--- title: "20 You Quotes By John Updike" description: "20 You quotes by John Updike. Plus more from John Updike and more You sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/john-updike-396_any_in-any-interview-you-do-say-more-or-less_1964330.png" --- > [In any interview, you do say more or less than you mean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/in-any-interview-you-do-say-more-or-less-than-you-mean/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/john-updike-396_any_in-any-interview-you-do-say-more-or-less_1964330.png) > [Writing makes you more human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/writing-makes-you-more-human/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/john-updike-396_human_writing-makes-you-more-human-833040_833040.png) > [I think you remember certain phrases from bad reviews. You don't remember all the bad reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-think-you-remember-certain-phrases-from-bad-reviews-you-don-t/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1f/john-updike-396_bad_i-think-you-remember-certain-phrases-fro_80519.png) > [New York, like the Soviet Union, has this universal usefulness: It makes you glad you live elsewhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/new-york-like-the-soviet-union-has-this-universal-usefulness-it-makes/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ad/john-updike-396_elsewhere_new-york-like-the-soviet-union-has-this_286870.png) > [In a city like New York, you're aware of the rich and poor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/in-a-city-like-new-york-you-re-aware-of-the-rich-and-poor/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/694/john-updike-396_aware_in-a-city-like-new-york-you-re-aware-of_2034899.png) > [My generation was maybe the last in which you could set up shop as a writer and hope to make a living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/my-generation-was-maybe-the-last-in-which-you-could-set-up-shop-as-a/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ef/john-updike-396_could_my-generation-was-maybe-the-last-in-whic_1710091.png) > [Somehow, it is hard to dislike a man once you have played a round of golf with him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/somehow-it-is-hard-to-dislike-a-man-once-you-have-played-a-round-of/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6fe/john-updike-396_dislike_somehow-it-is-hard-to-dislike-a-man-once_2931803.png) > [The Internet doesn't like you to learn too much about explosives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-internet-doesn-t-like-you-to-learn-too-much-about-explosives/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/347/john-updike-396_about_the-internet-doesn-t-like-you-to-learn-t_2358050.png) > [A seventeenth-century house tends to be short on frills like hallways and closets; you must improvise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/a-seventeenth-century-house-tends-to-be-short-on-frills-like-hallways/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eeb/john-updike-396_closets_a-seventeenth-century-house-tends-to-be_2489078.png) > [Imagine writing a poem with a sweating, worried-looking boy handing you a different pencil at the end of every word. My golf,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/imagine-writing-a-poem-with-a-sweating-worried-looking-boy-handing/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/john-updike-396_boy_imagine-writing-a-poem-with-a-sweating-w_2275372.png) > [I was an only child. I needed an alternative to family life - to real life, you could almost say - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-was-an-only-child-i-needed-an-alternative-to-family-life-to-real/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd1/john-updike-396_almost_i-was-an-only-child-i-needed-an-alternat_799816.jpg) > [When you sit at your desk, if you're lucky, there's a moment when you feel empowered to be someone or something else,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/when-you-sit-at-your-desk-if-you-re-lucky-there-s-a-moment-when-you/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9e/john-updike-396_another_when-you-sit-at-your-desk-if-you-re-luck_2797860.png) > [Arabic is very twisting, very beautiful. The call to prayer is quite haunting; it almost makes you a believer on the spot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/arabic-is-very-twisting-very-beautiful-the-call-to-prayer-is-quite/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a38/john-updike-396_almost_arabic-is-very-twisting-very-beautiful-t_1141937.png) > [To be a human being is to be in a state of tension between your appetites and your dreams, and the social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/to-be-a-human-being-is-to-be-in-a-state-of-tension-between-your/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26a/john-updike-396_appetite_to-be-a-human-being-is-to-be-in-a-state_1844010.jpg) > [I should mention something that nobody ever thinks about, but proofreading takes a lot of time. After you write something, there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-should-mention-something-that-nobody-ever-thinks-about-but/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d8/john-updike-396_about_i-should-mention-something-that-nobody-e_780389.png) > [I know more about what it's like to be elderly and infirm and kind of stupid, the way you get forgetful, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-know-more-about-what-it-s-like-to-be-elderly-and-infirm-and-kind-of/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb8/john-updike-396_about_i-know-more-about-what-it-s-like-to-be-e_268257.png) > [Golf's ultimate moral instruction directs us to find within ourselves a pivotal center of enjoyment: relax into a rhythm that fits the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/golf-s-ultimate-moral-instruction-directs-us-to-find-within-ourselves/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6b/john-updike-396_center_golf-s-ultimate-moral-instruction-direct_739540.png) > [The writer must face the fact that ordinary lives are what most people live most of the time, and that the novel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-writer-must-face-the-fact-that-ordinary-lives-are-what-most/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/john-updike-396_adventurous_the-writer-must-face-the-fact-that-ordin_2819532.jpg) > [There