--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Storytellers think they're writing for…" description: "\"“Storytellers think they're writing for the audience. They're writing, in a way, to hurt the audience.”\" — Chuck Wendig" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/chuck-wendig-5165_audience_storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-t_588460.jpg" --- # Storytellers think they're writing for the audience… ![“Storytellers think they're writing for the audience. They're writing, in a way, to hurt the audience.” quote by Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/chuck-wendig-5165_audience_storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-t_588460.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/chuck-wendig-5165_audience_storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-t_588460.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/chuck-wendig-5165_audience_storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-t_588460.jpg) > ““Storytellers think they're writing for the audience. They're writing, in a way, to hurt the audience.”” [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Storytellers often craft narratives that challenge or discomfort audiences to provoke deeper reflection. **In simple terms:** Stories can be intentionally unsettling. Key Takeaway Embrace discomfort as a tool for growth. Themes storytelling audience discomfort provocation Mood thoughtful challenging Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - creative writing classes - film script development - marketing campaigns Key Concepts narrative technique psychology of reception Questions to Reflect On - How does discomfort enhance meaning? - When is it counterproductive? A Different Perspective Not all audiences appreciate being hurt; some may disengage. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Audience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audience/) [Storytellers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytellers/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing advice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-advice/) ## Related quotes > [Clear writing is universal. People talk about writing down to an audience or writing up to an audience; I think that's nonsense. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/clear-writing-is-universal-people-talk-about-writing-down-to-an/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [My family are all storytellers, and I think I inherited a lot more of that gene than other people in my family. I guess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-reilly/my-family-are-all-storytellers-and-i-think-i-inherited-a-lot-more-of/) [John C. Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-reilly/) > [I love creating stories, dreaming up characters and breathing life into them. From several generations of Irish storytellers, I think that's what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-conrad/i-love-creating-stories-dreaming-up-characters-and-breathing-life/) [Linda Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-conrad/) > [I think there are people who are born storytellers. I think of someone like T. C. Boyle or Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I think really,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-shields/i-think-there-are-people-who-are-born-storytellers-i-think-of-someone/) [David Shields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-shields/) > [While a particularly deft sense of irony may be one of the tools of great storytellers, I think it's also true that if irony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-erickson/while-a-particularly-deft-sense-of-irony-may-be-one-of-the-tools-of/) [Steve Erickson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-erickson/) > [If you start writing to an audience you're talking down to them. I've never written for any age group, I just write character. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-rosenberg/if-you-start-writing-to-an-audience-you-re-talking-down-to-them-i-ve/) [Melissa Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-rosenberg/) > [Improvisation is just writing in front of an audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-reiner/improvisation-is-just-writing-in-front-of-an-audience/) [Carl Reiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-reiner/) > [There have been times when I've written something and it goes out and it comes back in a letter from some kid as to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/there-have-been-times-when-i-ve-written-something-and-it-goes-out-and/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [A good actor just wants to deliver the writing to the audience who've paid that night. There's an agonising desire to get it right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prunella-scales/a-good-actor-just-wants-to-deliver-the-writing-to-the-audience-who-ve/) [Prunella Scales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prunella-scales/) > [I don't think we need a critic to negotiate with the audience. People say, "Who are you writing for?" I'm writing for myself but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-c-boyle/i-don-t-think-we-need-a-critic-to-negotiate-with-the-audience-people/) [T.C. Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-c-boyle/) > [For so long I didn't have any kind of readership at all - I'd get published, but not read - the idea of writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-dyer/for-so-long-i-didn-t-have-any-kind-of-readership-at-all-i-d-get/) [Geoff Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-dyer/) > [I know I'm writing better now than I ever did for adults because I'm writing for an audience who know that they don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-almond/i-know-i-m-writing-better-now-than-i-ever-did-for-adults-because-i-m/) [David Almond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-almond/) > [ I didn't (and still don't) have comments \[in my blog\]. It's about simply writing for an audience of One. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/i-didn-t-and-still-don-t-have-comments-in-my-blog-it-s-about-simply/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [I tend not to think about audience when I'm writing. Many people who read 'The Giver' now have their own kids who are reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/i-tend-not-to-think-about-audience-when-i-m-writing-many-people-who/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [Most writers in Mexico have had posts as ambassadors, secretaries - that is no longer the case. Now a writer can live off writing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/most-writers-in-mexico-have-had-posts-as-ambassadors-secretaries-that/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) ## More by Chuck Wendig > [You've got all these characters and yet, you're hovering over one character like a fly over a stinky diaper. Realize that you've got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/you-ve-got-all-these-characters-and-yet-you-re-hovering-over-one/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [When in doubt, the rule of threes is a rule that plays well with all of storytelling. When describing a thing? No more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/when-in-doubt-the-rule-of-threes-is-a-rule-that-plays-well-with-all/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“All hail the light, the dark, and the grey.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/all-hail-the-light-the-dark-and-the-grey/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“Naughty business, this Empire.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/naughty-business-this-empire/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“Things happen in this life. Sometimes they're good things, and sometimes they're bad things. You have to come to terms with the bad things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/things-happen-in-this-life-sometimes-they-re-good-things-and/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“Did you just say shrug instead of actually shrugging?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/did-you-just-say-shrug-instead-of-actually-shrugging/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“On the worst day of writing, the work is instructive. On the best day, the act is transcendent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/on-the-worst-day-of-writing-the-work-is-instructive-on-the-best-day/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“A HUG IS LIKE VIOLENCE MADE OF LOVE.