--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can be a writer who doesn't read…" description: "\"“You can be a writer who doesn't read everyday. But you're not fooling anyone. It shows, rather embarrassingly, in your work.”\" — Don Roff" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3a/don-roff-15089_books_you-can-be-a-writer-who-doesn-t-read-eve_970614.jpg" --- # You can be a writer who doesn't read everyday. But you're… ![“You can be a writer who doesn't read everyday. But you're not fooling anyone. It shows, rather embarrassingly, in your work.” quote by Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3a/don-roff-15089_books_you-can-be-a-writer-who-doesn-t-read-eve_970614.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3a/don-roff-15089_books_you-can-be-a-writer-who-doesn-t-read-eve_970614.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3a/don-roff-15089_books_you-can-be-a-writer-who-doesn-t-read-eve_970614.jpg) > ““You can be a writer who doesn't read everyday. But you're not fooling anyone. It shows, rather embarrassingly, in your work.”” [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A writer must read daily; otherwise their work reveals the lack. **In simple terms:** Reading daily improves writing. Key Takeaway Read to write well. Themes writing reading skill development Mood thoughtful encouraging Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - fiction writing - editing - creative workshops Key Concepts literary criticism habit formation Questions to Reflect On - How does reading influence your style? - What reading habits boost creativity? A Different Perspective Time constraints may limit reading. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Fool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fool/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-books/) [Reading habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-habits/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writers-on-writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers-on-writing/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [You can be a writer who doesnt read everyday. But youre not fooling anyone. It shows, rather embarrassingly, in your work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/you-can-be-a-writer-who-doesnt-read-everyday-but-youre-not-fooling/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“I read everyday, because reading takes me away, away to a place where nothing is impossible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manoj-arora/i-read-everyday-because-reading-takes-me-away-away-to-a-place-where/) [Manoj Arora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manoj-arora/) > [We know your life sucks, we read about it everyday on Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-know-your-life-sucks-we-read-about-it-everyday-on-facebook/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Write everyday. read everyday. You don't have to be perfect, you have to committed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hamrick/write-everyday-read-everyday-you-don-t-have-to-be-perfect-you-have-to/) John Hamrick > [“if all i have to do to get a smile like that is read your books, then i promise to read one everyday”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-verday/if-all-i-have-to-do-to-get-a-smile-like-that-is-read-your-books-then/) [Jessica Verday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-verday/) > [I keep expectations so embarrassingly low that I broke my contract and went and got a hair-cut.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristin-milioti/i-keep-expectations-so-embarrassingly-low-that-i-broke-my-contract/) [Cristin Milioti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristin-milioti/) > [I'm horrible at remembering names, embarrassingly bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-trammell/i-m-horrible-at-remembering-names-embarrassingly-bad/) [Sam Trammell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-trammell/) > [I am embarrassingly 1920s in style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-gray-gubler/i-am-embarrassingly-1920s-in-style/) [Matthew Gray Gubler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-gray-gubler/) > [“Men are embarrassingly easy to seduce.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/men-are-embarrassingly-easy-to-seduce/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [Text back embarrassingly fast or three hours later. there is no in between.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/text-back-embarrassingly-fast-or-three-hours-later-there-is-no-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“the Starkadders rarely did what was obvious though they were only too embarrassingly ready to do what was natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stella-gibbons/the-starkadders-rarely-did-what-was-obvious-though-they-were-only-too/) [Stella Gibbons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stella-gibbons/) > [The Doctor...is embarrassingly human for an alien.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-moffat/the-doctor-is-embarrassingly-human-for-an-alien/) [Steven Moffat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-moffat/) > [Embarrassingly enough, I often can't remember how I came to write something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/embarrassingly-enough-i-often-can-t-remember-how-i-came-to-write/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I spent a week living as a man. Which was actually, I'm sorry to say, embarrassingly easy for me to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-spent-a-week-living-as-a-man-which-was-actually-i-m-sorry-to-say/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [It is embarrassingly unscientific to speak of anything creating itself from nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-comfort/it-is-embarrassingly-unscientific-to-speak-of-anything-creating/) [Ray Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-comfort/) ## More by Don Roff > [When you print out your manuscript and read it, marking up with a pen, it sometimes feels like a criminal returning to the scene…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/when-you-print-out-your-manuscript-and-read-it-marking-up-with-a-pen/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [A day of bad writing is always better than a day of no writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/a-day-of-bad-writing-is-always-better-than-a-day-of-no-writing/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“Yeah, episodic doesn't work. Your coolest character needs something big and meaningful to do. Otherwise, well, it's just narrative shit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/yeah-episodic-doesn-t-work-your-coolest-character-needs-something-big/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [Nothing's a better cure for writer's block than to eat ice cream right out of the carton.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/nothing-s-a-better-cure-for-writer-s-block-than-to-eat-ice-cream/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“I don't use big words to show off because it's ostentatious.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/i-don-t-use-big-words-to-show-off-because-it-s-ostentatious/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“If you write a kid's book only for kids, then you have failed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/if-you-write-a-kid-s-book-only-for-kids-then-you-have-failed/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“Creativity and intelligence, rather than violence, are the best problem solvers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/creativity-and-intelligence-rather-than-violence-are-the-best-problem/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [The recipe for great art has always been misery and a good bowel movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/the-recipe-for-great-art-has-always-been-misery-and-a-good-bowel/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“If you don't love what you're writing, stop right now: it's not worth your time and certainly not the reader's.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/if-you-don-t-love-what-you-re-writing-stop-right-now-it-s-not-worth/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“Writing is dreaming with your eyes open — and your heart on fire.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/writing-is-dreaming-with-your-eyes-open-and-your-heart-on-fire/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“There was talk of the Centaur being moved into the elephant cages to make room for a banjo-picking Minotaur. Surrendering his meager furnishings to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/there-was-talk-of-the-centaur-being-moved-into-the-elephant-cages-to/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [Write about the thing that scares you most or your most private confession and you'll never have a problem coming up with decent fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/write-about-the-thing-that-scares-you-most-or-your-most-private/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [But people in a small town tend to do a lot of talking, even when they don’t know what they’re talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/but-people-in-a-small-town-tend-to-do-a-lot-of-talking-even-when-they/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“You're never as good a writer as you think you are, and you're never as bad. Just keep reading and writing, writing, writing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/you-re-never-as-good-a-writer-as-you-think-you-are-and-you-re-never/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) > [“Kindness, motherfucker, kindness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-roff/kindness-motherfucker-kindness/) [Don Roff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) [Explore all 44 Don Roff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-roff/) ## More Books 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/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. 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/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. 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": "“You can be a writer who doesn't read everyday. But you're not fooling anyone. 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