--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Literature for me isn't a workaday job…" description: "\"Literature for me isn't a workaday job, but something which involves desires, dreams and fantasy.\" — Antonio Tabucchi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/antonio-tabucchi-13002_books_literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-b_3067321.jpg" --- # Literature for me isn't a workaday job, but something… ![“Literature for me isn't a workaday job, but something which involves desires, dreams and fantasy.” quote by Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/antonio-tabucchi-13002_books_literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-b_3067321.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/antonio-tabucchi-13002_books_literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-b_3067321.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/antonio-tabucchi-13002_books_literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-b_3067321.jpg) > “Literature for me isn't a workaday job, but something which involves desires, dreams and fantasy.” [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Literature is portrayed as a passionate pursuit of imagination rather than a mundane job. **In simple terms:** Writing is about dreams and fantasy, not routine work. Key Takeaway Embrace creative passion over routine. Themes creativity imagination passion artistic expression Mood inspired reflective Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - writing - reading - creative projects - personal fulfillment Key Concepts literary theory existentialism Questions to Reflect On - How does imagination fuel your work? - What routine can you transform into art? A Different Perspective May overlook practical constraints of earning a living. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Dreams Fantasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams-fantasy-2684872/) [Fantasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fantasy/) [Involves Desires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/involves-desires-5172557/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Literature Isn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature-isn-545547/) ## Related quotes > [The visual palette suggests the creepy pastel paintings of Guy Peellaert (Rock Dreams); the fantasy battles with monsters and samurais echo the muscular landscapes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-corliss/the-visual-palette-suggests-the-creepy-pastel-paintings-of-guy/) [Richard Corliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-corliss/) > [“To write you dreams of fantasy, is to create fantasy in another's dreams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-shepherd/to-write-you-dreams-of-fantasy-is-to-create-fantasy-in-another-s/) [Rob Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-shepherd/) > [“To write your dreams of fantasy, is to create fantasy in another's dreams”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-shepherd/to-write-your-dreams-of-fantasy-is-to-create-fantasy-in-another-s/) [Rob Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-shepherd/) > [Literature isn't a moral beauty contest. Its power arises from the authority and audacity with which the impersonation is pulled off; the belief it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/literature-isn-t-a-moral-beauty-contest-its-power-arises-from-the/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [“Literature isn't innocent. I've known that since I was fifteen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-bola-o/literature-isn-t-innocent-i-ve-known-that-since-i-was-fifteen/) [Roberto Bolaño](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-bola-o/) > [If literature isn't everything, it's not worth a single hour of someone's trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/if-literature-isn-t-everything-it-s-not-worth-a-single-hour-of/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“Literature isn't true/ It's just something that we do”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanne-christensen/literature-isn-t-true-it-s-just-something-that-we-do/) [Susanne Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanne-christensen/) > [“That you are a born again Christian does not mean you will automatically succeed except you follow God's principles. Never forget faith without good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patience-johnson/that-you-are-a-born-again-christian-does-not-mean-you-will/) [Patience Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patience-johnson/) > [I think literature is somehow both a fantasy and a reality we should all get back to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-warren-jones/i-think-literature-is-somehow-both-a-fantasy-and-a-reality-we-should/) [Shane Warren Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-warren-jones/) > [“Women create an idealized, hopeful vision for the future to inspire other women. Fiction and fantasy are the crucial first steps to changing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-rodale/women-create-an-idealized-hopeful-vision-for-the-future-to-inspire/) [Maya Rodale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-rodale/) > [“Metal makes everything magical. Just ask a unicorn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sybrina-durant/metal-makes-everything-magical-just-ask-a-unicorn/) [Sybrina Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sybrina-durant/) > [I like fantasy, but I don't live and breathe fantasy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-schmidt-hissrich/i-like-fantasy-but-i-don-t-live-and-breathe-fantasy/) [Lauren Schmidt Hissrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-schmidt-hissrich/) > [We don't make glamorous movies today. Everything now is very realistic, artistic - and depressing. When is the last time you you saw a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/we-don-t-make-glamorous-movies-today-everything-now-is-very-realistic/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [I avoided nudity unless a film couldn't be told without those scenes. If you look at my films, few of them have that element,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-scacchi/i-avoided-nudity-unless-a-film-couldn-t-be-told-without-those-scenes/) [Greta Scacchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-scacchi/) > [“I am awake. I know what you took. I am coming for you. Vengeance is mine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-burks/i-am-awake-i-know-what-you-took-i-am-coming-for-you-vengeance-is-mine/) [Robin Burks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-burks/) ## More by Antonio Tabucchi > [No, I'm happy to go on living the life I've chosen. I'm a university teacher and I like my job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/no-i-m-happy-to-go-on-living-the-life-i-ve-chosen-i-m-a-university/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [But I don't think I have any particular talent for prediction, because when you have three or four elements in hand, you don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/but-i-don-t-think-i-have-any-particular-talent-for-prediction-because/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I've always been drawn to tormented people full of contradictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-ve-always-been-drawn-to-tormented-people-full-of-contradictions/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I live quietly at home among my family and friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-live-quietly-at-home-among-my-family-and-friends/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [My books are about losers, about people who've lost their way and are engaged in a search.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/my-books-are-about-losers-about-people-who-ve-lost-their-way-and-are/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [Xenophobia manifests itself especially against civilizations and cultures that are weak because they lack economic resources, means of subsistence or land. So nomadic people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/xenophobia-manifests-itself-especially-against-civilizations-and/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I vividly remember the stories my grandfather told me about the carnage of the First World War, which people tend to forget was one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-vividly-remember-the-stories-my-grandfather-told-me-about-the/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I prefer insomnia to anaesthesia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-prefer-insomnia-to-anaesthesia/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [The salt of any interesting civilization is mixture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/the-salt-of-any-interesting-civilization-is-mixture/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I don't know whether these people are going to find themselves, but as they live their lives they have no choice but to face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-don-t-know-whether-these-people-are-going-to-find-themselves-but-as/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [We all want to be someone else but without ceasing to be ourselves. I think it's very important to defend this idea in real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/we-all-want-to-be-someone-else-but-without-ceasing-to-be-ourselves-i/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I don't go for people who lead full and satisfying lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-don-t-go-for-people-who-lead-full-and-satisfying-lives/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [A l'intérieur de ce corps vivait l'âme d'une intellectuelle et poète dont personne n'avait le soupçon. Within this body lived the soul of an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/a-l-int-rieur-de-ce-corps-vivait-l-me-d-une-intellectuelle-et-po-te/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [People with lots of doubts sometimes find life more oppressive and exhausting than others, but they're more energetic - they aren't robots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/people-with-lots-of-doubts-sometimes-find-life-more-oppressive-and/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I was born in the Second World War during the Nazi invasion of my country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-was-born-in-the-second-world-war-during-the-nazi-invasion-of-my/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) [Explore all 42 Antonio Tabucchi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Literature for me isn't a workaday job, but something which involves desires, dreams and fantasy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Antonio Tabucchi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-but-something-which-involves/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-but-something-which-involves/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/antonio-tabucchi-13002_books_literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-b_3067321.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/antonio-tabucchi-13002_books_literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-b_3067321.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a29/antonio-tabucchi-13002_books_literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-b_3067321.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Literature for me isn't a workaday job, but something which involves desires, dreams and fantasy.” — Antonio Tabucchi", "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": "Antonio Tabucchi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Literature for me isn't a workaday...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-but-something-which-involves/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/literature-for-me-isn-t-a-workaday-job-but-something-which-involves/#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 } } ] } ```