--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There's an expectation these days that…" description: "\"There's an expectation these days that novels - like any other consumer product - should be made on a production line, with one dropping from the conve..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f7/donna-tartt-391_belts_there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-n_35151.jpg" --- # There's an expectation these days that novels - like any… ![“There's an expectation these days that novels - like any other consumer product - should be made on a production line, with one dropping from the conveyor belt every couple of years.” quote by Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f7/donna-tartt-391_belts_there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-n_35151.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f7/donna-tartt-391_belts_there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-n_35151.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f7/donna-tartt-391_belts_there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-n_35151.jpg) > “There's an expectation these days that novels - like any other consumer product - should be made on a production line, with one dropping from the conveyor belt every couple of years.” [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques the commodification of literature, arguing that treating novels as mass‑produced goods undermines artistic depth and originality. **In simple terms:** Art vs. mass production Key Takeaway Literary quality suffers when treated as a commodity Themes commercialization creativity culture authorship consumerism Mood critical reflective skeptical Type observation critique When to use this quote - publishing industry - bookstores - author contracts - reading habits - literary criticism Key Concepts novel as product production line metaphor artistic integrity Practical Applications - advocating for slower, thoughtful publishing - educating readers on artistic value Questions to Reflect On - How does market pressure affect narrative innovation? - Can a novel retain artistic merit if produced on a schedule? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belts/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Consumers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumers/) [Conveyor Belt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conveyor-belt-438784/) [Couple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/couple/) [Dropping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dropping/) [Dropping Conveyor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dropping-conveyor-438785/) [Expectations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expectations/) [Lines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lines/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Product Production](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/product-production-438783/) [Production](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/production/) [Production Line](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/production-line-318272/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [These days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/these-days/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [Hey, Amy, did you ever want to, like, get on the conveyor belt and see what happened? Like,'Hey don't mind me, I'm just hanging…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-lerangis/hey-amy-did-you-ever-want-to-like-get-on-the-conveyor-belt-and-see/) [Peter Lerangis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-lerangis/) > [I've always put my own money into my own shows because today, if you want to stay in the business, you have to produce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-reynolds/i-ve-always-put-my-own-money-into-my-own-shows-because-today-if-you/) [Debbie Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-reynolds/) > [The kind of event on a conveyor belt that causes a fire occurs in a variety of industrial environments, not uniquely in coal environments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-price/the-kind-of-event-on-a-conveyor-belt-that-causes-a-fire-occurs-in-a/) [Richard Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-price/) > [“Life had a conveyor-belt quality. It went on unpursued and unpursuing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/life-had-a-conveyor-belt-quality-it-went-on-unpursued-and-unpursuing/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Songs are not on a conveyor belt. I'm not chopping them up and putting them out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell/songs-are-not-on-a-conveyor-belt-i-m-not-chopping-them-up-and-putting/) [Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell/) > [The North Sea was supposed to run out in the 1980s. Then in the 1990s. And now production is still on-line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-yergin/the-north-sea-was-supposed-to-run-out-in-the-1980s-then-in-the-1990s/) [Daniel Yergin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-yergin/) > [The social network will be the new production line in a company,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginni-rometty/the-social-network-will-be-the-new-production-line-in-a-company/) [Ginni Rometty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginni-rometty/) > [Because I've been making music and releasing it for so long, I've got that production-line thing in my brain: I can't do anything new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aphex-twin/because-i-ve-been-making-music-and-releasing-it-for-so-long-i-ve-got/) [Aphex Twin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aphex-twin/) > [The customer is the most important part of the production line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-edwards-deming/the-customer-is-the-most-important-part-of-the-production-line/) [W. Edwards Deming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-edwards-deming/) > [“A production line with high levels of model variety is more valuable when combined with an inventory and order processing system that minimizes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-e-porter/a-production-line-with-high-levels-of-model-variety-is-more-valuable/) [Michael E. Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-e-porter/) > [The social network will be the new production line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginni-rometty/the-social-network-will-be-the-new-production-line/) [Ginni Rometty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginni-rometty/) > [At even the youngest age level, football is becoming a factory production line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-james/at-even-the-youngest-age-level-football-is-becoming-a-factory/) [David James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-james/) > [“Take the Toyota assembly line example: it’s not at all obvious that stopping the entire production line for a small defect, incurring a half million dollars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-marshall/take-the-toyota-assembly-line-example-it-s-not-at-all-obvious-that/) [Sebastian Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-marshall/) > [Everything I write is highly personal, but put in such a way that it's not dropping everything in someone's lap. Although sometimes I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-siberry/everything-i-write-is-highly-personal-but-put-in-such-a-way-that-it-s/) [Jane Siberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-siberry/) > [I did not know that the planning for biological and chemical warfare was so widespread in England, and even in France before France fell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholson-baker/i-did-not-know-that-the-planning-for-biological-and-chemical-warfare/) [Nicholson Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholson-baker/) ## More by Donna Tartt > [I hope we're all ready to leave the phenomenal world, and enter into the sublime?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-hope-we-re-all-ready-to-leave-the-phenomenal-world-and-enter-into/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [And I add my own love to the history of people who have loved beautiful things, and looked out for them, and pulled them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-add-my-own-love-to-the-history-of-people-who-have-loved/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [And the flavor of Pippa's kiss--bittersweet and strange--stayed with me all the way back uptown, swaying and sleepy as I sailed home on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-the-flavor-of-pippa-s-kiss-bittersweet-and-strange-stayed-with-me/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“The world won't come to me...so I must go to it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-world-won-t-come-to-me-so-i-must-go-to-it/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“A month or two before, I would have been appalled at the idea of any murder at all. But that Sunday afternoon, as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/a-month-or-two-before-i-would-have-been-appalled-at-the-idea-of-any/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [Well, I think storytellers have always found murder a fascinating device.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/well-i-think-storytellers-have-always-found-murder-a-fascinating/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [Always remember, the person we’re really working for is the person who’s restoring the piece a hundred years from now. He’s the one we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/always-remember-the-person-we-re-really-working-for-is-the-person-who/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“The silence between us was happy and strange, connected by the cord and the icy voices thinly echoing. “You don’t have to talk,” she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-silence-between-us-was-happy-and-strange-connected-by-the-cord/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“It is a terrible thing to learn as a child that one is a being separate from all the world, that no one and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/it-is-a-terrible-thing-to-learn-as-a-child-that-one-is-a-being/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“You didn’t meet many people who moved freely through the world with such a vigorous contempt for it and at the same time such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/you-didn-t-meet-many-people-who-moved-freely-through-the-world-with/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“maybe that’s what’s waiting for us at the end of the journey, a majesty unimaginable until the very moment we find ourselves walking through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/maybe-that-s-what-s-waiting-for-us-at-the-end-of-the-journey-a/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“lights and moods and seasons was to see it a thousand different ways and to keep it shut in the dark—a thing made of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/lights-and-moods-and-seasons-was-to-see-it-a-thousand-different-ways/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [A great sorrow, and one that I am only beginning to understand: we don’t get to choose our own hearts. We can’t make ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/a-great-sorrow-and-one-that-i-am-only-beginning-to-understand-we-don/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“Upon meeting Julian Morrow, one has the impression that he is a man of extraordinary sympathy and warmth. But what you call his 'Asiatic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/upon-meeting-julian-morrow-one-has-the-impression-that-he-is-a-man-of/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“—if a painting really works down in your heart and changes the way you see, and think, and feel, you don’t think, ‘oh, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/if-a-painting-really-works-down-in-your-heart-and-changes-the-way-you/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) [Explore