--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A novel is based on evidence, + or -x…" description: "\"A novel is based on evidence, + or -x, the unknown quantity being the temperament of the novelist, and the unknown quantity always modifies the effect ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/e-m-forster-1118_books_a-novel-is-based-on-evidence-or-x-the-un_2795195.png" --- # A novel is based on evidence, + or -x, the unknown… ![“A novel is based on evidence, + or -x, the unknown quantity being the temperament of the novelist, and the unknown quantity always modifies the effect of the evidence, and sometimes transforms it entirely.” quote by E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/e-m-forster-1118_books_a-novel-is-based-on-evidence-or-x-the-un_2795195.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/e-m-forster-1118_books_a-novel-is-based-on-evidence-or-x-the-un_2795195.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/e-m-forster-1118_books_a-novel-is-based-on-evidence-or-x-the-un_2795195.png) > “A novel is based on evidence, + or -x, the unknown quantity being the temperament of the novelist, and the unknown quantity always modifies the effect of the evidence, and sometimes transforms it entirely.” [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A novel’s impact depends on the author’s temperament, which can alter or completely transform the presented evidence. **In simple terms:** Author’s mood shapes how evidence is perceived. Key Takeaway Recognize personal bias in storytelling. Themes literature subjectivity interpretation Mood thoughtful analytical Type literary reflective When to use this quote - writing workshops - critical reading - creative therapy - publishing Key Concepts psychology art theory Questions to Reflect On - How does your mood affect your work? - Can you separate author intent from content? A Different Perspective Temperament can distort truth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Novelist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelist/) [Novelists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelists/) [Temperament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temperament/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I'm writinng my first full-length novel, which is based on a novella I wrote called "The Mad Scientist's Daughter." 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You have to want to do the same thing over and over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-lehrer/i-stopped-performing-because-i-don-t-have-the-temperament-of-a/) [Tom Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-lehrer/) > [When I say that George Eliot has long been my hero, I mean to include those aspects of her thought and temperament that have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/when-i-say-that-george-eliot-has-long-been-my-hero-i-mean-to-include/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [That balance between involvement and detachment is what novelists do. It's the ideal relationship between a novelist and a character, I think, total involvement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-barker/that-balance-between-involvement-and-detachment-is-what-novelists-do/) [Pat Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-barker/) > [The fact is that in this day and age I don't think any novelist can assume that a book will get attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-sittenfeld/the-fact-is-that-in-this-day-and-age-i-don-t-think-any-novelist-can/) [Curtis Sittenfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-sittenfeld/) > [Whether he be an original or a plagiarist, man is the novelist of himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/whether-he-be-an-original-or-a-plagiarist-man-is-the-novelist-of/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [A novelist should make you realize nothing is stable. 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Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-gilbert/) > [Playing with different genres and perspectives and ways of telling stories is one of the perks of being a novelist, but at the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linn-ullmann/playing-with-different-genres-and-perspectives-and-ways-of-telling/) Linn Ullmann > [I am not an academic who happens to have written a novel. I am a novelist who happens to be quite good academically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-am-not-an-academic-who-happens-to-have-written-a-novel-i-am-a/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I'm a novelist. 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Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Ah, but you see, I didn't want to be fair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/ah-but-you-see-i-didn-t-want-to-be-fair/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [The final test for a novel will be our affection for it, as it is the test of our friends, and of anything else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/the-final-test-for-a-novel-will-be-our-affection-for-it-as-it-is-the/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [America is rather like life. You can usually find in it what you look for It will probably be interesting, and it is sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/america-is-rather-like-life-you-can-usually-find-in-it-what-you-look/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [A critic has no right to the narrowness which is the frequent prerogative of the creative artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/a-critic-has-no-right-to-the-narrowness-which-is-the-frequent/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [All men are equal — all men, that is to say, who possess umbrellas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/all-men-are-equal-all-men-that-is-to-say-who-possess-umbrellas/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Before the civil war, Pottibakia was a normal member of the Comity of Nations. She erected tariff walls, broke treaties, persecuted minorities, obstructed at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/before-the-civil-war-pottibakia-was-a-normal-member-of-the-comity-of/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Chess is a forcing house where the fruits of character can ripen more fully than in life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/chess-is-a-forcing-house-where-the-fruits-of-character-can-ripen-more/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [I distrust Great Men... I believe in aristocracy, though... Its members are to be found in all nations and classes, and all through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/i-distrust-great-men-i-believe-in-aristocracy-though-its-members-are/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Liking one person is an extra reason for liking another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/liking-one-person-is-an-extra-reason-for-liking-another/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [We are not concerned with the very poor. They are unthinkable, and only to be approached by the statistician or the poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/we-are-not-concerned-with-the-very-poor-they-are-unthinkable-and-only/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) [Explore all 287 E. M. 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