--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Writers have to be careful not to confuse…" description: "\"Writers have to be careful not to confuse personal attention with the attention that's going towards the book.\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/536/anonymous-1_attention_writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confus_2061896.jpg" --- # Writers have to be careful not to confuse personal… ![“Writers have to be careful not to confuse personal attention with the attention that's going towards the book.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/536/anonymous-1_attention_writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confus_2061896.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/536/anonymous-1_attention_writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confus_2061896.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/536/anonymous-1_attention_writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confus_2061896.jpg) > “Writers have to be careful not to confuse personal attention with the attention that's going towards the book.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writers must distinguish between personal validation and audience engagement with their work. **In simple terms:** Separate self‑attention from reader focus. Key Takeaway Focus on audience, not ego. Themes writing focus audience ego attention Mood reflective analytical Type advice instructional When to use this quote - drafting - publishing - marketing - feedback - author workshops Key Concepts self‑esteem reader response creative focus Questions to Reflect On - How do you measure audience impact? - What signals indicate genuine reader interest? A Different Perspective Personal bias can cloud judgment of a work’s merit. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Personal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal/) [Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Any job, whether it's your own or salaried, needs your personal attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiten-tejwani/any-job-whether-it-s-your-own-or-salaried-needs-your-personal/) [Hiten Tejwani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiten-tejwani/) > [Pay attention to where you are going because without meaning you might get nowhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/pay-attention-to-where-you-are-going-because-without-meaning-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is like a multiple choice question, sometimes the choices confuse you, not the question itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-like-a-multiple-choice-question-sometimes-the-choices-confuse/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you can't impress people with your intelligence, confuse them with your bullshit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-can-t-impress-people-with-your-intelligence-confuse-them-with/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Never confuse honor with stupidity!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-confuse-honor-with-stupidity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If u cant beat them, confuse them ..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-u-cant-beat-them-confuse-them/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don't CONFUSE being materialistic with being bossy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-confuse-being-materialistic-with-being-bossy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Every time you explain something, you confuse me more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-time-you-explain-something-you-confuse-me-more/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I really feel stupid and confuse, every time I felt like over her and suddenly she does this thing and drag me back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-really-feel-stupid-and-confuse-every-time-i-felt-like-over-her-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You confuse me so much with everything you do and say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-confuse-me-so-much-with-everything-you-do-and-say/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If u cant convice them confuse them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-u-cant-convice-them-confuse-them/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why must you confuse me? Just tell me how you feel already](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/why-must-you-confuse-me-just-tell-me-how-you-feel-already/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sorry if you confuse me for someone that actually gives a fuck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sorry-if-you-confuse-me-for-someone-that-actually-gives-a-fuck/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Often times people may confuse love with lust. If you do not know which is which then whenever, whatever you feel for a person,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/often-times-people-may-confuse-love-with-lust-if-you-do-not-know/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think it's very important not to confuse the importance of dealing with Social Security in the long term with these short-term deficit reduction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-it-s-very-important-not-to-confuse-the-importance-of-dealing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Writers have to be careful not to confuse personal attention with the attention that's going towards the book.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confuse-personal-attention-with-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attention" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confuse-personal-attention-with-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/536/anonymous-1_attention_writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confus_2061896.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/536/anonymous-1_attention_writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confus_2061896.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/536/anonymous-1_attention_writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confus_2061896.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Writers have to be careful not to confuse personal attention with the attention that's going towards the book.” — Anonymous", "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": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Writers have to be careful not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confuse-personal-attention-with-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/writers-have-to-be-careful-not-to-confuse-personal-attention-with-the/#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 } } ] } ```