--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not so sure that I can teach people…" description: "\"I'm not so sure that I can teach people how to, you know, write dialogue or create plot or anything like that. But if I can get them and grab them by t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/colum-mccann-902_can-do_i-m-not-so-sure-that-i-can-teach-people_23266.png" --- # I'm not so sure that I can teach people how to, you know… ![“I'm not so sure that I can teach people how to, you know, write dialogue or create plot or anything like that. But if I can get them and grab them by the scruff of the neck and say, you can do this, and if I see that fire in their eyes, that's when I think I know a writer.” quote by Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/colum-mccann-902_can-do_i-m-not-so-sure-that-i-can-teach-people_23266.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/colum-mccann-902_can-do_i-m-not-so-sure-that-i-can-teach-people_23266.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/416/colum-mccann-902_can-do_i-m-not-so-sure-that-i-can-teach-people_23266.png) > “I'm not so sure that I can teach people how to, you know, write dialogue or create plot or anything like that. But if I can get them and grab them by the scruff of the neck and say, you can do this, and if I see that fire in their eyes, that's when I think I know a writer.” [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker doubts teaching technical writing skills but believes recognizing passion and confidence reveals true writers. **In simple terms:** Passion signals writer identity. Key Takeaway Fire in eyes shows writer potential. Themes creativity confidence talent motivation self‑belief Mood encouraging optimistic reflective Type observation advice When to use this quote - writing workshops - creative writing classes - mentor‑student meetings - storytelling seminars Key Concepts inspiration recognition Practical Applications - identifying promising writers - motivating aspiring authors Questions to Reflect On - How can we nurture confidence without formal instruction? - What signs indicate latent writing talent? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Can do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/can-do/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Dialogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dialogue/) [Eye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eye/) [Fire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fire/) [I can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-can/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Know Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-write/) [Know Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-writer-403874/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Necks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necks/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Plot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plot/) [Teach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teach/) [Teach People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teach-people/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Write Dialogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-dialogue-403875/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I write about what I know; and I write about things that are new to me, and that I didn't know before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-write-about-what-i-know-and-i-write-about-things-that-are-new-to-me/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I've had enormous luck and enormous pleasure in working in such forms as movies and plays that I loved when I was a kid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-feiffer/i-ve-had-enormous-luck-and-enormous-pleasure-in-working-in-such-forms/) [Jules Feiffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-feiffer/) > [Learn from cinema. Be economic with descriptions. Sort out the telling detail from the lifeless one. Write dialogue that people would actually speak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-tremain/learn-from-cinema-be-economic-with-descriptions-sort-out-the-telling/) [Rose Tremain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-tremain/) > [The way you write dialogue is the same whether you're writing for movies or TV or games. We use movie scriptwriting software to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lake/the-way-you-write-dialogue-is-the-same-whether-you-re-writing-for/) [Sam Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lake/) > [When I'm writing a script, before I can write dialogue or anything, I have two or three hundred pages of notes, which takes me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kaufman/when-i-m-writing-a-script-before-i-can-write-dialogue-or-anything-i/) [Charlie Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kaufman/) > [Whenever I write, I write very dialogue-heavy things because I love to force my characters to interact with one another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-ashley-carter/whenever-i-write-i-write-very-dialogue-heavy-things-because-i-love-to/) [Lauren Ashley Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-ashley-carter/) > [I was intentionally curbing the impulse to be funny and hiding the ability. I wrote any number of very serious attempts at poems, short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/i-was-intentionally-curbing-the-impulse-to-be-funny-and-hiding-the/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) > [In real life, people fumble their words. They repeat themselves and stare blankly off into space and don't listen properly to what other people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-guest/in-real-life-people-fumble-their-words-they-repeat-themselves-and/) [Christopher Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-guest/) > [I'd be the first person to say I can't write dialogue. My dialogue is very utilitarian and is designed to move things forward. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lucas/i-d-be-the-first-person-to-say-i-can-t-write-dialogue-my-dialogue-is/) [George Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lucas/) > [In playwriting, you've got to be able to write dialogue. And if you write enough of it and let it flow enough, you'll probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/in-playwriting-you-ve-got-to-be-able-to-write-dialogue-and-if-you/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [When I first started, I didn't really know how to structure a play. I could write dialogue, but I just sort of failed beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/when-i-first-started-i-didn-t-really-know-how-to-structure-a-play-i/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [Much to my surprise, there's a sense for people in the cable industry that fiction writers might actually be good at script writing. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-specktor/much-to-my-surprise-there-s-a-sense-for-people-in-the-cable-industry/) [Matthew Specktor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-specktor/) > [Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary, O’er a plan to venge myself upon that cursed Thursday Next- This Eyre…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/once-upon-a-midnight-dreary-while-i-pondered-weak-and-weary-o-er-a/) [Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/) > [“The old nut goes, 'Write what you know,' but often a writer is clearer about what he doesn't know and must learn about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-bell/the-old-nut-goes-write-what-you-know-but-often-a-writer-is-clearer/) [Susan Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-bell/) > [“You know that you are a writer if you are imaginative. You know that you are a writer if you are curious. You know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-scieszka-katie-dicamillo/you-know-that-you-are-a-writer-if-you-are-imaginative-you-know-that/) [Jon Scieszka Katie DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-scieszka-katie-dicamillo/) ## More by Colum McCann > [Give life long enough and it will solve all your problems, including the one of being alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/give-life-long-enough-and-it-will-solve-all-your-problems-including/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“There is something that happens to the mind in moments of terror. Perhaps we figure it's the last we'll ever have and we record…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/there-is-something-that-happens-to-the-mind-in-moments-of-terror/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“The short sharp shock of three thousand mother two hundred mothers. The ones who picked through the supermarket debris for pieces of their dead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/the-short-sharp-shock-of-three-thousand-mother-two-hundred-mothers/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“Once we had filled each other with desire, not remembrance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/once-we-had-filled-each-other-with-desire-not-remembrance/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“How long ago it was and how strange, but all dead friends come to life again sometimes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/how-long-ago-it-was-and-how-strange-but-all-dead-friends-come-to-life/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“She would want, instead, to recall him in the air, between layers of cloud. To give him back that ancient dignity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/she-would-want-instead-to-recall-him-in-the-air-between-layers-of/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [Novels are more difficult simply because they are longer and require more juggling, but short stories are closer to perfection, if you can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/novels-are-more-difficult-simply-because-they-are-longer-and-require/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [It was a silence that heard itself, awful and beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/it-was-a-silence-that-heard-itself-awful-and-beautiful/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I think one of the biggest political failures, and the biggest social failures, over the past few years has been the failure of empathy;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-think-one-of-the-biggest-political-failures-and-the-biggest-social/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“Bits of it floating in the air, he said. "It's like dust. You walk about and don't see it, don't notice it, but it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/bits-of-it-floating-in-the-air-he-said-it-s-like-dust-you-walk-about/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“He has read whole volumes on the philosophy of nonviolence. How peace had to be understood in all its moral dimensions. The proper coexistence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/he-has-read-whole-volumes-on-the-philosophy-of-nonviolence-how-peace/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“She’s always thought that one of the beauties of New York is that you can be from anywhere and within moments of landing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/she-s-always-thought-that-one-of-the-beauties-of-new-york-is-that-you/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I'm of the opinion that the real is imagined and the imagined is quite real. The real is imagined, in the sense that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-m-of-the-opinion-that-the-real-is-imagined-and-the-imagined-is/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“She had that emigrant’s sadness—she would never go back to her old country—it was gone in more senses than one—but she was forever gazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/she-had-that-emigrant-s-sadness-she-would-never-go-back-to-her-old/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“Nobody falls halfway”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/nobody-falls-halfway/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) [Explore all 333 Colum McCann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) ## More Can do quotes > [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/) [Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [If I had a million dollars, I just wouldn't just completely set back. I'd have to get out there and show my face to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muddy-waters/if-i-had-a-million-dollars-i-just-wouldn-t-just-completely-set-back-i/) [Muddy Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muddy-waters/) > [Anybody can be Prince Charming one day a year, with the dinner and the flowers and all that. But you know what impresses me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-howard/anybody-can-be-prince-charming-one-day-a-year-with-the-dinner-and-the/) [Ryan Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-howard/) > [And if the mind thinks with a believing attitude one can do amazing things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/and-if-the-mind-thinks-with-a-believing-attitude-one-can-do-amazing/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [The amount of things you can do with a kettlebell is unsurpassed by any other training equipment - dumbbells, resistance machines, free weights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/the-amount-of-things-you-can-do-with-a-kettlebell-is-unsurpassed-by/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > [It's nice when you've done enough movies that you can do your own anthology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lithgow/it-s-nice-when-you-ve-done-enough-movies-that-you-can-do-your-own/) [John Lithgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lithgow/) > [If people don't have their own vision, all they can do is 'sign-up' for someone else's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/if-people-don-t-have-their-own-vision-all-they-can-do-is-sign-up-for/) [Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/) > [The one thing that flies in the face of all human history and experience, is that the government can do a superior job than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cook/the-one-thing-that-flies-in-the-face-of-all-human-history-and/) [James Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cook/) > [...what I can do is offer myself, wholehearted and present, to walk with the people I love through the fear and the mess. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/what-i-can-do-is-offer-myself-wholehearted-and-present-to-walk-with/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [Whether that's speaking up in your job or asking for a promotion or saying, 'I think I can do that.' Using your voice in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-shriver/whether-that-s-speaking-up-in-your-job-or-asking-for-a-promotion-or/) [Maria Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-shriver/) > [The average ordinary citizen can do a lot of different things when it comes to the climate crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-bender/the-average-ordinary-citizen-can-do-a-lot-of-different-things-when-it/) [Lawrence Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-bender/) > [A professional is a man who can do his job when he doesn't feel like it. An amateur is a man who can't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-agate/a-professional-is-a-man-who-can-do-his-job-when-he-doesn-t-feel-like/) [James Agate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-agate/) > [The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, as it pleases him, for he can do all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/the-lord-gives-and-the-lord-takes-away-as-it-pleases-him-for-he-can/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [I'm not an educated man. I only know what I'm told, and I'm not told that much; I have no frame of reference for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/i-m-not-an-educated-man-i-only-know-what-i-m-told-and-i-m-not-told/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) [Browse all 5,673 Can do quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/can-do/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm not so sure that I can teach people how to, you know, write dialogue or create plot or anything like that. 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