Since it is Ray Bradbury’s birthday today, I figured I’d post the text of a letter Bradbury once wrote to Robert Heinlein. They are both towering figures in the world of science fiction. It goes to show how having a good mentor, or someone to look up to in general, can be of great assistance to a new writer.
DEAR BOB:
YOUR INFLUENCE ON US ALL, FROM 1939 ON, CANNOT BE MEASURED. I CAN ONLY SAY I REMEMBER, WARMLY, YOUR MANY KINDNESSES TO ME WHEN I WAS 19–20–21 YEARS OLD. THAT YOUNG MAN BASKED IN YOUR LIGHT AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE GRATEFUL FOR THE HELP YOU OFFERED WHEN I WAS SO POOR & NEEDFUL! YOURS IN THAT MEMORY — RAY BRADBURY
AUG – 1976