---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't know where the characters are…"
description: "\"I don't know where the characters are going to go or what's going to happen. I know that something inevitable will happen. I know that they want certai..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/242/adam-rapp-5014_ability_i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-go_905915.jpg"
---

#  I don't know where the characters are going to go or…

![“I don't know where the characters are going to go or what's going to happen. I know that something inevitable will happen. I know that they want certain things and they're in a certain room and they smell like this and they look like that. More often than not, an entropy creeps in that strangles…” quote by Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/242/adam-rapp-5014_ability_i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-go_905915.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/242/adam-rapp-5014_ability_i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-go_905915.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/242/adam-rapp-5014_ability_i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-go_905915.jpg)

> “I don't know where the characters are going to go or what's going to happen. I know that something inevitable will happen. I know that they want certain things and they're in a certain room and they smell like this and they look like that. More often than not, an entropy creeps in that strangles me, and then the inevitable happens. I don't know if I have the ability to write an ending like My Fair Lady's, when everyone gets what they want after a few minor conflicts. If I tried to write that it would just be false. Or I'd have someone enter with a machine gun.”

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Storytelling often feels like an unseen force drives characters toward inevitable outcomes, making controlled endings elusive.

**In simple terms:** Stories seem guided by unseen forces.

Key Takeaway

Accept uncertainty in narrative.

Themes

creativity inevitability storytelling

Mood

reflective analytical

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- novel writing
- screenwriting
- theatre
- improvisation

Key Concepts

narrative theory entropy character motivation

Questions to Reflect On

- What forces shape your characters?
- How can you embrace uncertainty?

A Different Perspective

Predictable endings can feel artificial and limit depth.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Conflict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conflict/) [Creeps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creeps/) [Ending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ending/) [Ending Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ending-like-878114/) [Entropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entropy/) [Fairs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairs/) [Gun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gun/) [Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Inevitable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inevitable/) [Inevitable Happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inevitable-happen-1285286/) [Inevitable Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inevitable-happens-499883/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [Machine gun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machine-gun/) [Machine guns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machine-guns/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Minors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minors/) [My fair lady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-fair-lady/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Smell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smell/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [“In dog culture, when someone calls you, you should absolutely not come if that results in the ending of something you like or initiation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-donaldson/in-dog-culture-when-someone-calls-you-you-should-absolutely-not-come/)

[Jean Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-donaldson/)

> ['Teen Wolf' ending is, like, huge. I know no acting without the show, basically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-o-brien/teen-wolf-ending-is-like-huge-i-know-no-acting-without-the-show/)

[Dylan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-o-brien/)

> [“Mom, why couldn't my story, my real life story have a happy ending - like in the books?" "No true love story has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-conklin/mom-why-couldn-t-my-story-my-real-life-story-have-a-happy-ending-like/)

[Barbara Conklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-conklin/)

> [“It’s awful, telling it like this, isn’t it? As though we didn’t know the ending. As though it could have another ending. It’s like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wein/it-s-awful-telling-it-like-this-isn-t-it-as-though-we-didn-t-know-the/)

[Elizabeth Wein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wein/)

> [Not until it starts to stink does the inevitable happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ashbery/not-until-it-starts-to-stink-does-the-inevitable-happen/)

[John Ashbery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ashbery/)

> [There are no coincidences in this world. Only the inevitable happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/card-captor-sakura/there-are-no-coincidences-in-this-world-only-the-inevitable-happen/)

[Card Captor Sakura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/card-captor-sakura/)

> [If something is inevitable, it will happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-stein/if-something-is-inevitable-it-will-happen/)

[Herbert Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-stein/)

> [Where are we going to reject that easy but flawed process of letting the intelligence services do whatever they want? It's inevitable that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/where-are-we-going-to-reject-that-easy-but-flawed-process-of-letting/)

[Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/)

> [If Livingstone don't keep their discipline the inevitable could happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-hateley/if-livingstone-don-t-keep-their-discipline-the-inevitable-could-happen/)

[Mark Hateley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-hateley/)

> [“I think that an objective reader may see how in the society to which I was exposed as a black youth here in America,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-think-that-an-objective-reader-may-see-how-in-the-society-to-which/)

[Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/)

> [“change is inevitable, and when it happens, the wisest response is not to wail or whine but to suck it up and deal with”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-h-pink/change-is-inevitable-and-when-it-happens-the-wisest-response-is-not/)

[Daniel H. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-h-pink/)

> [“Change is inevitable. It happens every day, whether we notice it or not. Some people like change. They embrace it with every ounce of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justine-elvira/change-is-inevitable-it-happens-every-day-whether-we-notice-it-or-not/)

[Justine Elvira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justine-elvira/)

> [“I don't believe anything's really inevitable until it happens. We just call it inevitable to make ourselves feel better about it, to excuse ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-willig/i-don-t-believe-anything-s-really-inevitable-until-it-happens-we-just/)

[Lauren Willig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-willig/)

> [In Ireland the inevitable never happens and the unexpected constantly occurs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-ireland-the-inevitable-never-happens-and-the-unexpected-constantly/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Nothing is inevitable until it happens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-p-taylor/nothing-is-inevitable-until-it-happens/)

