--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do find it challenging to leave stuff…" description: "\"I do find it challenging to leave stuff out. Two of my models for novel-writing are 'The Great Gatsby' and 'As I Lay Dying,' both very short books. I'v..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/255/amy-bloom-4288_able_i-do-find-it-challenging-to-leave-stuff_2177869.jpg" --- # I do find it challenging to leave stuff out. Two of my… ![“I do find it challenging to leave stuff out. Two of my models for novel-writing are 'The Great Gatsby' and 'As I Lay Dying,' both very short books. I've never wanted to write a 600-page novel, not that I think there's anything wrong with them. For me, there's something exciting about being able to…” quote by Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/255/amy-bloom-4288_able_i-do-find-it-challenging-to-leave-stuff_2177869.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/255/amy-bloom-4288_able_i-do-find-it-challenging-to-leave-stuff_2177869.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/255/amy-bloom-4288_able_i-do-find-it-challenging-to-leave-stuff_2177869.jpg) > “I do find it challenging to leave stuff out. Two of my models for novel-writing are 'The Great Gatsby' and 'As I Lay Dying,' both very short books. I've never wanted to write a 600-page novel, not that I think there's anything wrong with them. For me, there's something exciting about being able to tell the whole story without anything extraneous.” [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She values concise storytelling, preferring short works that avoid unnecessary detail. **In simple terms:** Prefers brevity in writing. Key Takeaway Embrace concise storytelling. Themes brevity novel writing focus Mood thoughtful reflective Type literary advice When to use this quote - Writing workshops - editing sessions - personal projects - literary criticism - author interviews Key Concepts Narrative economy creative constraint Questions to Reflect On - How does brevity affect emotional impact? - When is detail essential? A Different Perspective May limit depth or complexity in longer narratives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [600 Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/600-page-476637/) [Able](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/able/) [About](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about/) [Anything](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anything/) [Being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Both](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/both/) [Challenging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/challenging/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Dying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dying/) [Exciting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exciting/) [Find](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/find/) [Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great/) [I think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-think/) [Lay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lay/) [Leave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leave/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Models](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/models/) [Never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Novel Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel-think-419956/) [Novel writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel-writing/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [Short](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short/) [Something](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/something/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) [Stuff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stuff/) [Tell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell/) [Them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/them/) [Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) [Without](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/without/) [Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrong/) ## Related quotes > [Nobody wants to read a 600 page book in which the author is fabulous throughout.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/nobody-wants-to-read-a-600-page-book-in-which-the-author-is-fabulous/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Arms control has to have a future, or none of us does. But it doesn't necessarily have to come in big packages of 600-page…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-hoffmann/arms-control-has-to-have-a-future-or-none-of-us-does-but-it-doesn-t/) [Stanley Hoffmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-hoffmann/) > [The Internal Revenue code has ballooned to a 5,600-page, 4 million-word complicated mess that is seven times as long as the Bible with none…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-lance/the-internal-revenue-code-has-ballooned-to-a-5-600-page-4-million/) [Leonard Lance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-lance/) > [I enjoy thinking myself into other times and places. I don't like some of the conventions of the 'historical novel', but I think there's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hari-kunzru/i-enjoy-thinking-myself-into-other-times-and-places-i-don-t-like-some/) [Hari Kunzru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hari-kunzru/) > [In a novel, I think you have a contract with the reader to make the character representative - of a moment in history, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-a-novel-i-think-you-have-a-contract-with-the-reader-to-make-the/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [I may attempt a novel. I think that no matter what you write, it requires being honest with oneself, and you have to pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/i-may-attempt-a-novel-i-think-that-no-matter-what-you-write-it/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [I feel that whatever virtues the novel may have are very much connected with the limitations you mention. I am not writing a conventional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/i-feel-that-whatever-virtues-the-novel-may-have-are-very-much/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Write a novel if you must, but think of money as an unlikely accident. Get your reward out of writing it, and try to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/write-a-novel-if-you-must-but-think-of-money-as-an-unlikely-accident/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“The principle I always go on in writing a novel is to think of the characters in terms of actors in a play. