Around this time, Pan Jen-mu, a fellow author and head of the editorial division of the provincial government's education department, approached him about doing some writing. He wanted Lin to craft a few pieces about life for young people. Not wanting to preach, Lin drew on first-hand information from his daughter to shape an epistolary work which is still widely read in middle schools.
恰巧當時省教育廳編輯小組負責人、同為作家的潘人木來邀稿，希望他寫一些與青少年討論人生未來的文章，他不想說教，於是套用這種形式，藉著女兒提供的第一手資料，寫成了這本至今仍在中學校園裡流傳甚廣的好書。