--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The point of a story is never about the…" description: "\"“The point of a story is never about the ending, remember. It’s about your character getting”\" — Donald Miller" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/donald-miller-607_ending_the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the_2330167.png" --- # The point of a story is never about the ending, remember… ![“The point of a story is never about the ending, remember. It’s about your character getting” quote by Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/donald-miller-607_ending_the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the_2330167.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/donald-miller-607_ending_the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the_2330167.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/donald-miller-607_ending_the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the_2330167.png) > ““The point of a story is never about the ending, remember. It’s about your character getting”” [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories matter for how they reveal and develop characters, not just for plot resolution. **In simple terms:** Stories focus on character growth. Key Takeaway Invest in character development. Themes storytelling character growth Mood reflective inspirational Type narrative philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - personal storytelling - film scripts Key Concepts Narrative arc character development Questions to Reflect On - How does your protagonist change? - What does the ending reveal about them? A Different Perspective Characters can be static if not challenged. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“The point of a story is never about the ending, remember. It’s about your character getting molded in the hard work of the middle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the-ending-remember-it-s-about-2/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [If the point of life is the same as the point of a story, the point of life is character transformation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/if-the-point-of-life-is-the-same-as-the-point-of-a-story-the-point-of-2/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [In this deeply nuanced portrait of an American family, Bret Anthony Johnston fearlessly explores the truth behind a mythic happy ending. In Remember Me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/in-this-deeply-nuanced-portrait-of-an-american-family-bret-anthony/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [If the point of life is the same as the point of a story, the point of life is character transformation. If I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/if-the-point-of-life-is-the-same-as-the-point-of-a-story-the-point-of/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [Regardless of anything, I'm gonna write my own story and my own ending.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-undertaker/regardless-of-anything-i-m-gonna-write-my-own-story-and-my-own-ending/) [The Undertaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-undertaker/) > [“Write me a story where there is no ending, Kitt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-ross/write-me-a-story-where-there-is-no-ending-kitt/) [Rebecca Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-ross/) > [I have no thoughs about it anymore its the same story with the same ending all the time nothing ever changes no reasons to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-spates/i-have-no-thoughs-about-it-anymore-its-the-same-story-with-the-same/) Gabrielle Spates > [The most important part of a story is the ending. No one reads a book to get to the middle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-spillane/the-most-important-part-of-a-story-is-the-ending-no-one-reads-a-book/) [Mickey Spillane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-spillane/) > [“why our story have no ending?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shivi/why-our-story-have-no-ending/) Shivi > [“Every story has an ending. You can’t stop after one chapter just because you don’t know how it ends”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-reed/every-story-has-an-ending-you-can-t-stop-after-one-chapter-just/) [J.c. Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-reed/) > [We don't know how much we are capable of loving until the people we love are being taken away, until a beautiful story is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/we-don-t-know-how-much-we-are-capable-of-loving-until-the-people-we/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [Remember that your character is the sum total of your habits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/remember-that-your-character-is-the-sum-total-of-your-habits/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [Always will we remember the character of the onslaught against us. No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/always-will-we-remember-the-character-of-the-onslaught-against-us-no/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [“It’s because I want you to remember that character counts. You can be the best there ever was at something, but if you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-fabry/it-s-because-i-want-you-to-remember-that-character-counts-you-can-be/) [Chris Fabry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-fabry/) > [I can't remember. . . . My character was sort of unconscious for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zac-efron/i-can-t-remember-my-character-was-sort-of-unconscious-for-it/) [Zac Efron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zac-efron/) ## More by Donald Miller > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [I think each of us can, through our writing, discover our super power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/i-think-each-of-us-can-through-our-writing-discover-our-super-power/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [If you don't feel free and be yourself, you can't connect. Find people who accept your quirks. They'll heal your soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/if-you-don-t-feel-free-and-be-yourself-you-can-t-connect-find-people/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [And so I have come to understand that strength, inner strength, comes from receiving love as much as it comes from giving it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/and-so-i-have-come-to-understand-that-strength-inner-strength-comes/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“Humans, as a species, are constantly, and in every way, comparing themselves to one another, which, given the brief nature of their existence, seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/humans-as-a-species-are-constantly-and-in-every-way-comparing/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“alone, lonely, and loneliness are three of the most powerful words in the English language... Those words say that we are human; they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/alone-lonely-and-loneliness-are-three-of-the-most-powerful-words-in/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“It isn't about what you don't get done; it's about what you do get done.