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse/the-principle-i-always-go-on-in-writing-a-novel-is-to-think-of-the/) [P.G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse/) > [One novel that I think is an overriding influence in my life is 'All the King's Men,' the most beautiful book written in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-gross/one-novel-that-i-think-is-an-overriding-influence-in-my-life-is-all/) [Andrew Gross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-gross/) > [“I can't think of any film that improved on a good novel, but I can think of many good films that came from very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/i-can-t-think-of-any-film-that-improved-on-a-good-novel-but-i-can/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [I do write long, long character notes - family background, history, details of appearance - much more than will ever appear in the novel.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-tyler/i-do-write-long-long-character-notes-family-background-history/) [Anne Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-tyler/) > [A reader should encounter themselves in a novel, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/a-reader-should-encounter-themselves-in-a-novel-i-think/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [I'll never forget reading Chekhov's "A Doctor's Visit" on a train to Hawthorne, New York, and I got to the end - the scene…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ross/i-ll-never-forget-reading-chekhov-s-a-doctor-s-visit-on-a-train-to/) [Adam Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ross/) > [One easy mistake to make with the first novel is to expand the short story. Some things are better as a story; you cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yiyun-li/one-easy-mistake-to-make-with-the-first-novel-is-to-expand-the-short/) [Yiyun Li](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yiyun-li/) ## More by Amy Bloom > [I'm sure I've been influenced by every fine writer I've ever read, from Dickens and Austen to Auden and Jane Hirshfield. And also, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/i-m-sure-i-ve-been-influenced-by-every-fine-writer-i-ve-ever-read/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [My target audience is anyone who finds the world interesting and human behavior fascinating, terrible, inspiring, funny, and occasionally, mysterious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/my-target-audience-is-anyone-who-finds-the-world-interesting-and/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [I assume as a writer that most of the time I'm going to fall down and fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/i-assume-as-a-writer-that-most-of-the-time-i-m-going-to-fall-down-and/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [It is a wonderful, moving, heart-filling experience to sit with the man or woman you love and your beloved children and know that all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/it-is-a-wonderful-moving-heart-filling-experience-to-sit-with-the-man/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [If you're an American reader, you can love short stories the way other Americans love baseball; this is our game, people! We have more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/if-you-re-an-american-reader-you-can-love-short-stories-the-way-other/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [My father certainly believed that one could make a living outside of an office, as he did. And that if I didn't want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/my-father-certainly-believed-that-one-could-make-a-living-outside-of/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > ['Normal' is not clinical, it's not autobiographical, and I don't claim to be objective. It's strictly my perceptions and thoughts about the people that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/normal-is-not-clinical-it-s-not-autobiographical-and-i-don-t-claim-to/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [I am all for loving relationships in which the couple at the center are a match set in terms of height, weight, color, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/i-am-all-for-loving-relationships-in-which-the-couple-at-the-center/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [“The German deli was run by a distant cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm and the Great Neck Jews loved the place; they flocked to Kuch's.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/the-german-deli-was-run-by-a-distant-cousin-of-kaiser-wilhelm-and-the/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [I met Jay Jonhson. I won him the way poor people occasionally win the lottery: Shameless perseverance and embarrassingly dumb luck, and every time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/i-met-jay-jonhson-i-won-him-the-way-poor-people-occasionally-win-the/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [Actual happiness is sometimes confused with the pursuit of it; and the most mindless and crass how-tos can get jumbled in with the modestly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/actual-happiness-is-sometimes-confused-with-the-pursuit-of-it-and-the/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [Smart people often talk trash about happiness and worse than trash about books on happiness, and they have been doing so for centuries -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/smart-people-often-talk-trash-about-happiness-and-worse-than-trash/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [My father would have been spectacularly ill-suited to working for an institution of any kind, and I suspect that, to a lesser degree, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/my-father-would-have-been-spectacularly-ill-suited-to-working-for-an/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [Marriage is not a ritual or an end. Its a long, intricate, intimate dance together and nothing matters more than your own sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/marriage-is-not-a-ritual-or-an-end-its-a-long-intricate-intimate/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [All intimacy is rare-that's what makes it precious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/all-intimacy-is-rare-that-s-what-makes-it-precious/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) [Explore all 112 Amy Bloom quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/) [Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) [Greg Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-perry/) > [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/) [Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/) > [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/) [Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) [Browse all 17,257 Able quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/able/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I do find it challenging to leave stuff out. Two of my models for novel-writing are 'The Great Gatsby' and 'As I Lay Dying,' both very short books. I've never wanted to write a 600-page novel, not that I think there's anything wrong with them. 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