Only bad writers think that their work is really good.
Anne EnrightRead
Write whatever way you like. Fiction is made of words on a page; reality is made of something else. It doesn't matter how "real" your story is, or how "made up": what matters is its necessity.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes that the essence of a story lies in its importance rather than its realism or fictional nature.
Anne Enright highlights the unique nature of fiction, asserting that its value is not determined by how closely it mirrors reality, but by its ability to convey necessary truths and emotions. The quote invites writers to embrace their creativity without being constrained by realism, suggesting that the impact of a narrative is what truly matters.
Themes
FictionRealityStorytellingCreativityNecessity
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used during a writing workshop to inspire creativity among participants.
More from Anne Enright
All quotes →We do not always like the people we love- we do not always have that choice.
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I do not think we remember our family in any real sense. We live in them instead
Anne EnrightRead
There are so few people given us to love. I want to tell my daughters this, that each time you fall in love it is important, even at nineteen. Especially at nineteen. And if you can, at nineteen, count the people you love on one hand, you will not, at forty, have run out of fingers on the other. There are so few people given us to love and they all stick.
Anne EnrightRead
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