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/a-hug-is-like-violence-made-of-love/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“Stories have the power to make people feel. To give a shit. To change their opinions. To change the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/stories-have-the-power-to-make-people-feel-to-give-a-shit-to-change/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“You thought what? That because you’re a nice guy, my panties will just drop because you deserve to have my thighs around your ears?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/you-thought-what-that-because-you-re-a-nice-guy-my-panties-will-just/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“Today is a day of celebration. We have triumphed over villainy and oppression and have given our Alliance—and the galaxy beyond it—a chance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/today-is-a-day-of-celebration-we-have-triumphed-over-villainy-and/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“Write as much as you can. As fast as you can. Finish your shit. Hit your deadlines. Try very hard not to suck.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/write-as-much-as-you-can-as-fast-as-you-can-finish-your-shit-hit-your/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“everyone likes to be sold easy promises, don’t they?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/everyone-likes-to-be-sold-easy-promises-don-t-they/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“I would straight up fuck a snowman right now, she says. Just to cool down. - Miriam Black”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/i-would-straight-up-fuck-a-snowman-right-now-she-says-just-to-cool/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [“Writers are made--forged, really, in a kiln of their own madness and insecurities--over the course of many, many moons. The writer you are when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/writers-are-made-forged-really-in-a-kiln-of-their-own-madness-and/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) [Explore all 102 Chuck Wendig quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) ## More Audience quotes > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It's those moments, those odd moments that you look for and sometimes by creating this kind of loose atmosphere you find those little moments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-levinson/it-s-those-moments-those-odd-moments-that-you-look-for-and-sometimes/) [Barry Levinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-levinson/) > [I can skate beautifully. While performing on ice I always try to please the audience and to win as well. Being artistic is very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeni-plushenko/i-can-skate-beautifully-while-performing-on-ice-i-always-try-to/) [Evgeni Plushenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeni-plushenko/) > [One of the best moments of any Liars show is hearing the crowd squawk 'We're doomed! We're doomed!' on cue during 'We Fenced Other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/one-of-the-best-moments-of-any-liars-show-is-hearing-the-crowd-squawk/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [It's the adrenaline rush you only get from being in front of an audience. It's addictive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raphael-saadiq/it-s-the-adrenaline-rush-you-only-get-from-being-in-front-of-an/) [Raphael Saadiq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raphael-saadiq/) > [If I had to speak in front of a Korean audience, I would be hard pressed to sound other than a little girl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/an-na/if-i-had-to-speak-in-front-of-a-korean-audience-i-would-be-hard/) [An Na](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/an-na/) > [The liveness of theater, and the excitement of experiencing it alongside an audience, is something you can't get at home. That makes the theater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-blaemire/the-liveness-of-theater-and-the-excitement-of-experiencing-it/) [Nick Blaemire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-blaemire/) > [One of the things that touches me most when I play for an audience is that although we may be unable to communicate in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/one-of-the-things-that-touches-me-most-when-i-play-for-an-audience-is/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [I have to feel the audience. I enjoy that feeling of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gahan/i-have-to-feel-the-audience-i-enjoy-that-feeling-of-community/) [Dave Gahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gahan/) > [When you lived it for years and years and years and seen different characters just get pummeled and squashed because 'I said so,' it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arn-anderson/when-you-lived-it-for-years-and-years-and-years-and-seen-different/) [Arn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arn-anderson/) > [“During the first few minutes of your presentation, your job is to assure the audience members that you are not going to waste their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-ludwig-and-greg-owen-boger/during-the-first-few-minutes-of-your-presentation-your-job-is-to/) [Dale Ludwig and Greg Owen-Boger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-ludwig-and-greg-owen-boger/) > [Donald Trump is a different ball of wax. I've been trying to say for I don't know how many months now that the traditional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/donald-trump-is-a-different-ball-of-wax-i-ve-been-trying-to-say-for-i/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [I don't think about who the audience is for my books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling-2/i-don-t-think-about-who-the-audience-is-for-my-books/) [J. K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling-2/) > [I feel I have been playing all primary characters. And if your character forms a connect with the audience, it doesn't matter if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angad-bedi/i-feel-i-have-been-playing-all-primary-characters-and-if-your/) [Angad Bedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angad-bedi/) > [When I was playing piano, it was like, 'I'm going to write a song using all the white keys.' My music director, who knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tesh/when-i-was-playing-piano-it-was-like-i-m-going-to-write-a-song-using/) [John Tesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tesh/) [Browse all 9,118 Audience quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audience/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Storytellers think they're writing for the audience. They're writing, in a way, to hurt the audience.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Chuck Wendig" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-the-audience-they-re-writing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Audience" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-the-audience-they-re-writing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/chuck-wendig-5165_audience_storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-t_588460.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/chuck-wendig-5165_audience_storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-t_588460.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/chuck-wendig-5165_audience_storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-t_588460.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Storytellers think they're writing for the audience. They're writing, in a way, to hurt the audience.” — Chuck Wendig", "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": "Chuck Wendig", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Storytellers think they're writing for the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-the-audience-they-re-writing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/storytellers-think-they-re-writing-for-the-audience-they-re-writing/#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 } } ] } ```