--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As I started to read nonfiction in the…" description: "\"As I started to read nonfiction in the mid '70s, I discovered, holy cow, there was a lot of imaginative nonfiction. Not the kind where people use compo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6fb/david-quammen-9256_books_as-i-started-to-read-nonfiction-in-the-m_1250344.jpg" --- # As I started to read nonfiction in the mid '70s, I… ![“As I started to read nonfiction in the mid '70s, I discovered, holy cow, there was a lot of imaginative nonfiction. Not the kind where people use composite characters and invented quotes. I hate that kind of nonfiction. But imaginative in the sense that good writing and unexpected structure and…” quote by David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6fb/david-quammen-9256_books_as-i-started-to-read-nonfiction-in-the-m_1250344.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6fb/david-quammen-9256_books_as-i-started-to-read-nonfiction-in-the-m_1250344.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6fb/david-quammen-9256_books_as-i-started-to-read-nonfiction-in-the-m_1250344.jpg) > “As I started to read nonfiction in the mid '70s, I discovered, holy cow, there was a lot of imaginative nonfiction. Not the kind where people use composite characters and invented quotes. I hate that kind of nonfiction. But imaginative in the sense that good writing and unexpected structure and vivid reporting could be combined with presenting facts.” [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Good nonfiction blends factual reporting with vivid, creative storytelling without fabricating facts. **In simple terms:** Combine factual accuracy with imaginative storytelling. Key Takeaway Prioritize truth while using engaging narrative techniques. Themes journalism creativity truth storytelling nonfiction Mood inspirational analytical Type educational literary When to use this quote - documentary writing - feature articles - educational content - media production Key Concepts narrative structure ethical reporting literary style Questions to Reflect On - How can you ensure factual integrity while being creative? - What narrative tools enhance reader engagement? A Different Perspective Balancing creativity and fact‑checking can be challenging. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Good writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-writing/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Holy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holy/) [Imaginative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imaginative/) [Nonfiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonfiction/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/structure/) [Vivid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vivid/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I really feel like there have been moments of some level of creative nonfiction. I have kind of had to explain or justify some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-dolezal/i-really-feel-like-there-have-been-moments-of-some-level-of-creative/) [Rachel Dolezal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-dolezal/) > [I think one of the reasons that I like fiction versus nonfiction is that I myself can kind of disappear from the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/i-think-one-of-the-reasons-that-i-like-fiction-versus-nonfiction-is/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [I like European and South American literature, but mostly I read nonfiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessa-crispin/i-like-european-and-south-american-literature-but-mostly-i-read/) [Jessa Crispin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessa-crispin/) > [I read nonfiction almost exclusively - both for research and also for pleasure. When I read fiction, it's almost always in the thriller genre,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/i-read-nonfiction-almost-exclusively-both-for-research-and-also-for/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [I tend to read more nonfiction, really, because when I'm writing I don't like to read other fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvine-welsh/i-tend-to-read-more-nonfiction-really-because-when-i-m-writing-i-don/) [Irvine Welsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvine-welsh/) > [I hardly read fiction; I mostly read nonfiction. I like to examine material things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bennett-miller/i-hardly-read-fiction-i-mostly-read-nonfiction-i-like-to-examine/) [Bennett Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bennett-miller/) > [Generally, I read nonfiction. There's very little fiction that I enjoy enough to spend my time reading. I am generally a nonfiction guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-morgan/generally-i-read-nonfiction-there-s-very-little-fiction-that-i-enjoy/) [Peter Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-morgan/) > [My reading preferences are kind of all over the board - I read nonfiction, I read graphic novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dav-pilkey/my-reading-preferences-are-kind-of-all-over-the-board-i-read/) [Dav Pilkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dav-pilkey/) > [I read nonfiction. There's very little fiction that I enjoy enough to spend my time reading. I am generally a nonfiction guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-morgan/i-read-nonfiction-there-s-very-little-fiction-that-i-enjoy-enough-to/) [Peter Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-morgan/) > [“I read nonfiction." She reared back as if offended.