I think it was when I ran into Kerouac and Burroughs - when I was 17 - that I realized I was talking through an empty skull... I wasn't thinking my own thoughts or saying my own thoughts.
There is a hugely underserved population out there... those who are the least capable of paying pay the highest.
I believe that the writer should tell a story. I believe in plot. I believe in creating characters and suspense.