双语对照 | 书虫二级《神秘女人——阿加莎·克里斯蒂》：1.“为什么不写个故事呢？”

1.'Why don't you write a story?'
1.“为什么不写个故事呢?”

Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller was bored. It was a winter morning in 1908, and she was in bed because she was ill.
阿加莎•玛丽•克拉丽莎•米勒感觉甚是无聊。这是1908年冬天的一个上午，她生病躺在床上。
'I'm feeling much better today,' she said to her mother, Clara. 'I think I'll get up.'
“今天我感觉好多了，”她对母亲克拉拉说，“我想起床。”
'You're still ill,' said Clara. 'The doctor told you to stay in bed and keep warm. And that's what you're going to do!'
“你的病还没好呢，”克拉拉说，“医生让你在床上躺着，并注意保暖。你必须这样做!”
Agatha was eighteen years old at this time, but in those days daughters had to do what their mothers told them.
阿加莎那时候已经18岁了，可在当时女儿必须顺从母亲。
'But I'm bored!'
“可是我很无聊啊!”
'Well, do something, then,' said her mother. 'Read a book. Or write a story. Yes, why don't you write a story?'
“嗯，那就找点事情做吧。”母亲说，“读读书，或者写写故事。对了，为什么不写个故事呢?”
'Write a story?' said Agatha, surprised.
“写故事?”阿加莎吃惊地说道。
'Yes,' her mother said. 'Like Madge.'
“对，”母亲说，“就像玛奇一样。”
Madge was Agatha's sister. She was eleven years older than Agatha, and sometimes wrote short stories for magazines like Vanity Fair.
玛奇是阿加莎的姐姐。她比阿加莎大11岁，偶尔给《名利场》这样的杂志写些短篇故事。
'I don't think that I can write stories,' said Agatha.
“我想我是写不了故事的。”阿加莎说。
'How do you know?' said her mother. 'You've never tried.' And she went to find a pencil and paper.
“你怎么知道呢?”母亲说，“你从来没试过。”她找来了纸笔。
Soon after, Agatha sat up in bed and began to write a story. It was called House of Beauty, a strange story about dreams.
不一会儿，阿加莎便在床上坐起来，开始写故事了。故事取名《美丽之屋》，是一个关于梦的神奇故事。
It wasn't a very good story. She typed it on Madge's old typewriter, and sent it off to a magazine. But they sent it back with a letter: Thank you for sending us your story. We are afraid we cannot publish it...
这个故事并不很吸引人。她在玛奇那台旧打字机上完成后，寄给了一家杂志。可是稿子被退了回来，还附带有一封信：感谢您能寄来您的故事，但恐怕我们不能将它出版……
'You must try again,' said her mother. Clara was always sure that her daughters could do anything.
“你一定要再努力一次。”母亲说。克拉拉始终坚信她的女儿们无所不能。
So Agatha went on writing stories, and sending them out to magazines—but they all came back. She was a little disappointed.
于是阿加莎继续写着，并将这些故事寄给各个杂志——但是它们全都被退了回来。她有一点点失望。
'I'll try writing a novel,' she decided.
“我要试着写一部小说。”她下定决心。
An idea came to her. She remembered seeing a beautiful young girl in a hotel in Cairo when she was visiting Egypt with Clara. The girl was always with two men, one on each side of her. One day, Agatha heard someone say, 'That girl will have to decide between them some time.'
她有了个构想。她记得和克拉拉在埃及旅行时曾在开罗一家旅馆见到过一个年轻漂亮的女孩，身边总是有两个男人一左一右地陪着她。一天，阿加莎听见有人说：“总有一天这个女孩要在他们两个之间选择一个。”
It was all that Agatha needed for an idea, and she began writing. It was not a detective novel. It was the story of a young girl who lived in Cairo, and it was called Snow Upon the Desert. It was really two long stories put together to make a book. When it was finished, Agatha sent it to three or four publishers, but they all sent it back.
