--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have just been refining the room in…" description: "\"I have just been refining the room in which I sit, yet I sometimes doubt that a writer should refine or improve his workroom by so much as a dictionary..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4a/e-b-white-1448_chairs_i-have-just-been-refining-the-room-in-wh_768868.png" --- # I have just been refining the room in which I sit, yet I… ![“I have just been refining the room in which I sit, yet I sometimes doubt that a writer should refine or improve his workroom by so much as a dictionary: one thing leads to another and the first thing you know he has a stuffed chair and is fast asleep in it.” quote by E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4a/e-b-white-1448_chairs_i-have-just-been-refining-the-room-in-wh_768868.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4a/e-b-white-1448_chairs_i-have-just-been-refining-the-room-in-wh_768868.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4a/e-b-white-1448_chairs_i-have-just-been-refining-the-room-in-wh_768868.png) > “I have just been refining the room in which I sit, yet I sometimes doubt that a writer should refine or improve his workroom by so much as a dictionary: one thing leads to another and the first thing you know he has a stuffed chair and is fast asleep in it.” [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer’s environment influences creativity, but obsessing over it can distract from the work itself. **In simple terms:** A tidy space helps, but focus matters more. Key Takeaway Balance comfort with productivity. Themes creativity environment focus Mood contemplative thoughtful Type advice reflective When to use this quote - writing sessions - home office setup - studio organization - creative retreats Key Concepts workplace design habit formation Questions to Reflect On - Do you spend more time arranging your space than writing? - How does your environment affect your output? A Different Perspective Too much focus on surroundings may lead to procrastination. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dictionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/) [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [If technique is of no interest to a writer, I doubt that the writer is an artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-moore/if-technique-is-of-no-interest-to-a-writer-i-doubt-that-the-writer-is/) [Marianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-moore/) > [“Self-doubt is every writer’s nemesis. While healthy in moderation, unchecked self-doubt can lead to procrastination, crippling perfectionism, and ultimately failure. If you’re drawn to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-raywood/self-doubt-is-every-writer-s-nemesis-while-healthy-in-moderation/) Will Raywood > [I have more self-doubt than any writer I've ever known… The positive aspect of self-doubt - if you can channel it into useful activity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/i-have-more-self-doubt-than-any-writer-i-ve-ever-known-the-positive/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [The only virtue on which I pride myself is my self-doubt; when a writer loses her self-doubt, the time has come to lay aside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-virtue-on-which-i-pride-myself-is-my-self-doubt-when-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A library is many things. It's a place to go, to get in out of the rain. It's a place to go if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/a-library-is-many-things-it-s-a-place-to-go-to-get-in-out-of-the-rain/) [E. B. 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It is cultivated by refining our capacity to pay attention, intentionally, in the present moment, and then sustaining that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-kabat-zinn/mindfulness-means-moment-to-moment-non-judgmental-awareness-it-is/) [Jon Kabat-Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-kabat-zinn/) > [We embark unhesitatingly on the path, in a direction that is absolutely right and urgent, supported by everyone, in the knowledge that this path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yehudi-menuhin/we-embark-unhesitatingly-on-the-path-in-a-direction-that-is/) [Yehudi Menuhin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yehudi-menuhin/) > [Developing fewer features allows you to conserve development resources and spend more time refining those features that users really need. Fewer features mean fewer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-nielsen/developing-fewer-features-allows-you-to-conserve-development/) [Jakob Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-nielsen/) ## More by E. B. White > [Writing is an act of faith, not a trick of grammar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/writing-is-an-act-of-faith-not-a-trick-of-grammar/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [“To hear, in the short space of one week, a Scottish terrier booed by an audience and President Roosevelt criticized by Charles Lindbergh was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/to-hear-in-the-short-space-of-one-week-a-scottish-terrier-booed-by-an/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [The sea answers all questions, and always in the same way; for when you read in the papers the interminable discussions and the bickering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/the-sea-answers-all-questions-and-always-in-the-same-way-for-when-you/) [E. B. 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White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [The bonus is really one of the great give-aways in business enterprise. It is the annual salve applied to the conscience of the rich…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/the-bonus-is-really-one-of-the-great-give-aways-in-business/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [There's no limit to how complicated things can get, on account of one thing always leading to another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/there-s-no-limit-to-how-complicated-things-can-get-on-account-of-one/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [The critic leaves at curtain fall To find, in starting to review it, He scarcely saw the play at all For starting to review…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/the-critic-leaves-at-curtain-fall-to-find-in-starting-to-review-it-he/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) [Explore all 240 E. B. White quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) ## More Chairs quotes > [“Yes, when I get big and have my own home, no plush chairs and lace curtains for me. And no rubber plants. I'll have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/yes-when-i-get-big-and-have-my-own-home-no-plush-chairs-and-lace/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [I've always thought that the most extraordinary special effect you could do is to buy a child at the moment of its birth, sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-extraordinary-special-effect-you/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-had-three-chairs-in-my-house-one-for-solitude-two-for-friendship/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [He sank into the rocking chair, the same one in which Rebecca had sat during the early days of the house to give embroidery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/he-sank-into-the-rocking-chair-the-same-one-in-which-rebecca-had-sat/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [Forget the noose. 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Good sleep they sought for themselves, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/now-know-i-well-what-people-sought-formerly-above-all-else-when-they/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Keelhaul the poets in the vestry chairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-shapiro/keelhaul-the-poets-in-the-vestry-chairs/) [Karl Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-shapiro/) > [He's earned all his money himself, with his fists. He didn't steal it like the rest of our politicians. And he'll be less tempted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vitali-klitschko/he-s-earned-all-his-money-himself-with-his-fists-he-didn-t-steal-it/) [Vitali Klitschko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vitali-klitschko/) > [Dentists tell you not to pick your teeth with any sharp metal object. 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