--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I really enjoy writing novels. It's like…" description: "\"I really enjoy writing novels. It's like the ocean. You can just build a boat and take off.\" — Denis Johnson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/denis-johnson-2135_boat_i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like_206789.png" --- # I really enjoy writing novels. It's like the ocean. You… ![“I really enjoy writing novels. It's like the ocean. You can just build a boat and take off.” quote by Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/denis-johnson-2135_boat_i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like_206789.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/denis-johnson-2135_boat_i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like_206789.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/denis-johnson-2135_boat_i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like_206789.png) > “I really enjoy writing novels. It's like the ocean. You can just build a boat and take off.” [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing novels feels like navigating an ocean, building a vessel to explore. **In simple terms:** Writing is an oceanic adventure. Key Takeaway Embrace the creative journey. Themes creativity writing exploration Mood reflective hopeful Type inspirational creative When to use this quote - author workshops - drafting - publishing - storytelling Key Concepts metaphor self‑expression risk Questions to Reflect On - What vessel will you build? - How do you navigate writer’s doubt? A Different Perspective The ocean can be overwhelming. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [Ocean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ocean/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I really enjoy writing novels. Its like the ocean. You can just build a boat and take off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-its-like-the-ocean-you-can-just-build-a/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [I like very much to read novels. I like very much some writers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurizio-sarri/i-like-very-much-to-read-novels-i-like-very-much-some-writers/) [Maurizio Sarri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurizio-sarri/) > [“...my novels are like life - I never know where they're going until I get to the end...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-geddes-a-familiar-rain/my-novels-are-like-life-i-never-know-where-they-re-going-until-i-get/) [John Geddes A Familiar Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-geddes-a-familiar-rain/) > [Novels are almost like music or poetry - they just come to me in simple sentences, whereas I think my pieces get more and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/novels-are-almost-like-music-or-poetry-they-just-come-to-me-in-simple/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [Novels are like paintings, specifically watercolors. Every stroke you put down you have to go with. Of course you can rewrite, but the original…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/novels-are-like-paintings-specifically-watercolors-every-stroke-you/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [I write the kinds of novels I like to read, where the setting is rendered with love and care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-george/i-write-the-kinds-of-novels-i-like-to-read-where-the-setting-is/) [Elizabeth George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-george/) > [I won't read novels while writing novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/i-won-t-read-novels-while-writing-novels/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [When I am writing novels I don't read a lot of novels so I try to catch up in-between.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/when-i-am-writing-novels-i-don-t-read-a-lot-of-novels-so-i-try-to/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I strongly believe that the art of the novel works best when the writer identifies with whoever he or she is writing about. Novels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-strongly-believe-that-the-art-of-the-novel-works-best-when-the/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I believe there are two ways of writing novels. One is mine, making a sort of musical comedy without music and ignoring real life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse-2/i-believe-there-are-two-ways-of-writing-novels-one-is-mine-making-a/) [P. G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse-2/) > [I looked at the world of books and just went, Oh my gosh, if I'm writing novels, I'm on the same shelves as Jane…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-looked-at-the-world-of-books-and-just-went-oh-my-gosh-if-i-m/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I'd probably still be a financial journalist now if it weren't for writing novels. Mmm. Fun! I'm much happier writing novels!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/i-d-probably-still-be-a-financial-journalist-now-if-it-weren-t-for/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [Freedom to tell any story I want, with all the imaginary tools of my trade, is why I love writing novels. I love taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjorie-liu/freedom-to-tell-any-story-i-want-with-all-the-imaginary-tools-of-my/) [Marjorie Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjorie-liu/) > [I've got a particular way of writing novels, and that carries over into the way I write comics and games, too. I'm a news…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-traviss/i-ve-got-a-particular-way-of-writing-novels-and-that-carries-over/) [Karen Traviss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-traviss/) > [“The whole world's writing novels, but nobody's reading them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/the-whole-world-s-writing-novels-but-nobody-s-reading-them/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) ## More by Denis Johnson > [“You’ve never felt good. Your suffering protects you. Pain is the ransom you have gladly paid not to be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/you-ve-never-felt-good-your-suffering-protects-you-pain-is-the-ransom/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“He had laid his head back until his scalp had contacted his spine, that far back, and opened his throat, and a sound rose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/he-had-laid-his-head-back-until-his-scalp-had-contacted-his-spine/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“Everything is arranged," John Robertson told me. Thank God." I forgot to mention that we appear to have one small problem," he said. Okay..."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/everything-is-arranged-john-robertson-told-me-thank-god-i-forgot-to/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [Before this moment I'd lived as a mind. Body, heart, soul, intellect, so we care ourselves into parts. But the whole of us, what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/before-this-moment-i-d-lived-as-a-mind-body-heart-soul-intellect-so/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [He got right down in the dark between heartbeats, and rested there. And then he saw that another one wasn't going to come. