--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As for 'story' I never yet did enjoy a…" description: "\"As for 'story' I never yet did enjoy a novel or play in which someone didn't tell me afterward that there was something wrong with the story, so that's..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/e-m-forster-1118_books_as-for-story-i-never-yet-did-enjoy-a-nov_1226204.png" --- # As for 'story' I never yet did enjoy a novel or play in… ![“As for 'story' I never yet did enjoy a novel or play in which someone didn't tell me afterward that there was something wrong with the story, so that's going to be no drawback as far as I'm concerned. "Good Lord, why am I so bored" "I know; it must be the plot developing harmoniously." So I often…” quote by E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/e-m-forster-1118_books_as-for-story-i-never-yet-did-enjoy-a-nov_1226204.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/e-m-forster-1118_books_as-for-story-i-never-yet-did-enjoy-a-nov_1226204.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/e-m-forster-1118_books_as-for-story-i-never-yet-did-enjoy-a-nov_1226204.png) > “As for 'story' I never yet did enjoy a novel or play in which someone didn't tell me afterward that there was something wrong with the story, so that's going to be no drawback as far as I'm concerned. "Good Lord, why am I so bored" "I know; it must be the plot developing harmoniously." So I often reply to myself, and there rises before me my special nightmare that of the writer as craftsman, natty and deft.” [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 story should engage the reader, avoiding boredom; the plot must develop smoothly to keep interest. **In simple terms:** Stories need engaging, smoothly developing plots. Key Takeaway Focus on plot pacing and intrigue. Themes literature engagement plot Mood inquisitive critical Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - writing workshops - novel drafting - editing process Key Concepts narrative structure reader response Questions to Reflect On - What techniques keep a plot both smooth and compelling? - How do you test if a story is boring? A Different Perspective Complex plots can become confusing if not clear. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Bored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bored/) [Craftsman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/craftsman/) [Lord](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lord/) [Nightmare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nightmare/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“Write about us,” Robinson urged. “Tell our story.” And I did it; I told our story. You hold it in your hands.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/write-about-us-robinson-urged-tell-our-story-and-i-did-it-i-told-our/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [“The story did not end at the tree. For you and your people, that is where the story begins.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-black/the-story-did-not-end-at-the-tree-for-you-and-your-people-that-is/) [Chuck Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-black/) > [“We each have a story. They did this to us. There was no outside aggressor. They wanted an Apocalypse. They wanted the end. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianna-baggott/we-each-have-a-story-they-did-this-to-us-there-was-no-outside/) [Julianna Baggott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianna-baggott/) > [I find interesting characters or lessons that resonate with people and sometimes I write about them in the sports pages, sometimes I write them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/i-find-interesting-characters-or-lessons-that-resonate-with-people/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [When I write a novel I put into play all the information inside me. It might be Japanese information or it might be Western;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-i-write-a-novel-i-put-into-play-all-the-information-inside-me-it/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Nothing is more interesting in a novel or a play than an affair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/nothing-is-more-interesting-in-a-novel-or-a-play-than-an-affair/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [The baseline character in a lot of Western literature is a man. So we, as women, do a lot of suspending of our disbelief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtney-a-kemp/the-baseline-character-in-a-lot-of-western-literature-is-a-man-so-we/) [Courtney A. Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courtney-a-kemp/) > [The critic lives at second hand. He writes about. The poem, the novel, or the play must be given to him; criticism exists by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-steiner/the-critic-lives-at-second-hand-he-writes-about-the-poem-the-novel-or/) [George Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-steiner/) > [In a general sense, to convert any short story, novel, play, or opera into a movie, you have to re-rig it. Even though they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-payne/in-a-general-sense-to-convert-any-short-story-novel-play-or-opera/) [Alexander Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-payne/) > [A novel is not a play. A novel takes one reader at a time into its confidence. It can be shockingly personal. Private, even.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/a-novel-is-not-a-play-a-novel-takes-one-reader-at-a-time-into-its/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [I'm so bored with it all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/i-m-so-bored-with-it-all/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [I worked in Bhs, but I was only there for a couple of weeks before I got fired because I needed the Saturday off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-page/i-worked-in-bhs-but-i-was-only-there-for-a-couple-of-weeks-before-i/) [Joanna Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-page/) > [The real question is why are millions of people so unhappy, so bored, so unfulfilled, that they are willing to drink, snort, inject or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-landers/the-real-question-is-why-are-millions-of-people-so-unhappy-so-bored/) [Ann Landers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-landers/) > [I loathed school. I don't have an academic mind, and besides I was so bored by my teachers! How teachers can take a child's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hurt/i-loathed-school-i-don-t-have-an-academic-mind-and-besides-i-was-so/) [John Hurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hurt/) > [There are times when I'm so bored with being healthy and organic that I crave sugar and additives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-mccutcheon/there-are-times-when-i-m-so-bored-with-being-healthy-and-organic-that/) [Martine McCutcheon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-mccutcheon/) ## More by E. M. Forster > [Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/do-not-be-proud-of-your-inconsistency-it-is-a-pity-it-is-a-pity-that/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Reverence is fatal to literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/reverence-is-fatal-to-literature/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [This element of surprise or mystery - the detective element as it is sometimes rather emptily called - is of great importance in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/this-element-of-surprise-or-mystery-the-detective-element-as-it-is/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [It is so difficult - at least, I find it difficult - to understand people who speak the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/it-is-so-difficult-at-least-i-find-it-difficult-to-understand-people/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Railway termini are our gates to the glorious and the unknown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/railway-termini-are-our-gates-to-the-glorious-and-the-unknown/) [E. M. 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. Forster quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As for 'story' I never yet did enjoy a novel or play in which someone didn't tell me afterward that there was something wrong with the story, so that's going to be no drawback as far as I'm concerned. \"Good Lord, why am I so bored\" \"I know; it must be the plot developing harmoniously.\" So I often reply to myself, and there rises before me my special nightmare that of the writer as craftsman, natty and deft.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "E. M. 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