--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was writing 'The White Tiger' I…" description: "\"When I was writing 'The White Tiger' I lived in a building pretty much exactly like the one I described in this novel, and the people in the book are t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/aravind-adiga-4424_book_when-i-was-writing-the-white-tiger-i-liv_2832999.png" --- # When I was writing 'The White Tiger' I lived in a building… ![“When I was writing 'The White Tiger' I lived in a building pretty much exactly like the one I described in this novel, and the people in the book are the people I lived with back then. So I didn't have to do much research to find them.” quote by Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/aravind-adiga-4424_book_when-i-was-writing-the-white-tiger-i-liv_2832999.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/aravind-adiga-4424_book_when-i-was-writing-the-white-tiger-i-liv_2832999.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/aravind-adiga-4424_book_when-i-was-writing-the-white-tiger-i-liv_2832999.png) > “When I was writing 'The White Tiger' I lived in a building pretty much exactly like the one I described in this novel, and the people in the book are the people I lived with back then. So I didn't have to do much research to find them.” [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Living in a similar setting provides authentic insight, reducing research needs. **In simple terms:** Living near the story’s setting aids authenticity. Key Takeaway Leverage personal experience for realism. Themes authenticity environment research Mood thoughtful analytical Type literary practical When to use this quote - novel writing - screenplay development - journalism Key Concepts immersive writing observational detail Questions to Reflect On - How to verify authenticity beyond personal view? - When to seek external sources? A Different Perspective Personal bias may limit perspective. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research/) [Tiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tiger/) [Tigers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tigers/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [A White Tiger keeps no friends. It's too dangerous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/a-white-tiger-keeps-no-friends-it-s-too-dangerous/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“Guy with a gun, I’m your man. Big white tiger with teeth, it’s every steak for himself." - Ty Grady”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-roux/guy-with-a-gun-i-m-your-man-big-white-tiger-with-teeth-it-s-every/) [Abigail Roux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-roux/) > [“Ty grunted. “Guy with a gun, I’m your man. Big white tiger with teeth, it’s every steak for himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-roux/ty-grunted-guy-with-a-gun-i-m-your-man-big-white-tiger-with-teeth-it/) [Abigail Roux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-roux/) > [“The dangerous one was Ren. Innocent though the white tiger he appeared to be, he was a compelling predator. Utterly irresistible -- like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-houck/the-dangerous-one-was-ren-innocent-though-the-white-tiger-he-appeared/) [Colleen Houck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-houck/) > [“The white tiger will always be your protector, Kelsey. Good-bye priyatama .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-houck/the-white-tiger-will-always-be-your-protector-kelsey-good-bye/) [Colleen Houck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-houck/) > [I do see an interest in writing for Twitter. While publishers still do love the novel and people do still like to sink into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-davis/i-do-see-an-interest-in-writing-for-twitter-while-publishers-still-do/) [Lydia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-davis/) > [What's the challenge in writing a novel that few people will read? I'm more than happy writing what I do and have no plans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-challenge-in-writing-a-novel-that-few-people-will-read-i-m/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [A novelist writes a novel, and people read it. But reading is a solitary act. 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I think a place can be as much a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-flagg/strangely-enough-the-first-character-in-fried-green-tomatoes-was-the/) [Fannie Flagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-flagg/) > [Your life story is a novel; and people, though they love novels wound between two yellow paper covers, are oddly suspicious of those which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/your-life-story-is-a-novel-and-people-though-they-love-novels-wound/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“As far as I can tell, a young adult novel is a regular novel that people actually read.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/as-far-as-i-can-tell-a-young-adult-novel-is-a-regular-novel-that/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [History is a novel for which the people is the author.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/history-is-a-novel-for-which-the-people-is-the-author/) [Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/) > [That's what people expect: They don't want to read a slight novel. People don't want to waste their time on anything less than 'great.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-zhang/that-s-what-people-expect-they-don-t-want-to-read-a-slight-novel/) [Jenny Zhang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-zhang/) ## More by Aravind Adiga > [Columbia University, where I went to study in 1993, insisted its undergraduates learn a foreign language, so I discovered French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/columbia-university-where-i-went-to-study-in-1993-insisted-its/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [What keeps India safe really is the heroism of millions of poor Indians who every day reject the allure of terrorism. What keeps India…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/what-keeps-india-safe-really-is-the-heroism-of-millions-of-poor/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“Every day, on the roads of Delhi, some chauffeur is driving an empty car with a black suitcase sitting on the backseat. Inside that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/every-day-on-the-roads-of-delhi-some-chauffeur-is-driving-an-empty/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [I am coming back to New York after five years, and it seems that psychics are taking over the city.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/i-am-coming-back-to-new-york-after-five-years-and-it-seems-that/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [You ask 'Are you a man or a demon?' Neither, I say. I have woken up, and the rest of you are sleeping, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/you-ask-are-you-a-man-or-a-demon-neither-i-say-i-have-woken-up-and/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [I’ve lived in several countries and been a disaster everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/i-ve-lived-in-several-countries-and-been-a-disaster-everywhere/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [Neither. I am just one who has woken up while the rest of you are still sleeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/neither-i-am-just-one-who-has-woken-up-while-the-rest-of-you-are/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“People in this country are still waiting for the war of their freedom to come from somewhere else, from the jungles, from the mountains,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/people-in-this-country-are-still-waiting-for-the-war-of-their-freedom/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“These people were building homes for the rich, but they lived in tents covered with blue tarpaulin sheets, and partitioned into lanes by lines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/these-people-were-building-homes-for-the-rich-but-they-lived-in-tents/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“And then he realized that the thing that was blocking his passage was cleared, and he was falling; his body had begun its short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/and-then-he-realized-that-the-thing-that-was-blocking-his-passage-was/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“When it comes to work - hurry, hurry, hurry. When it comes to payment - delay, delay, delay. Caste, religion, family background nothing. Talent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/when-it-comes-to-work-hurry-hurry-hurry-when-it-comes-to-payment/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“There was a fierce jam on the road to Gurgaon. Every five minutes the traffic would tremble - we'd move a foot - hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/there-was-a-fierce-jam-on-the-road-to-gurgaon-every-five-minutes-the/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“From the advertisement, his eyes moved up the skywalk, the zigzagging metal bridge that connected various locations in the neighborhood to the Banda train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/from-the-advertisement-his-eyes-moved-up-the-skywalk-the-zigzagging/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [It's amazing. The moment you show cash, everyone knows your language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/it-s-amazing-the-moment-you-show-cash-everyone-knows-your-language/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“Even here, in the weight machine of a train station, they try to hoodwink us. Here, on the threshold of a man's freedom, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/even-here-in-the-weight-machine-of-a-train-station-they-try-to/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) [Explore all 111 Aravind Adiga quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) ## More Book 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/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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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/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. 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