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/he-got-right-down-in-the-dark-between-heartbeats-and-rested-there-and/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [I’d been staying at the Holiday Inn with my girlfriend, honestly the most beautiful woman I’d even known, for three days under a phony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-d-been-staying-at-the-holiday-inn-with-my-girlfriend-honestly-the/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“All of this while I left lifted by a strange new medium, a strange element--I now tell you that I was newly buoyant in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/all-of-this-while-i-left-lifted-by-a-strange-new-medium-a-strange/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“He didn’t know what country he was in, but he was at home in the universe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/he-didn-t-know-what-country-he-was-in-but-he-was-at-home-in-the/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“There's a dizzying thrill in a philosophy that can only be tested by suicide.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/there-s-a-dizzying-thrill-in-a-philosophy-that-can-only-be-tested-by/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“Who said it? – probably Confucius – “I can’t beat a sculpture from a stone with a sledgehammer; I can’t free the soul of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/who-said-it-probably-confucius-i-can-t-beat-a-sculpture-from-a-stone/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“A bus came. I climbed aboard and sat on the plastic seat while the things of our city turned in the windows like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/a-bus-came-i-climbed-aboard-and-sat-on-the-plastic-seat-while-the/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [I knew every raindrop by its name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-knew-every-raindrop-by-its-name/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“To find the people who've became truly sane, seek among those who've managed to do without sanity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/to-find-the-people-who-ve-became-truly-sane-seek-among-those-who-ve/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“eventually these encounters forced him to acknowledge the reality of fate, and the truth inherent in things of the imagination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/eventually-these-encounters-forced-him-to-acknowledge-the-reality-of/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“It seemed the two held forth on parallel tracks, confident of meeting somewhere in infinity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/it-seemed-the-two-held-forth-on-parallel-tracks-confident-of-meeting/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) [Explore all 183 Denis Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) ## More Boat quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [Fly-fishing for wild trout on quiet waters must be one of the toughest and craziest ways to catch fish ever invented by man, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-voelker/fly-fishing-for-wild-trout-on-quiet-waters-must-be-one-of-the/) [John D. Voelker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-voelker/) > [It was just the sort of yatch you'd expect a rock promoter to have. Mirrored ceilings, marble, Jacuzzis and leopard-skin everything, it made the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-anderson/it-was-just-the-sort-of-yatch-you-d-expect-a-rock-promoter-to-have/) [Pamela Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-anderson/) > [It's a hindrance in trying to get a serious acting role. The minute a producer has a script and my name comes up, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbi-benton/it-s-a-hindrance-in-trying-to-get-a-serious-acting-role-the-minute-a/) [Barbi Benton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbi-benton/) > [Something I like to do a lot is just sit by water when there’s a current and just stare into the water. I don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/something-i-like-to-do-a-lot-is-just-sit-by-water-when-there-s-a/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [The trouble is, you can't properly present something you don't believe in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcguane/the-trouble-is-you-can-t-properly-present-something-you-don-t-believe/) [Thomas McGuane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcguane/) > [You know how this is: if I look at the crystal moon, at the red branch of the slow autumn at my window, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/you-know-how-this-is-if-i-look-at-the-crystal-moon-at-the-red-branch/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [A film is a boat which is always on the point of sinking-it always tends to break up as you go along and drag…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-truffaut/a-film-is-a-boat-which-is-always-on-the-point-of-sinking-it-always/) [Francois Truffaut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-truffaut/) > [I took one guitar lesson, and they wanted me to play 'Mary Had a Little Lamb' or 'Michael Row the Boat Ashore,' and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-nielsen/i-took-one-guitar-lesson-and-they-wanted-me-to-play-mary-had-a-little/) [Rick Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-nielsen/) > [I was 35 years old and in a position to take a shot at whatever I wanted to try. The Air Force said I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-doyle/i-was-35-years-old-and-in-a-position-to-take-a-shot-at-whatever-i/) [Jerry Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-doyle/) > [We wanted a musical number that would capture the exhilaration of being out on a boat as they were and sailing with the stars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-musker/we-wanted-a-musical-number-that-would-capture-the-exhilaration-of/) [John Musker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-musker/) > [I thought I would try my hand at sailing. It was too small and kept sinking, so I decided to try a boat instead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-jolly/i-thought-i-would-try-my-hand-at-sailing-it-was-too-small-and-kept/) [Arthur M. Jolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-jolly/) > [I once went down the Amazon and our boat got charged by Columbian policemen with guns and we all had to get on motorbikes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-skelton/i-once-went-down-the-amazon-and-our-boat-got-charged-by-columbian/) [Helen Skelton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-skelton/) > [Most of the world is covered by water. A fisherman's job is simple: Pick out the best parts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-w-waterman/most-of-the-world-is-covered-by-water-a-fisherman-s-job-is-simple/) Charles W. Waterman Browse all 1,788 Boat quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I really enjoy writing novels. It's like the ocean. You can just build a boat and take off.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Denis Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like-the-ocean-you-can-just-build/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Boat" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like-the-ocean-you-can-just-build/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/denis-johnson-2135_boat_i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like_206789.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/denis-johnson-2135_boat_i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like_206789.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e41/denis-johnson-2135_boat_i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like_206789.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I really enjoy writing novels. It's like the ocean. You can just build a boat and take off.” — Denis Johnson", "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": "Denis Johnson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I really enjoy writing novels. It's...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like-the-ocean-you-can-just-build/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like-the-ocean-you-can-just-build/#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 } } ] } ```