To me, there is nothing higher than fiction. Nothing. It is fundamentally who I am. I am a teller of stories. For me, that's the only way I can make sense of the world, with all the dance that it involves.
Arundhati RoyRead
When I decided to write 'The God of Small Things', I had been working in cinema. It was almost a decision to downshift from there. I thought that 300 people would read it. But it created a platform of trust.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the author's choice to transition from cinema to writing, expecting limited readership but discovering the deeper impact of her work.
Arundhati Roy's quote highlights her pivotal decision to shift from a career in cinema to writing literature, specifically her novel 'The God of Small Things.' She initially underestimates the reach and influence her writing would have, believing only a small audience would engage with her work. However, she acknowledges that this decision led to a 'platform of trust,' suggesting that literature can establish meaningful connections with readers that transcends her expectations.
Themes
WritingLiteratureCinemaDecisionTrust
In practice
Example use cases
In a writing workshop, the facilitator quoted Arundhati Roy to inspire attendees to overcome their fears of sharing their work.
More from Arundhati Roy
All quotes →When she listened to songs that she loved on the radio, something stirred inside her. A liquid ache spread under her skin, and she walked out of the world like a witch.
Arundhati RoyRead
Caste is about dividing people up in ways that preclude every form of solidarity, because even in the lowest castes, there are divisions and sub-castes, and everyone's co-opted into the business of this hierarchical, silo-ised society.
Arundhati RoyRead
In California, there are huge problems because of dams. I'm against big dams, per se, because I think that they are economically unfeasible. They're ecologically unsustainable. And they're hugely undemocratic.
Arundhati RoyRead
To call someone 'anti-American', indeed, to be anti-American, is not just racist, it's a failure of the imagination.
Arundhati RoyRead
The trouble is that once you see it, you can't unsee it. And once you've seen it, keeping quiet, saying nothing, becomes as political an act as speaking out. There's no innocence. Either way, you're accountable.
Arundhati RoyRead
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I think pictures and words have the power to make us rich or poor.
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An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in my imagination, it becomes my life, and it stays part of my life long after I've left the opera house.
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I think what people are attracted to about me, if anything, is my passion. People got exposed to my passion through music and song first.
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I'm always drawn to stories that people don't know about, particularly when they're inside of a story that everyone knows about.
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