So William Safire != James Joyce. There's some truth to this idea but it's much weaker in the proglang domain, I think. The problem is that, unlike innate facu

So William Safire != James Joyce. There's some truth to this idea but it's much weaker in the proglang domain, I think. The problem is that, unlike innate faculties like natural language, in formalized systems like math, proglang proficiency is highly correlated with being creative. The Faulkner-Hemingway example doesn't quite work in math (Leaving aside exceptional prodigies like Ramanujan). As a side thought, can I add that I abasolutely detest Hemingway's bombastic, macho personality. His interaction with Fitzgerald was famously appalling, quite different from the Woody Allen's nostalgic characterization.