--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: have a much harder time writing stories…" description: "\"have a much harder time writing stories than novels. I need the expansiveness of a novel and the propulsive energy it provides. When I think about scen..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/edan-lepucki-20626_books_have-a-much-harder-time-writing-stories_374015.jpg" --- # have a much harder time writing stories than novels. I… ![“have a much harder time writing stories than novels. I need the expansiveness of a novel and the propulsive energy it provides. When I think about scene - and when I teach scene writing - I'm thinking about questions. What questions are raised by a scene? What questions are answered? What…” quote by Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/edan-lepucki-20626_books_have-a-much-harder-time-writing-stories_374015.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/edan-lepucki-20626_books_have-a-much-harder-time-writing-stories_374015.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a02/edan-lepucki-20626_books_have-a-much-harder-time-writing-stories_374015.jpg) > “have a much harder time writing stories than novels. I need the expansiveness of a novel and the propulsive energy it provides. When I think about scene - and when I teach scene writing - I'm thinking about questions. What questions are raised by a scene? What questions are answered? What questions persist from scene to scene to scene?” [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author struggles to write stories with the depth and drive of a novel, focusing on how scenes raise, answer, and carry forward questions. **In simple terms:** Stories need novel‑like depth and momentum; scenes should pose and resolve questions. Key Takeaway Use scenes to build narrative momentum and thematic depth. Themes writing scene construction narrative depth Mood reflective analytical Type instructional inspirational When to use this quote - novel writing - screenwriting - creative workshops - story outlining Key Concepts question-driven storytelling propulsive energy novelistic scope Questions to Reflect On - How can a single scene encapsulate a novel’s scope? - What questions should a scene leave unanswered? A Different Perspective Scenes alone may not sustain a full narrative without broader structure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy/) [Expansiveness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expansiveness/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-stories/) ## Related quotes > [“Art is not a horse race. Literature is not the Olympics. The hell with The Great American Novel. We have all the great novels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/art-is-not-a-horse-race-literature-is-not-the-olympics-the-hell-with/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [In the end I write the novels I need to write when I need to write them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-erickson/in-the-end-i-write-the-novels-i-need-to-write-when-i-need-to-write/) [Steve Erickson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-erickson/) > [Novels need readers of a certain kind, people who are patient and enjoy immersing themselves in another perspective for uninterrupted stretches of time. Reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zia-haider-rahman/novels-need-readers-of-a-certain-kind-people-who-are-patient-and/) [Zia Haider Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zia-haider-rahman/) > [ I thought of the scene while writing scenes with Rebecca \[Hall\] and wrote it like an opening montage of showing where someone works. If… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-holofcener/i-thought-of-the-scene-while-writing-scenes-with-rebecca-hall-and/) [Nicole Holofcener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-holofcener/) > [Because the writer must be a participant in the scene, while he's writing it — or at least taping it, or even sketching it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/because-the-writer-must-be-a-participant-in-the-scene-while-he-s/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [If you give the actors a problem 'I'm not getting something out of the scene' and it's the writing, we just don't have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-singer/if-you-give-the-actors-a-problem-i-m-not-getting-something-out-of-the/) [Bryan Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-singer/) > [Any good director creates a playground. That's what they do. They hire the right actor, open the door and let them play because stuff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-landau/any-good-director-creates-a-playground-that-s-what-they-do-they-hire/) [Martin Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-landau/) > [...a story should be like a roller coaster. That is to say before writing a really cruel scene, I have to lift the people's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryukishi07/a-story-should-be-like-a-roller-coaster-that-is-to-say-before-writing/) [Ryukishi07](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryukishi07/) > [Now, if I think a scene should go a certain way and it goes another, I'm able to go that new way with ease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-sizemore/now-if-i-think-a-scene-should-go-a-certain-way-and-it-goes-another-i/) [Tom Sizemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-sizemore/) > [“It was the usual noontime university scene, but as I sat watching it with renewed attention, I became aware of a certain fact. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/it-was-the-usual-noontime-university-scene-but-as-i-sat-watching-it-2/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [When I look back, I think I could have done this scene or that better. I am not satisfied with my work at all.