is a great deal of busywork to a writer's life, as to a professor's life, a great deal of work that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/there-is-a-great-deal-of-busywork-to-a-writer-s-life-as-to-a/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/john-updike-396_amount_there-is-a-great-deal-of-busywork-to-a-w_2433942.png) > [My attempt has been really to, beyond making a record of contemporary life, which is what you inevitably do, is trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/my-attempt-has-been-really-to-beyond-making-a-record-of-contemporary/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/john-updike-396_attempt_my-attempt-has-been-really-to-beyond-mak_1622115.jpg) ## Other authors on You ## More by John Updike > [Life is a roller coaster, you have your ups and downs unless you fall off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/life-is-a-roller-coaster-you-have-your-ups-and-downs-unless-you-fall/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Children are not a zoo of entertainingly exotic creatures, but an array of mirrors in which the human predicament leaps out at us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/children-are-not-a-zoo-of-entertainingly-exotic-creatures-but-an/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I assume my stance, and take back the club, low, slowly; at the top, my eyes fog over, and my joints dip and swirl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-assume-my-stance-and-take-back-the-club-low-slowly-at-the-top-my/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The New England spirit does not seek solutions in a crowd; raw light and solitariness are less dreaded than welcomed as enhancers of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-new-england-spirit-does-not-seek-solutions-in-a-crowd-raw-light/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I imagine most of that stuff on the information highway is roadkill anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-imagine-most-of-that-stuff-on-the-information-highway-is-roadkill/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Families, doing everything for each other out of imagined obligation and always getting in each other's way, what a tangle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/families-doing-everything-for-each-other-out-of-imagined-obligation/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The fucking world is running out of gas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-fucking-world-is-running-out-of-gas/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The theme of old age doesn't seem to fascinate Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-theme-of-old-age-doesn-t-seem-to-fascinate-hollywood/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The mind cannot fall asleep as long as it watches itself. Only when the mind moves unwatched and becomes absorbed in images that tug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-mind-cannot-fall-asleep-as-long-as-it-watches-itself-only-when/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“it was somehow wonderful of her to be, in every detail, herself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/it-was-somehow-wonderful-of-her-to-be-in-every-detail-herself/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [In fiction, imaginary people become realer to us than any named celebrity glimpsed in a series of rumored events, whose causes and subtler ramifications…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/in-fiction-imaginary-people-become-realer-to-us-than-any-named/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Her hair had been going gray as long as he could remember; she bundled it behind in a bun held with hairpins that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/her-hair-had-been-going-gray-as-long-as-he-could-remember-she-bundled/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Possession diminishes perception of value, immediately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/possession-diminishes-perception-of-value-immediately/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I can't bear to finish things, beyond a certain point they get heavy. There's something so dead about a finished painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-can-t-bear-to-finish-things-beyond-a-certain-point-they-get-heavy/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Some people find fall depressing, others hate spring. I've always been a spring person myself. All that growth, you can feel Nature groaning, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/some-people-find-fall-depressing-others-hate-spring-i-ve-always-been/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/john-updike/#itemlist", "name": "20 You Quotes By John Updike", "numberOfItems": 20, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In any interview, you do say more or less than you mean.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Updike" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/in-any-interview-you-do-say-more-or-less-than-you-mean/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/john-updike-396_any_in-any-interview-you-do-say-more-or-less_1964330.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/john-updike-396_any_in-any-interview-you-do-say-more-or-less_1964330.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f04/john-updike-396_any_in-any-interview-you-do-say-more-or-less_1964330.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In any interview, you do say more or less than you mean.” — John Updike", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Writing makes you more human.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Updike" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/writing-makes-you-more-human/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/john-updike-396_human_writing-makes-you-more-human-833040_833040.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/john-updike-396_human_writing-makes-you-more-human-833040_833040.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/john-updike-396_human_writing-makes-you-more-human-833040_833040.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Writing makes you more human.” — John Updike", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think you remember certain phrases from bad reviews. 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