Truman Capote: Writers' common fear

In VANITY FAIR's November article about Truman Capote, we read again about the author's fear of losing his ability to write.  Since that's both a writer's identity and how we make our living, the angst is common enough. 

The irony, as we have witnessed over and over again, is that success tends to eat away at a writer's talent.  Frequently that's because, as with Capote, with fame comes the outside world's clamoring for the writer's time.  Just as frequently the writer buys into the adulation as did Capote.

Sure we need audiences, clients, and the media to promote us.  However, we have to emotionally distance all that from our sense of our mission to superimpose on language insights about whatever.