"Most writers are consistently competent, thanks to their proofreaders. 'Good' is a step above 'competent' and I'm pretty sure we can find passages in every author's work that we find lacking..."   
    "The question isn't 'who', it's 'why'? What is it about the author's writing that makes it good?"

                Jeri - Yes, that's a good point. In today's market place well placed writers are often revised extensively by editors and proofreaders. In a sense it kind of becomes a writer's conspiracy. I suspect this is especially the case in nonfiction. I was watching Glenn Beck on television--in a weaker moment, and somebody was ragging on him because he "didn't even write his own book."
                His response? "Nobody writes their own books anymore."

                In the case of both Ernest Hemingway and Robert B. Parker, they both insist they never revise. I find this incredibly hard to believe, but it keeps them from falling into the catagory of a writing factory with a big name for promotional purposes.