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sridevi/when-i-look-back-i-think-i-could-have-done-this-scene-or-that-better/) [Sridevi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sridevi/) > [I like hearing from everybody and not just my co-screenwriters or producers. For example, while on set, I find it valuable to turn to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-baker/i-like-hearing-from-everybody-and-not-just-my-co-screenwriters-or/) [Sean Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-baker/) > [I also think within the scene, a specific scene - if I were to play a part that I played 10 years ago now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-gyllenhaal/i-also-think-within-the-scene-a-specific-scene-if-i-were-to-play-a/) [Jake Gyllenhaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-gyllenhaal/) > [I personally think that all the scene that you see, love scene, is pretty real, almost 100 percent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-wiseau/i-personally-think-that-all-the-scene-that-you-see-love-scene-is/) [Tommy Wiseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-wiseau/) > [When I'm on set, I don't really think about what an audience is going to think about a scene. I'm just thinking about how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-holland/when-i-m-on-set-i-don-t-really-think-about-what-an-audience-is-going/) [Tom Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-holland/) ## More by Edan Lepucki > [ I am glad it's \[California novel\] resonated with people because, for me, most apocalyptic novels aren't scary, because they feel so very far off. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/i-am-glad-it-s-california-novel-resonated-with-people-because-for-me/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [ The messiness \[in my books\] is nothing like an Atwood novel. For me, the deeper subjects are secrets versus intimacy, and how both beget… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/the-messiness-in-my-books-is-nothing-like-an-atwood-novel-for-me-the/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [It's a bit scary to see my book come true: the recent (if minor) LA earthquakes, Hurricane Sandy, the Boston bomber, and so on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/it-s-a-bit-scary-to-see-my-book-come-true-the-recent-if-minor-la/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [“The thing Lady didn't get, or the thing she'd forgotten, was that being a child was painful too. She was so wrapped up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/the-thing-lady-didn-t-get-or-the-thing-she-d-forgotten-was-that-being/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [California seemed to me to be all about secrets and the need for safety. And this leads to this thematic messiness I'm still trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/california-seemed-to-me-to-be-all-about-secrets-and-the-need-for/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [“Girls who want to be warriors can't afford to be so careless. And: Girls will bleed, and they will cry.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/girls-who-want-to-be-warriors-can-t-afford-to-be-so-careless-and/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [All crises, once averted, become jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/all-crises-once-averted-become-jokes/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [“I'm married. And pregnant.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/i-m-married-and-pregnant/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [“The jugness of the jug" was how he explained Heidegger to Cal, as if that explained anything at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/the-jugness-of-the-jug-was-how-he-explained-heidegger-to-cal-as-if/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [“With a single refusal, Zachary plucked the apathy off of me like a petal from a flower.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/with-a-single-refusal-zachary-plucked-the-apathy-off-of-me-like-a/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [“There is a moment, when a woman’s foolishness slips into delusion. The former is forgivable, the latter isn’t. You will never live it down.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/there-is-a-moment-when-a-woman-s-foolishness-slips-into-delusion-the/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [I tossed off a mention of the pirates early on. And they became integral to the backstory. Sometimes now I imagine them in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/i-tossed-off-a-mention-of-the-pirates-early-on-and-they-became/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [At Ucross I learned that I am capable of focusing deeply for long periods of time. I love to write. I don't think I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/at-ucross-i-learned-that-i-am-capable-of-focusing-deeply-for-long/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [I suppose that it's my impulse to mine, as a writer, these scary parts of ourselves and the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/i-suppose-that-it-s-my-impulse-to-mine-as-a-writer-these-scary-parts/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) > [“I imagined swinging from the punching bag of his uvula.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edan-lepucki/i-imagined-swinging-from-the-punching-bag-of-his-uvula/) [Edan Lepucki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) [Explore all 30 Edan Lepucki quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edan-lepucki/) ## 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": "have a much harder time writing stories than novels. I need the expansiveness of a novel and the propulsive energy it provides. When I think about scene - and when I teach scene writing - I'm thinking about questions. What questions are raised by a scene? What questions are answered? 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