--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For me to write I have to be, a, alone…" description: "\"For me to write I have to be, a, alone, and b, know that nobody is going to question me. I write the way a thief steals; it's a little covert.\" — Edna ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c4/edna-o-brien-2155_covert_for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and_1237504.png" --- # For me to write I have to be, a, alone, and b, know that… ![“For me to write I have to be, a, alone, and b, know that nobody is going to question me. I write the way a thief steals; it's a little covert.” quote by Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c4/edna-o-brien-2155_covert_for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and_1237504.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c4/edna-o-brien-2155_covert_for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and_1237504.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c4/edna-o-brien-2155_covert_for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and_1237504.png) > “For me to write I have to be, a, alone, and b, know that nobody is going to question me. I write the way a thief steals; it's a little covert.” [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing requires solitude and freedom from judgment, allowing covert, honest expression. **In simple terms:** Writing needs alone time and no criticism. Key Takeaway Seek solitude to write truthfully. Themes creativity solitude authenticity Mood introspective determined Type literary personal When to use this quote - writing retreats - personal journaling - creative workshops Key Concepts self‑expression privacy artistic freedom Questions to Reflect On - How does solitude shape your voice? - What risks arise from avoiding critique? A Different Perspective Isolation may limit collaboration and feedback. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Covert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covert/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Stealing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stealing/) [Steals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/steals/) [Steals Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/steals-little-1422448/) [Thief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thief/) [Thieves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thieves/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write/) [Write Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-know-339415/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [He who steals a little steals with the same wish as he who steals much, but with less power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/he-who-steals-a-little-steals-with-the-same-wish-as-he-who-steals/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Give me a man who steals a little and I can make money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-giancana/give-me-a-man-who-steals-a-little-and-i-can-make-money/) [Sam Giancana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-giancana/) > [Anger is a thief who steals away the nice moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lunden/anger-is-a-thief-who-steals-away-the-nice-moments/) [Joan Lunden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lunden/) > [The thief you must fear the most is not the one who steals mere things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-marie-macdonald/the-thief-you-must-fear-the-most-is-not-the-one-who-steals-mere-things/) [Ann-Marie MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-marie-macdonald/) > [When someone steals another's clothes, we call them a thief. Should we not give the same name to one who could clothe the naked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-someone-steals-another-s-clothes-we-call-them-a-thief-should-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The robbd that smiles, steals something from the thief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/othello/the-robbd-that-smiles-steals-something-from-the-thief/) [Othello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/othello/) > [Every time thief steals, he steals from his own peace, from his own honour! No man is as poor as a rich thief!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/every-time-thief-steals-he-steals-from-his-own-peace-from-his-own/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The drawback of stealing a thing, is that one never knows how wonderful the thing that one steals is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-drawback-of-stealing-a-thing-is-that-one-never-knows-how/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [When someone steals a person's clothes, we call him a thief. Should we not also give the same name to the one who could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-basil/when-someone-steals-a-person-s-clothes-we-call-him-a-thief-should-we/) [Saint Basil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-basil/) > [“The Ego, The Thief that Steals Happiness from Our Hearts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-figueroa-otero/the-ego-the-thief-that-steals-happiness-from-our-hearts/) [Ivan Figueroa-Otero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-figueroa-otero/) > [A thief believes everybody steals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-thief-believes-everybody-steals/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Why does a steward steal? He steals because he's not sure he'll always remain with his master and wants to make his future secure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/why-does-a-steward-steal-he-steals-because-he-s-not-sure-he-ll-always/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [Everyone steals in commerce and industry. I've stolen a lot, myself. But I know how to steal! They don't know how to steal!