B]because

[C]while

[D]before

12.

[A]put up with

[B]make up for

[C]hang on to

[D]cut down on

13.

[A]intelligent

[B]occasional

[C]intensive

[D]emotional

14.

[A]habit

[B]test

[C]decision

[D]plan

15.

[A]tough

[B]gentle

[C]rapid

[D]funny

16.

[A]in place of

[B]in charge of

[C]in response to

[D]in addition to

17.

[A]indispensable

[B]innovative

[C]invisible

[D]instant

18.

[A]duller

[B]harder

[C]quieter

[D]quicker

19.

[A]peacefully

[B]generously

[C]productively

[D]gratefully

20.

[A]at most

[B]in turn

[C]on average

[D]above all

深度解析 (Answers & Logic)

1. [B] normal. 语义衔接题。破折号后面解释说“a job like any other（像其他任何工作一样）”，说明对他而言，写作就是一份“普通的/正常的（normal）”工作。
2. [B] compared. 动宾搭配题。他把写作与修水管进行了“比较（compared）”，指出水管工不会早上醒来说今天没感觉就去不修管子，作家也不该以此为借口不写作。
3. [A] If. 逻辑关系题。句意为：“如果（If）你像大多数作家一样，需要保住一份工作来付账单，那么找时间写作并不容易”。这是一个条件状语从句。
4. [D] easy. 语义对照题。后文说“But it’s not impossible. (但这并非不可能)”，说明前面表达的是“这并不容易（easy）”。
5. [C] Remember. 语境推断题。作者在此给出鼓励：“要记住（Remember），大多数畅销书作家都是在做其他事情谋生时开始写作的”。
6. [A] well-known. 逻辑推理题。连“相当著名的（well-known）”作家也往往需要做其他工作来贴补收入。连词 even（甚至）提示了这是一种极端或更高层次的情况。
7. [C] supplement. 动宾搭配题。做其他工作是为了“补充（supplement）”他们的写作收入。
8. [C] question. 惯用语题。it’s a question/matter of... 是固定表达，意为“这是一个……的问题（question）”。正如作者所说，这是一个优先级的问题。
9. [B] sacrifice. 语义推断题。为了把写作排在首位，你必须“牺牲（sacrifice）”一些日常活动和喜欢做的事情。
10. [B] interests. 语义并列题。取决于你的“兴趣（interests）”和生活方式，这可能意味着少看电视或少听音乐。
11. [C] while. 逻辑关系题。这里说少听音乐，尽管有些人可以在听音乐的“同时（while）”写作。
12. [D] cut down on. 动宾搭配题。为了挤时间，你可能必须“削减（cut down on）”你的运动量。
13. [B] occasional. 语义对照题。与后文的 daily（每天的）形成反义对比。你必须让刷社交媒体变成一种“偶尔的（occasional）”活动。
14. [A] habit. 词义辨析题。而不是一个每天耗时的“习惯（habit）”。
15. [A] tough. 词义辨析题。为了写作要牺牲娱乐和社交，这是一条“艰难的/严苛的（tough）”学习曲线，且不会让你受欢迎（因为你没时间陪人）。
16. [D] in addition to. 逻辑关系题。“除了（in addition to）”写作之外，只有一件事你至少应该留点时间去做——那就是阅读。
17. [A] indispensable. 语义照应题。破折号后解释“something you can't do without（你离不开的东西）”，这完美对应“不可或缺的（indispensable）”。
18. [D] quicker. 惯用语题。"The older you get, the quicker it seems to go"（你越老，时间似乎流逝得越快）。考查 the + 比较级, the + 比较级句型。
19. [C] productively. 语义并列题。我们需要尽可能小心且“高效率地（productively）”使用时间。
20. [D] above all. 逻辑副词题。如果你是一个作家，这（合理利用时间）意味着——“最重要的是（above all）”，写作。

核心长难句精解 (High-Light)

1. 宾语从句的并列与条件状语从句的嵌套：
"Harlan Coben believes that if you’re a writer, you’ll find the time; and that if you can’t find the time, then writing isn’t a priority and you’re not a writer."
 【解析】谓语 `believes` 后面跟了两个由 `that` 引导的并列宾语从句。在每一个宾语从句中，又都包含了一个由 `if` 引导的条件状语从句。逻辑极其严密：是作家就能挤出时间；挤不出时间，说明优先级不够，也就不是真作家。 
2. 分词短语作状语：
"He has compared it with plumbing, pointing out that a plumber doesn’t wake up and say that he can’t work with pipes today."
 【解析】`pointing out...` 是现在分词短语作伴随状语，补充说明他是如何将写作与修水管进行比较的。在这个状语中，`that` 引导了 `pointing out` 的宾语从句，而在这个宾语从句中，`say` 后面又跟了一个 `that` 引导的宾语从句，属于多重嵌套。 
3. The more... the more... 句型与目的状语从句：
"We need to use it as carefully and as productively as we can, that means prioritising our activities so that we spend most time on the things we really want to do."
 【解析】`so that` 引导目的状语从句（以便于我们能把大部分时间花在...）。在从句中，`we really want to do` 是省略了 `that/which` 的定语从句，修饰 `the things`。 