a few cautions, now, about the wily "I"

The
thoroughgoing first person is a demanding mode.  It asks for the literary equivalent of perfect pitch.  Even good writers occasionally lose
control of their tone and let a self-congratulatory quality slip in.  Eager to explain that their heart is in
the right place, they baldly state that they care deeply about matters with
which they appear to be only marginally acquainted.  Pretending to confess to their bad behavior, they revel in
their colorfulness.




                       

Tracy
Kidder