The Part in the Middle that Doesn't Move

From NYT article on Charles Bock, author of Beautiful Children:

“Charles spent 11 years trying to manifest a single vision on the page, with almost no support,” Mason said. “He’s totally committed to writing — it’s his whole life. His passions have sometimes led him to extremes, but where most people tend as they age to grow set in their ways, he’s become more flexible. He’s still extremely opinionated, but he also has the desire to be a decent human being. I think he’s learned to balance his capacity for great passion with a capacity for empathy, and that’s what you see in the book.”