The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 10 letter word INK-BOTTLE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
I
N
K
-
B
O
T
T
L
E
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "What writer might need" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case what writer might need = ink-bottle.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.