When I lock myself up to write, I cannot allow myself to think about the censor or the reviewer or anyone but my characters and their story!
Judy BlumeRead
The best books come from someplace inside. You don't write because you want to, but because you have to.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Writing is a deep, intrinsic need rather than a mere desire.
Judy Blume emphasizes that true creativity and the creation of meaningful literature stem from an internal necessity. Rather than writing simply for enjoyment or external validation, authors are driven by an internal compulsion to express their thoughts and emotions, suggesting that the best work comes from a heartfelt connection to the subject matter.
Themes
WritingCreativityBooksExpressionAuthenticity
In practice
Example use cases
In a workshop about writing, you could use this quote to encourage participants to explore their inner motivations.
More from Judy Blume
All quotes βWhat I remember when I started to write was how I couldn't wait to get up in the morning to get to my characters.
Judy BlumeRead
What can happen if a young reader picks up a book he/she isn't yet ready for? Questions, maybe. Usually, that child puts down the book and says, 'Boring.' Or, 'I'm not ready for this.' Kids are really good at knowing what they can handle.
Judy BlumeRead
Concentrate on how good if feels to be alive. No matter what. Just to see the color of the sky, just to smell the air, and feel the wind in your face
Judy BlumeRead
I wrote 'Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret' right out of my own experiences and my own feelings when I was in sixth grade.
Judy BlumeRead
Nobody ever asks me why my characters don't text each other. Besides, as soon as you put something 'electronic' in a book, it's already out of date by the time it's published: everything will have changed. Human emotion, on the other hand, will never change.
Judy BlumeRead
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