这就是阿加莎所需要的全部灵感。她开始动手写了起来。这不是一部侦探小说，而是关于住在开罗的一个年轻女孩的故事，故事的名字叫做《沙漠之雪》。它其实是由两个很长的故事拼起来的一本书。写完后，阿加莎把它寄给了三四家出版社，可稿子全部被退了回来。
'Oh dear,' said Agatha. 'What shall I do now?'
“啊，天哪!”阿加莎说，“我现在该怎么办呢?”
'Why don't you show it to Eden Phillpotts?' said Clara.
“为什么不把它拿给伊登•菲尔波茨看看呢?”克拉拉说。
Eden Phillpotts was a writer who lived near the Millers. During his life, he wrote more than a hundred popular novels, and many plays for the theatre. Agatha was a little afraid of sending her novel to this famous man, but she agreed to do it and sent it off.
伊登•菲尔波茨是一个住在米勒家附近的作家。他一生中共写过100多部很受欢迎的小说，还有多部剧本。阿加莎有点害怕把她的小说送到这么一位名人手里。但后来她还是同意了，把小说寄了出去。
Mr Phillpotts was a good writer, and also a kind man. He read Agatha's novel carefully and wrote her a letter.
菲尔波茨先生是个优秀的作家，也是个很和善的人。他仔细读了阿加莎的小说后给她去了一封信。
Some o f your writing is very good, so I am sending you a letter to take to my agent, Hughes Massie...
有些地方你写得还是很不错的，你可以拿着我给你的信去找我的经纪人，休斯•马西……
Agatha—still only eighteen years old—went to London on the train. It was a long journey—more than 200 miles from her home in Torquay in Devon, and the trains were not so fast in those days.
年仅18岁的阿加莎乘火车去了伦敦。路途很遥远——离她在德文郡托基的家有200多英里，而且当时的火车车速还不是很快。
She was very shy, and Hughes Massie was a big, frightening man. Agatha gave him the letter from Eden Phillpotts. Massie read it, talked with Agatha for a while, then kept her book to read.
她非常害羞，而休斯•马西则是个身材魁梧让人心生恐惧的人。阿加莎把伊登•菲尔波茨的信拿给他。马西看后和阿加莎谈了一会儿，然后留下了她的书。
Agatha went home to wait.
于是阿加莎回家等消息。
Some months later, Massie returned Snow Upon the Desert to her. I do not think that I can find a publisher for it, he wrote to her. The best thing is to stop thinking about it any more and to write another book.
几个月后，马西把《沙漠之雪》退还给了她。我找不到一家能够出版这本书的出版社，他写道，最好还是不要想它了，开始另写一本吧。
Agatha was disappointed. She did write another book, but some other important things happened in her life first.
阿加莎失望至极。她后来的确又写了一本书，但在此之前她的生活中发生了其他一些重要的事情。

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bore vt. make (sb.) feel tired and uninterested by being dull or tedious.(因单调或乏味)使(某人)感到厌烦。
magazine n. paper covered periodical, usu. weekly or monthly, with articles, stories, etc. by various writers. 杂志;期刊。
typewriter n. machine for producing characters similar to those of print by pressing keys which cause raised metal letters, etc. to strike the paper, usu. through inked ribbon. 打字机。
send...off send sth. by post; dispatch. 寄出或发出某物。
disappointed adj. sad or dissatisfied because sb. has failed, some desired event has not happened, etc. 失望的;失意的;受挫的。
detective n. person, esp. a police officer, whose job is to investigate and solve crimes. 侦探。
detective story story in which the main interest is a puzzling crime and the process of solving. 侦探小说。
publisher n. person or firm that publishes books, newspapers, etc. 出版者;出版商;出版社。
agent n. person who acts for, or manages the affairs of, other people in business, politics, etc. (商业、政治等方向的)代理人，经纪人。
frightening adj. causing fear. 引起恐惧的;惊恐的;可怕的。