[A. J. P. Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-p-taylor/)

## More by Adam Rapp

> [I feel that I'd rather know an actors' work, or have an instinct about them and sit down and have coffee with them, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-feel-that-i-d-rather-know-an-actors-work-or-have-an-instinct-about/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [I had a sort of bad experiences as a playwright early on, when directors were putting in huge concepts that I didn't intend, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-had-a-sort-of-bad-experiences-as-a-playwright-early-on-when/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [I imagine a soul is a little perfect crystal egg floating in your chest. Somewhere deeper than where they put your heart. Somewhere so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-imagine-a-soul-is-a-little-perfect-crystal-egg-floating-in-your/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [“At the funeral my stitches were itching like crazy, but it didn’t bother me much because I was like totally tripping on the codeine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/at-the-funeral-my-stitches-were-itching-like-crazy-but-it-didn-t/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [I'm pretty obsessive-compulsive, and I'm very fast. I tend to not write for a long period of time until I can't not write, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-m-pretty-obsessive-compulsive-and-i-m-very-fast-i-tend-to-not-write/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [My work is always more emotional than I am. My characters say things to each other that I get accused of not being able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/my-work-is-always-more-emotional-than-i-am-my-characters-say-things/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [“Things were pretty cold-blooded back in Rockdale. That's when my arms were so pretty I could hold them up to the light and see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/things-were-pretty-cold-blooded-back-in-rockdale-that-s-when-my-arms/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [Whenever I've been in rehearsals, it's really fun, there's always laughing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/whenever-i-ve-been-in-rehearsals-it-s-really-fun-there-s-always/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [You can always count on the New York Times to cut your legs off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/you-can-always-count-on-the-new-york-times-to-cut-your-legs-off/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [“I asked her if she liked PJ Harvey and she said that she liked her old stuff mostly and that Uh Huh Her was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-asked-her-if-she-liked-pj-harvey-and-she-said-that-she-liked-her/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [I don't mind him not talking so much, because you can hear his voice in your heart; the same way you can hear a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-don-t-mind-him-not-talking-so-much-because-you-can-hear-his-voice/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [I appreciate good criticism and I think it's really important. I don't like it when it's consumer advocacy, like how you should spend your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-appreciate-good-criticism-and-i-think-it-s-really-important-i-don-t/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [“Love, Jamie P.S. I can't believe you're dying. Please don't die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/love-jamie-p-s-i-can-t-believe-you-re-dying-please-don-t-die/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [I was a jock in college and high school, but I didn't hang out with the jocks. I was sort of a nerd who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-was-a-jock-in-college-and-high-school-but-i-didn-t-hang-out-with/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

> [“We only have so much time, Mary,” I remember saying. “Time will kill you – it really will.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/we-only-have-so-much-time-mary-i-remember-saying-time-will-kill-you/)

[Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

[Explore all 104 Adam Rapp quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/)

## More Ability quotes

> [I don't think there's a direct correlation between my sexuality and my skiing ability. But I think because I was so concerned about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-kenworthy/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-direct-correlation-between-my-sexuality-and/)

[Gus Kenworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-kenworthy/)

> [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. If you want them in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-importance-of-ability-the-things-that-make-a-great-job-great-i/)

[Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/)

> [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/)

[Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/)

> [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/)

[Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/)

> [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/)

[Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/)

> [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/)

[Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/)

> [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/)

[Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/)

> [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-shaw/an-absolutely-necessary-part-of-a-writer-s-equipment-almost-as/)

[Irwin Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-shaw/)

> [I'd be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I'd been given. I'd be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-d-be-more-frightened-by-not-using-whatever-abilities-i-d-been-given/)

[Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/)

> [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/)

[Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/)

> [You can only do the work to the very best of your ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-baranski/you-can-only-do-the-work-to-the-very-best-of-your-ability/)

[Christine Baranski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-baranski/)

> [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/)

[Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/)

> [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [Bobby had faith in my ability as a singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-london/bobby-had-faith-in-my-ability-as-a-singer/)

[Julie London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-london/)

[Browse all 9,990 Ability quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I don't know where the characters are going to go or what's going to happen. I know that something inevitable will happen. I know that they want certain things and they're in a certain room and they smell like this and they look like that. More often than not, an entropy creeps in that strangles me, and then the inevitable happens. I don't know if I have the ability to write an ending like My Fair Lady's, when everyone gets what they want after a few minor conflicts. If I tried to write that it would just be false. Or I'd have someone enter with a machine gun.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Adam Rapp"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-going-to-go-or-what-s-going-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Ability"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-going-to-go-or-what-s-going-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/242/adam-rapp-5014_ability_i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-go_905915.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/242/adam-rapp-5014_ability_i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-go_905915.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/242/adam-rapp-5014_ability_i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-go_905915.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I don't know where the characters are going to go or what's going to happen. I know that something…” — Adam Rapp",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "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": "Adam Rapp",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I don't know where the characters...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-going-to-go-or-what-s-going-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-don-t-know-where-the-characters-are-going-to-go-or-what-s-going-to/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
