--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Good writing is supposed to evoke…" description: "\"“Good writing is supposed to evoke sensation in the reader, not the fact that it’s raining, but the feeling of being rained upon.” The”\" — E. L. Doctorow" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/e-l-doctorow-4627_books_good-writing-is-supposed-to-evoke-sensat_798436.png" --- # Good writing is supposed to evoke sensation in the reader… ![“Good writing is supposed to evoke sensation in the reader, not the fact that it’s raining, but the feeling of being rained upon.” The” quote by E. L. Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/e-l-doctorow-4627_books_good-writing-is-supposed-to-evoke-sensat_798436.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/e-l-doctorow-4627_books_good-writing-is-supposed-to-evoke-sensat_798436.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/e-l-doctorow-4627_books_good-writing-is-supposed-to-evoke-sensat_798436.png) > ““Good writing is supposed to evoke sensation in the reader, not the fact that it’s raining, but the feeling of being rained upon.” The”” [E. L. Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-doctorow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing should create an immersive sensory experience, conveying how an event feels rather than merely stating it. **In simple terms:** Write to make readers feel, not just know. Key Takeaway Focus on evoking feeling. Themes writing sensory detail immersion Mood introspective inspired Type literary instructional When to use this quote - novel writing - creative workshops - editing - teaching writing Key Concepts phenomenology empathy experience Questions to Reflect On - How can you translate a simple fact into a vivid feeling? - What sensory details best convey emotion? A Different Perspective Readers may miss subtle cues if over‑described. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Good writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-writing/) [Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rain/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Whenever I am doing anything else, which is most of the time, even if it is not something like robbing a bank, I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fran-lebowitz/whenever-i-am-doing-anything-else-which-is-most-of-the-time-even-if/) [Fran Lebowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fran-lebowitz/) > [You have to create the space for the possibility of people speaking as they do. 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Looked at it for a moment or two, then added a big red…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-stroked-a-big-red-a-on-top-of-his-paper-looked-at-it-for-a-moment/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Just as a good rain clears the air, a good writing day clears the psyche.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-cameron/just-as-a-good-rain-clears-the-air-a-good-writing-day-clears-the/) [Julia Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-cameron/) > [“Even so, I’m somebody. I’m the Discoverer of Nature. I’m the Argonaut of true sensations. 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L. Doctorow > [Things that appear on the front page of the newspaper as 'fact' are far more dangerous than the games played by a novelist, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-doctorow/things-that-appear-on-the-front-page-of-the-newspaper-as-fact-are-far/) [E. L. Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-doctorow/) > [There are moments when I cannot bear this unremitting consciousness. It knows only itself. Awake, I am in a continuum with my dreams. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-doctorow/there-are-moments-when-i-cannot-bear-this-unremitting-consciousness/) [E. L. Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-doctorow/) > [Most people are quiet in the world, and live in it tentatively, as if it were not their own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-doctorow/most-people-are-quiet-in-the-world-and-live-in-it-tentatively-as-if/) [E. L. 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