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-osterlund/i-read-nonfiction-she-reared-back-as-if-offended/) [Anne Osterlund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-osterlund/) > [Fiction seems to be more effective at changing beliefs than nonfiction, which is designed to persuade through argument and evidence. Studies show that when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-gottschall/fiction-seems-to-be-more-effective-at-changing-beliefs-than/) [Jonathan Gottschall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-gottschall/) > [People seem to read so much more nonfiction than fiction, and so it always gives me great pleasure to introduce a friend or family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-bohjalian/people-seem-to-read-so-much-more-nonfiction-than-fiction-and-so-it/) [Chris Bohjalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-bohjalian/) > [I don't like to read nonfiction. To me, fact is something I can look up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fran-lebowitz/i-don-t-like-to-read-nonfiction-to-me-fact-is-something-i-can-look-up/) [Fran Lebowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fran-lebowitz/) > [I love to read nonfiction and memoir, but I'm mostly interested in the piece of writing more than the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-love-to-read-nonfiction-and-memoir-but-i-m-mostly-interested-in-the/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [People seem to want to read more nonfiction than fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-jo-campbell/people-seem-to-want-to-read-more-nonfiction-than-fiction/) [Bonnie Jo Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-jo-campbell/) ## More by David Quammen > [I wrote four novels, but then I realized that the world didn't need me to be a novelist, but the world could use me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/i-wrote-four-novels-but-then-i-realized-that-the-world-didn-t-need-me/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [I am very, very old-fashioned and clumsy. I use those long reporter notebooks. This is what a troglodyte I am. The night before I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/i-am-very-very-old-fashioned-and-clumsy-i-use-those-long-reporter/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [Most Americans know nothing about the African forest, and it seems to them a very scary, spooky dangerous place. I've spent a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/most-americans-know-nothing-about-the-african-forest-and-it-seems-to/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [“Horses aren’t native to Australia. They are exotic, first brought there by European settlers barely more than two centuries ago. Hendra is probably an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/horses-aren-t-native-to-australia-they-are-exotic-first-brought-there/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [Viruses have to live somewhere. 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They are natural laboratories of extravagant evolutionary experimentation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/islands-are-havens-and-breeding-grounds-for-the-unique-and-anomalous/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [“Each outbreak, by this view, represents a local event primarily explicable by a larger cause—the arrival of the wave. The main proponent of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/each-outbreak-by-this-view-represents-a-local-event-primarily/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [“The Towner paper contained a very interesting statement, as an aside, concerning the five ebolaviruses: “Viruses of each species have genomes that are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/the-towner-paper-contained-a-very-interesting-statement-as-an-aside/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [I used to read only fiction. Now I don't read much, only occasionally, such as a Cormac McCarthy or a Jim Harrison novel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/i-used-to-read-only-fiction-now-i-don-t-read-much-only-occasionally/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [The swallow that hibernates underwater is a creature called yearning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/the-swallow-that-hibernates-underwater-is-a-creature-called-yearning/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [“It comes and it goes. But epidemiologists have recognized that, with measles virus, as with other pathogens, there’s a critical minimum size of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/it-comes-and-it-goes-but-epidemiologists-have-recognized-that-with/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [Whether you like the label 'Anthropocene' or not, whether you find the prospect of what it signifies inevitable or appalling (or both), the time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/whether-you-like-the-label-anthropocene-or-not-whether-you-find-the/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [Ebola isn't a respiratory virus. It doesn't spread through the airborne route. So it's not likely to spread like wildfire around the world and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/ebola-isn-t-a-respiratory-virus-it-doesn-t-spread-through-the/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [I'm a white, middle-class male who had a happy childhood in Ohio. 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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. 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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 > [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": "As I started to read nonfiction in the mid '70s, I discovered, holy cow, there was a lot of imaginative nonfiction. Not the kind where people use composite characters and invented quotes. I hate that kind of nonfiction. 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