Question

select the passage that has a more discouraged tone.
when a man writes from his own mind, he writes very rapidly. the greatest part of a writers time is spent in reading, in order to write; a man will turn over half a library to make one book.
i have not written that infernal story. the thought of it has tormented me ever since i came here, and has robbed me of all the comfort i might otherwise have had in my few moments of leisure.
adapted from james boswell, boswells life of johnson and joel myersen (ed.), selected letters of nathaniel hawthorne

Explanation:

The second passage uses words like "infernal", "tormented", and "robbed" which convey a more negative and discouraged tone compared to the first passage which mainly focuses on the process of writing.

Answer:

The second passage.