Saying “writers are competitive,” especially at a young age, is to say that artist are competitive.

Or simply, I think: Youngster are competitive.

Youth is frequently synonymous with aspiration. But age and time often bring success, and the confidence that follows.

I mean, of course, I compare website Alexa rankings and domain authority with every other aspiring blogger I know…

But I am still a child at this.

I should restate one obvious point: young writers are competitive with one another. I was competitive in turn with Grover Lewis, Bill Brammer, and Ken Kesey. Norman Mailer’s recently published letters demonstrate what had long been known: that he and Styron and James Jones were competitive with one another. This is about as surprising as that Picasso was jealous of Matisse, and vice versa. And the younger the writers the more intense the rivalry will be.

-Larry McMurtry, Literary Life