---
title: "4 Extras Quotes By Elif Batuman"
description: "4 Extras quotes by Elif Batuman. Plus more from Elif Batuman and more Extras sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/531/elif-batuman-2172_credit_poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where_73156.png"
---

> [Poetry is another space, like love, where we extend that extra credit to the writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where-we-extend-that-extra-credit/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/531/elif-batuman-2172_credit_poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where_73156.png)

> [Love is a rare and valuable thing, and you don't get to choose its object. You just go around getting hung up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/love-is-a-rare-and-valuable-thing-and-you-don-t-get-to-choose-its/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/836/elif-batuman-2172_convenient_love-is-a-rare-and-valuable-thing-and-yo_352240.png)

> [Part of flirting is that you tend to give each other a little extra slack to be obscure - to say things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/part-of-flirting-is-that-you-tend-to-give-each-other-a-little-extra/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/elif-batuman-2172_clear_part-of-flirting-is-that-you-tend-to-giv_787040.jpg)

> [If you're writing a book where you want to make a positive truth claim, then you should absolutely call it nonfiction or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/if-you-re-writing-a-book-where-you-want-to-make-a-positive-truth/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/elif-batuman-2172_advantage_if-you-re-writing-a-book-where-you-want_1649008.jpg)

## Other authors on Extras

## More by Elif Batuman

> [My parents were born into a secular country. They met in Turkey's top medical school, moved to America in the nineteen-seventies, and became researchers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/my-parents-were-born-into-a-secular-country-they-met-in-turkey-s-top/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [“I leafed through the phrase book. If a Martian read it, the Martian would probably decide to avoid Hungary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-leafed-through-the-phrase-book-if-a-martian-read-it-the-martian/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [You can't invent something you have no epistemological access to. In a way, it's all recombination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/you-can-t-invent-something-you-have-no-epistemological-access-to-in-a/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [Poetry is another space, like love, where we extend that extra credit to the writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where-we-extend-that-extra-credit/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [“Svetlana said that she identified with that Madonna more than with any other woman in any other painting. She kept asking me what painting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/svetlana-said-that-she-identified-with-that-madonna-more-than-with/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [One of the most painful parts of a breakup is having the feeling that your life is a story, and then the other person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/one-of-the-most-painful-parts-of-a-breakup-is-having-the-feeling-that/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [“Dracula visited the Wolf Department at the Zoological Gardens. "These wolves seem upset at something," he observed. The next morning the cage was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/dracula-visited-the-wolf-department-at-the-zoological-gardens-these/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [I like to think that I know a lot of words, but I definitely don't know all of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-like-to-think-that-i-know-a-lot-of-words-but-i-definitely-don-t/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [“I don't know if I ended up siding with the academics just because I happened to end up in graduate school, or if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-don-t-know-if-i-ended-up-siding-with-the-academics-just-because-i/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [People don't become writers because they love having spontaneous, real-world interactions with living people as bodies with clothes in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/people-don-t-become-writers-because-they-love-having-spontaneous-real/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [“Each work of criticism is supposed to build on the body of work, to increase the total sum of human understanding. It's not like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/each-work-of-criticism-is-supposed-to-build-on-the-body-of-work-to/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [Humor is really important to me. All my favorite writers are writers I consider to be funny, including Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, even though that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/humor-is-really-important-to-me-all-my-favorite-writers-are-writers-i/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [Every time a meteor comes close to the earth, we all think about the end of the world - but our internal soundtrack doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/every-time-a-meteor-comes-close-to-the-earth-we-all-think-about-the/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [I felt grateful to Ataturk that my parents were so well educated, that they weren't held back by superstition or religion, that they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-felt-grateful-to-ataturk-that-my-parents-were-so-well-educated-that/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

> [“For a moment it felt like we weren’t in the Danube at all but in the river of time, and everyone was at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/for-a-moment-it-felt-like-we-weren-t-in-the-danube-at-all-but-in-the/)

[Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "ItemList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/elif-batuman/#itemlist",
            "name": "4 Extras Quotes By Elif Batuman",
            "numberOfItems": 4,
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "Poetry is another space, like love, where we extend that extra credit to the writer.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Elif Batuman"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where-we-extend-that-extra-credit/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/531/elif-batuman-2172_credit_poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where_73156.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/531/elif-batuman-2172_credit_poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where_73156.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/531/elif-batuman-2172_credit_poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where_73156.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“Poetry is another space, like love, where we extend that extra credit to the writer.” — Elif Batuman",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "Love is a rare and valuable thing, and you don't get to choose its object. You just go around getting hung up on all the least convenient things-and if the only obstacle in your way is a little extra work, then that's the wonderful gift right there.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Elif Batuman"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/love-is-a-rare-and-valuable-thing-and-you-don-t-get-to-choose-its/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/836/elif-batuman-2172_convenient_love-is-a-rare-and-valuable-thing-and-yo_352240.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/836/elif-batuman-2172_convenient_love-is-a-rare-and-valuable-thing-and-yo_352240.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/836/elif-batuman-2172_convenient_love-is-a-rare-and-valuable-thing-and-yo_352240.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“Love is a rare and valuable thing, and you don't get to choose its object. You just go around getting hung…” — Elif Batuman",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "Part of flirting is that you tend to give each other a little extra slack to be obscure - to say things that are suggestive and nuanced, rather than clear and comprehensible, things you wouldn't put up with in an essay or something written by a stranger - and that can be so exciting.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Elif Batuman"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/part-of-flirting-is-that-you-tend-to-give-each-other-a-little-extra/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/elif-batuman-2172_clear_part-of-flirting-is-that-you-tend-to-giv_787040.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/elif-batuman-2172_clear_part-of-flirting-is-that-you-tend-to-giv_787040.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/elif-batuman-2172_clear_part-of-flirting-is-that-you-tend-to-giv_787040.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“Part of flirting is that you tend to give each other a little extra slack to be obscure - to say things that…” — Elif Batuman",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "If you're writing a book where you want to make a positive truth claim, then you should absolutely call it nonfiction or memoir. If you don't want to make that claim - if that's not what's important to you; if you're more interested in storytelling and interiority and interpersonal relationships than in objective, checkable facts about the world - then why wouldn't you call it a novel, and take advantage of what that gets you, of the extra freedom, of belonging to the tradition of the novel?",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "Elif Batuman"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/if-you-re-writing-a-book-where-you-want-to-make-a-positive-truth/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/elif-batuman-2172_advantage_if-you-re-writing-a-book-where-you-want_1649008.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/elif-batuman-2172_advantage_if-you-re-writing-a-book-where-you-want_1649008.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/elif-batuman-2172_advantage_if-you-re-writing-a-book-where-you-want_1649008.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“If you're writing a book where you want to make a positive truth claim, then you should absolutely call it…” — Elif Batuman",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "CollectionPage",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/elif-batuman/#webpage",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/elif-batuman/",
            "name": "Extras Quotes by Elif Batuman",
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "mainEntity": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/elif-batuman/#itemlist"
            },
            "primaryImageOfPage": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/531/elif-batuman-2172_credit_poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where_73156.png"
            },
            "description": "4 Extras quotes by Elif Batuman. Plus more from Elif Batuman and more Extras sayings from other authors.",
            "breadcrumb": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/elif-batuman/#breadcrumb"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/elif-batuman/#breadcrumb",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Topics",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Extras",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 5,
                    "name": "Elif Batuman",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/elif-batuman/"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```