--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes people want to know how to…" description: "\"Sometimes people want to know how to write a story from the point of view of a murderer and make her sympathetic. I think the answer is that you start ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de1/alice-mattison-11066_answers_sometimes-people-want-to-know-how-to-wri_2644880.jpg" --- # Sometimes people want to know how to write a story from… ![“Sometimes people want to know how to write a story from the point of view of a murderer and make her sympathetic. I think the answer is that you start by having her look for her car keys, because everybody knows what it's like.” quote by Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de1/alice-mattison-11066_answers_sometimes-people-want-to-know-how-to-wri_2644880.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de1/alice-mattison-11066_answers_sometimes-people-want-to-know-how-to-wri_2644880.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de1/alice-mattison-11066_answers_sometimes-people-want-to-know-how-to-wri_2644880.jpg) > “Sometimes people want to know how to write a story from the point of view of a murderer and make her sympathetic. I think the answer is that you start by having her look for her car keys, because everybody knows what it's like.” [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Begin a murderer’s perspective by grounding her in mundane, relatable tasks to humanize her. **In simple terms:** Start with everyday details to humanize a murderer. Key Takeaway Use ordinary moments to build empathy. Themes empathy character development perspective Mood intriguing cautious Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - creative writing workshops - psychological thrillers - character studies Key Concepts humanization narrative technique Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance empathy with moral responsibility? - What mundane detail reveals hidden depth? A Different Perspective Risk of glorifying wrongdoing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Car keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/car-keys/) [Murderer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murderer/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Point of view](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-of-view/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Sympathetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathetic/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Even murderers, I suppose, experience the loss of car keys the way the rest of us do. I mean, how can they not? Once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/even-murderers-i-suppose-experience-the-loss-of-car-keys-the-way-the/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [Everybody has their story - at some point you have to say, 'This is who I am: Now it's up to me to become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-seles/everybody-has-their-story-at-some-point-you-have-to-say-this-is-who-i/) [Monica Seles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-seles/) > [If the point of life is the same as the point of a story, the point of life is character transformation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/if-the-point-of-life-is-the-same-as-the-point-of-a-story-the-point-of-2/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [Technology adds nothing to art. Two thousand years ago, I could tell you a story, and at any point during the story I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/technology-adds-nothing-to-art-two-thousand-years-ago-i-could-tell/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [I don't want you to think that I'm being willfully obtuse, but I've never really grasped how point of view could be regarded as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zia-haider-rahman/i-don-t-want-you-to-think-that-i-m-being-willfully-obtuse-but-i-ve/) [Zia Haider Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zia-haider-rahman/) > [I think that there must be a point of self-immersion in a story that is a point of no return. You get far enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-garner/i-think-that-there-must-be-a-point-of-self-immersion-in-a-story-that/) [Helen Garner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-garner/) > [A lot of the time, because we don't have many Latinx scenarios on the landscape, not just in television or film and other media,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanya-saracho/a-lot-of-the-time-because-we-don-t-have-many-latinx-scenarios-on-the/) [Tanya Saracho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanya-saracho/) > [I have always wanted to tell my story - or, more to the point, my side of the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-ringgold/i-have-always-wanted-to-tell-my-story-or-more-to-the-point-my-side-of/) [Faith Ringgold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-ringgold/) > [If the point of life is the same as the point of a story, the point of life is character transformation. If I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/if-the-point-of-life-is-the-same-as-the-point-of-a-story-the-point-of/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [If you only hear one side of the story, at some point, you have to question who the writer is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-smith/if-you-only-hear-one-side-of-the-story-at-some-point-you-have-to/) [Clint Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-smith/) > [“This story has no point but stillness itself...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-levis/this-story-has-no-point-but-stillness-itself/) [Larry Levis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-levis/) > [“How to tell a story? First find a point of view.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mcauley/how-to-tell-a-story-first-find-a-point-of-view/) [Paul McAuley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mcauley/) > [“A story should have a point, but a life doesn't need one. It just needs to be lived.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-sturges/a-story-should-have-a-point-but-a-life-doesn-t-need-one-it-just-needs/) [Matthew Sturges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-sturges/) > [“What forgetful moron frantically looks for car keys that are in his pocket? Me, that’s who.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-forgetful-moron-frantically-looks-for-car-keys-that-are-in-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Most folks look for their car keys with more energy than they search for the wisdom that can change their lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-andrews/most-folks-look-for-their-car-keys-with-more-energy-than-they-search/) [Andy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-andrews/) ## More by Alice Mattison > [Sometimes indirect style and varying chronology is great, but quite often I've seen it be just something that gets in the way. It turns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/sometimes-indirect-style-and-varying-chronology-is-great-but-quite/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [Every once in a while someone says, 'You can't really learn anything, if you're really a writer then you wouldn't need to do it.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/every-once-in-a-while-someone-says-you-can-t-really-learn-anything-if/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [Whoever would write books? It's suffering as well as greatly satisfying. And certainly there's suffering in the sense that you don't know for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/whoever-would-write-books-it-s-suffering-as-well-as-greatly/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [I get to a certain point, and I think in a novel it's about the third draft, when I want other eyes on it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-get-to-a-certain-point-and-i-think-in-a-novel-it-s-about-the-third/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [It's hard to say which of us is luckier, the ones who go through long periods when they can't write or the ones who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/it-s-hard-to-say-which-of-us-is-luckier-the-ones-who-go-through-long/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [“When a man I like touches my arm or my hair, I want to know if he'll touch the center of me, and whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/when-a-man-i-like-touches-my-arm-or-my-hair-i-want-to-know-if-he-ll/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [I heard a white writer say, 'Oh, I'd never put black people in my writing, I'm afraid I would offend someone by doing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-heard-a-white-writer-say-oh-i-d-never-put-black-people-in-my/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [When I've taught writing to five, six, and seven year olds, it's not very different than talking to an adult writer. They're writers then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/when-i-ve-taught-writing-to-five-six-and-seven-year-olds-it-s-not/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [I find that I get very excited about what my students are up to and that I get to be the hurdle they need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-find-that-i-get-very-excited-about-what-my-students-are-up-to-and/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [I love to read nonfiction and memoir, but I'm mostly interested in the piece of writing more than the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-love-to-read-nonfiction-and-memoir-but-i-m-mostly-interested-in-the/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [I think that inevitably, the trouble our characters go through is a kind of metaphor for what's happening in ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-think-that-inevitably-the-trouble-our-characters-go-through-is-a/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [When an editor first explained to me the difference between direct and indirect writing, I just thought it was a stylistic choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/when-an-editor-first-explained-to-me-the-difference-between-direct/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [Writers sometimes are paid a great deal of money, but much more frequently they're not paid or are paid only a little bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/writers-sometimes-are-paid-a-great-deal-of-money-but-much-more/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [We're always inventing, even if we're making someone who's fairly close to ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/we-re-always-inventing-even-if-we-re-making-someone-who-s-fairly/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [I just like doing it, I like writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-just-like-doing-it-i-like-writing/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) [Explore all 62 Alice Mattison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) ## More Answers quotes > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. 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It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [There is a comfort in rituals, and rituals provide a framework for stability when you are trying to find answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-norville/there-is-a-comfort-in-rituals-and-rituals-provide-a-framework-for/) [Deborah Norville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-norville/) > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [Instead of asking a girl how she feels, try looking through her recently listened to songs. 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