all 590 Donna Tartt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) ## More Belts quotes > [In our society we have hard nerds and soft nerds. The hard nerds are the ones who used to have the slide rules at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-kay/in-our-society-we-have-hard-nerds-and-soft-nerds-the-hard-nerds-are/) [Alan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-kay/) > [The tie's a multi purpose accessory, y'know, belt, school boy, Rambo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-fielding/the-tie-s-a-multi-purpose-accessory-y-know-belt-school-boy-rambo/) [Noel Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-fielding/) > [I find it frustrating when people wear belts with braces. That's an interesting one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olly-murs/i-find-it-frustrating-when-people-wear-belts-with-braces-that-s-an/) [Olly Murs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olly-murs/) > [A lot of the time, if I have samples, I can't tailor a sample. Or, I might have just bought something and I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-palermo/a-lot-of-the-time-if-i-have-samples-i-can-t-tailor-a-sample-or-i/) [Olivia Palermo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-palermo/) > [Yes?' Joe Solomon sounded like someone with far better things to do. 'Is there any homework?' she asked, and the class turned instantly from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-carter/yes-joe-solomon-sounded-like-someone-with-far-better-things-to-do-is/) [Ally Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-carter/) > [What is golden is miles under your belt, miles, miles, miles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/what-is-golden-is-miles-under-your-belt-miles-miles-miles/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) > [I don't just want the belt, I want every one of their heads on a plate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-mcgregor/i-don-t-just-want-the-belt-i-want-every-one-of-their-heads-on-a-plate/) [Conor McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-mcgregor/) > [To pray only when in peril is to use safety belts only in heavy traffic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corrie-ten-boom/to-pray-only-when-in-peril-is-to-use-safety-belts-only-in-heavy/) [Corrie Ten Boom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corrie-ten-boom/) > [In his study of Atlanta over the last 60 years, Kevin Kruse convincingly describes the critical connections between race, Sun Belt suburbanization, the rise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-carter/in-his-study-of-atlanta-over-the-last-60-years-kevin-kruse/) [Dan Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-carter/) > [I have ten marathons under my belt, including four New York races and one Boston.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-mackay/i-have-ten-marathons-under-my-belt-including-four-new-york-races-and/) [Harvey Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-mackay/) > [Microsoft is still not a black belt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-kutaragi/microsoft-is-still-not-a-black-belt/) [Ken Kutaragi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-kutaragi/) > [It makes my skin crawl to think about the violent ways snakes, lizards, alligators and other exotic creatures are raised and killed for boots,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-brook/it-makes-my-skin-crawl-to-think-about-the-violent-ways-snakes-lizards/) [Kelly Brook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-brook/) > [Sorry,” he said. “Let me drop the belt-" “No.” She held on when he would have pulled away. “Don’t. I like it.” Again, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-shalvis/sorry-he-said-let-me-drop-the-belt-no-she-held-on-when-he-would-have/) [Jill Shalvis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-shalvis/) > [How'd we come up with the robe? Was some guy just like, 'Hey, I've got an idea! Why don't we make a coat out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-gaffigan/how-d-we-come-up-with-the-robe-was-some-guy-just-like-hey-i-ve-got-an/) [Jim Gaffigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-gaffigan/) > [Pull in your belt, spend less, and reduce debt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/pull-in-your-belt-spend-less-and-reduce-debt/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) [Browse all 497 Belts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There's an expectation these days that novels - like any other consumer product - should be made on a production line, with one dropping from the conveyor belt every couple of years.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donna Tartt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-novels-like-any-other-consumer/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Belts" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-novels-like-any-other-consumer/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f7/donna-tartt-391_belts_there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-n_35151.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f7/donna-tartt-391_belts_there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-n_35151.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f7/donna-tartt-391_belts_there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-n_35151.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There's an expectation these days that novels - like any other consumer product - should be made on a…” — Donna Tartt", "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": "Donna Tartt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There's an expectation these days that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-novels-like-any-other-consumer/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-novels-like-any-other-consumer/#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 } } ] } ```