---
title: "1 Character Write Quotes By Ethan Canin"
description: "1 Character Write quotes by Ethan Canin. Plus more from Ethan Canin and more Character Write sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b77/ethan-canin-27277_character_don-t-write-about-a-character-become-tha_1270866.png"
---

> [Don't write about a character. Become that character, and then write your story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/don-t-write-about-a-character-become-that-character-and-then-write/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b77/ethan-canin-27277_character_don-t-write-about-a-character-become-tha_1270866.png)

## More by Ethan Canin

> [Art is so personal. I'm very comforted by the fact that certain movies that I love, other people hate. Certain books that I love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/art-is-so-personal-i-m-very-comforted-by-the-fact-that-certain-movies/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [I work with wood a lot. I like building. I think of building. I would love to buy land on some water somewhere and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/i-work-with-wood-a-lot-i-like-building-i-think-of-building-i-would/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [You have to be smart enough to see the world for yourself and honest. The whole book-publicity thing is not really honest, at base.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/you-have-to-be-smart-enough-to-see-the-world-for-yourself-and-honest/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [“The forgotten of this country have a consistent history of turning on their champions, and I suppose the way working men and women have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/the-forgotten-of-this-country-have-a-consistent-history-of-turning-on/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [There are writers who draw immediate attention to the fact that it's fiction. And I like some of that, but it doesn't really have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/there-are-writers-who-draw-immediate-attention-to-the-fact-that-it-s/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [Don't write about a character. Become that character, and then write your story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/don-t-write-about-a-character-become-that-character-and-then-write/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [If someone doesn't like your fiction, it's really insulting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/if-someone-doesn-t-like-your-fiction-it-s-really-insulting/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [You're never so alive as after you thought you were going to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/you-re-never-so-alive-as-after-you-thought-you-were-going-to-die/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [I've written five books, a book every three years. I'm fairly lazy and it doesn't take that much...people who are not lazy are Isaac…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/i-ve-written-five-books-a-book-every-three-years-i-m-fairly-lazy-and/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [There are some advantages to being a writer: you do generally get better as you get older. I think I understand things better. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/there-are-some-advantages-to-being-a-writer-you-do-generally-get/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [To have too much time is not good, you have to force yourself. And human beings aren't meant for true freedom. I've learned that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/to-have-too-much-time-is-not-good-you-have-to-force-yourself-and/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [I think talent has a huge amount to do with concentration, concentration rather than the athletic ability of your neurons. If you can concentrate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/i-think-talent-has-a-huge-amount-to-do-with-concentration/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [“Now she was smiling. “And while you’re at it,” she said, “here’s another one for you. Theodicy. That’s another word Leibniz used. As long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/now-she-was-smiling-and-while-you-re-at-it-she-said-here-s-another/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [Writing a book is like an unknown abyss, every time. Every book is different. Contrary to what unpublished writers think, it's horrible to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/writing-a-book-is-like-an-unknown-abyss-every-time-every-book-is/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

> [You can tell within a sentence if something is fiction or non-fiction. You can tell in the artifice of the language or the care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-canin/you-can-tell-within-a-sentence-if-something-is-fiction-or-non-fiction/)

[Ethan Canin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-canin/)

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