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/it-isn-t-about-what-you-don-t-get-done-it-s-about-what-you-do-get-done/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“Most Christians have enormous respect for the space and freedom of others, it is only that they have found a joy in Jesus they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/most-christians-have-enormous-respect-for-the-space-and-freedom-of/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“The soul needs to interact with other people to be healthy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-soul-needs-to-interact-with-other-people-to-be-healthy/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [Don't let go of your strength or your beauty. It was given to you by God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/don-t-let-go-of-your-strength-or-your-beauty-it-was-given-to-you-by/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [There's a lot of letters, and a lot of people come say "hi" at book signings, but I'm amazed at how normal everybody is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-a-lot-of-letters-and-a-lot-of-people-come-say-hi-at-book/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [I am something of a recluse by nature. I am that cordless screwdriver that has to charge for twenty hours to earn ten minutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/i-am-something-of-a-recluse-by-nature-i-am-that-cordless-screwdriver/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [The most important thing that happens within Christian spirituality is when a person falls in love with Jesus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-most-important-thing-that-happens-within-christian-spirituality/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [Every day you live is a page. Every year, a chapter. Your life, a book. What is it about?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/every-day-you-live-is-a-page-every-year-a-chapter-your-life-a-book/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“And that’s the first time I realized that the idea a character is what he does makes as much sense in life as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/and-that-s-the-first-time-i-realized-that-the-idea-a-character-is/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) [Explore all 448 Donald Miller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) ## More Ending quotes > [So many times in television, you get cancelled arbitrarily as a result of your ratings in the off season, and you don't have an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-wyle/so-many-times-in-television-you-get-cancelled-arbitrarily-as-a-result/) [Noah Wyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-wyle/) > [So ,you're thinking it's ending but it's only just began.Your whole life is there right-right in front of you! Life's a story that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unkown/so-you-re-thinking-it-s-ending-but-it-s-only-just-began-your-whole/) Unkown > [You could be the leaf that never falls from the tree you could be the sun that never leaves the sky this might be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/you-could-be-the-leaf-that-never-falls-from-the-tree-you-could-be-the/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [The happy ending is hardly important, though we may be glad its there. The real joy is knowing that if you felt the trouble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynda-barry/the-happy-ending-is-hardly-important-though-we-may-be-glad-its-there/) [Lynda Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynda-barry/) > [It doesn't matter to me if it has a surprise ending or not. I usually go for the material or the project.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-wahlberg/it-doesn-t-matter-to-me-if-it-has-a-surprise-ending-or-not-i-usually/) [Donnie Wahlberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-wahlberg/) > [Business, much like life, is not a movie, and not everyone gets to have a storybook ending.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/om-malik/business-much-like-life-is-not-a-movie-and-not-everyone-gets-to-have/) [Om Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/om-malik/) > [ Harvey \[Weinstein\] didn't want to release \[MY SON THE FANATIC\]; he held it for two years because he wanted a happy ending, although I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanif-kureishi/harvey-weinstein-didn-t-want-to-release-my-son-the-fanatic-he-held-it/) [Hanif Kureishi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanif-kureishi/) > [Pagan Romans started their midwinter celebrations with the feast of Saturnalia on 17 December, ending them with a new year festival, the Kalendae Januariae,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-roberts/pagan-romans-started-their-midwinter-celebrations-with-the-feast-of/) [Alice Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-roberts/) > [Maybe my movie isn't over, I say, because sometimes moviemakers trick the audience with a false bad ending, and just when you think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/maybe-my-movie-isn-t-over-i-say-because-sometimes-moviemakers-trick/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [I loathe people who say, 'I always read the ending of the book first.' That really irritates me, It's like someone coming to dinner,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-loathe-people-who-say-i-always-read-the-ending-of-the-book-first/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Friendship doesn't has ending...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/friendship-doesn-t-has-ending/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In 2010, Republicans took control of politics in Alabama by advocating for increased transparency and an end to government corruption, but instead of ending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-crumpton/in-2010-republicans-took-control-of-politics-in-alabama-by-advocating/) [Ron Crumpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-crumpton/) > [Yesterday brought the beginning, tomorrow brings the end, and somewhere in the middle we became the best of friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/yesterday-brought-the-beginning-tomorrow-brings-the-end-and-somewhere/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Break ups arent always meant for make ups. Sometimes relationships end in order for you to wake up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nix-mae/break-ups-arent-always-meant-for-make-ups-sometimes-relationships-end/) [Nix Mae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nix-mae/) > [Everything we do really is just a little marker on the long road to death. And sometimes that’s overwhelmingly depressing to me, and sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joss-whedon/everything-we-do-really-is-just-a-little-marker-on-the-long-road-to/) [Joss Whedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joss-whedon/) Browse all 1,316 Ending quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The point of a story is never about the ending, remember. It’s about your character getting”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donald Miller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the-ending-remember-it-s-about/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ending" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the-ending-remember-it-s-about/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/donald-miller-607_ending_the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the_2330167.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/donald-miller-607_ending_the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the_2330167.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b6/donald-miller-607_ending_the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the_2330167.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The point of a story is never about the ending, remember. It’s about your character getting” — Donald Miller", "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": "Donald Miller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The point of a story is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the-ending-remember-it-s-about/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/the-point-of-a-story-is-never-about-the-ending-remember-it-s-about/#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 } } ] } ```