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/everyone-steals-in-commerce-and-industry-i-ve-stolen-a-lot-myself-but/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [Everyone steals from something or someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-dickinson/everyone-steals-from-something-or-someone/) [Janice Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-dickinson/) > [The robbed that smiles, steals something from the thief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/the-robbed-that-smiles-steals-something-from-the-thief/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) ## More by Edna O'Brien > [... a country encapsulates our childhood and those lanes, byres, fields, flowers, insects, suns, moons and stars are forever reoccurring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/a-country-encapsulates-our-childhood-and-those-lanes-byres-fields/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [You have to be lonely to be a writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/you-have-to-be-lonely-to-be-a-writer/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [I crossed the room, and what you did was to feel my hair over and over again and in different ways, touch it, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/i-crossed-the-room-and-what-you-did-was-to-feel-my-hair-over-and-over/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [In our deepest moments we say the most inadequate things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/in-our-deepest-moments-we-say-the-most-inadequate-things/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [We hide the truer part of ourselves when we love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/we-hide-the-truer-part-of-ourselves-when-we-love/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [The vote means nothing to women. We should be armed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/the-vote-means-nothing-to-women-we-should-be-armed/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [Movie people are possessed by demons, but a very low form of demons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/movie-people-are-possessed-by-demons-but-a-very-low-form-of-demons/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [Ordinary life bypassed me, but I also bypassed it. It couldn't have been any other way.Conventional life and conventional people are not for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/ordinary-life-bypassed-me-but-i-also-bypassed-it-it-couldn-t-have/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [History is said to be written by the victors. Fiction, by contrast, is largely the work of injured bystanders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/history-is-said-to-be-written-by-the-victors-fiction-by-contrast-is/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [“A healer! The beauty of the word a balm. In a mounting astonishment she hears how this man heals with his own blood, pricks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/a-healer-the-beauty-of-the-word-a-balm-in-a-mounting-astonishment-she/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [“If I could feel like myself I’d thank God but I don’t feel and never will.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/if-i-could-feel-like-myself-i-d-thank-god-but-i-don-t-feel-and-never/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [...people liking you or not liking you is an accident and is to do with them and not you. That goes for love too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/people-liking-you-or-not-liking-you-is-an-accident-and-is-to-do-with/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [“tears running down her cheeks and her nose, tears from the cold and the prospect of being absent for weeks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/tears-running-down-her-cheeks-and-her-nose-tears-from-the-cold-and/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [“laughter filling that end of the ward, overflowing, one bringing a chair for Eleanora, another a cup of coffee, marveling that at long last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/laughter-filling-that-end-of-the-ward-overflowing-one-bringing-a/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [“Dilly reckons it would be difficult to thread those needles, the eyes so small, especially with her cataracts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/dilly-reckons-it-would-be-difficult-to-thread-those-needles-the-eyes/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) [Explore all 182 Edna O'Brien quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) ## More Covert quotes > [I think we're probably only about halfway through the number of revelations. I'm pretty certain there will be quite detailed stuff on other uses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-a-watson/i-think-we-re-probably-only-about-halfway-through-the-number-of/) [Tom A. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-a-watson/) > [ We have the ability to take him \[President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez\] out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-robertson/we-have-the-ability-to-take-him-president-of-venezuela-hugo-chavez/) [Pat Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-robertson/) > [“Dr. Stern’s explanation of how to identify this kind of covert emotional control and abuse, and how to resist it, is a very important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-stern/dr-stern-s-explanation-of-how-to-identify-this-kind-of-covert/) [Robin Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-stern/) > [Covert Operations Report At approximately 0900 hours on Saturday, October 14, Operative Morgan was given a stern lecture by Agent Townsend, a tracking device…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-carter/covert-operations-report-at-approximately-0900-hours-on-saturday/) [Ally Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-carter/) > [When two men of science disagree, they do not invoke the secular arm; they wait for further evidence to decide the issue, because, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/when-two-men-of-science-disagree-they-do-not-invoke-the-secular-arm/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [I think it's something that the citizenry needs to be vigilant about - participating in democracy, and that includes issues like what's going on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-damon/i-think-it-s-something-that-the-citizenry-needs-to-be-vigilant-about/) [Matt Damon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-damon/) > [No one hid their interest when I walked into the room. I'm not sure if it was the news about Boo or my general…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-johnson/no-one-hid-their-interest-when-i-walked-into-the-room-i-m-not-sure-if/) [Maureen Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-johnson/) > [“Hidden in dreams are arts that haven’t been crafted, and songs that haven’t been chanted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/hidden-in-dreams-are-arts-that-haven-t-been-crafted-and-songs-that/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [We care not how many see us in choler, when we rave and bluster, and make as much noise and bustle as we can;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-savage-landor/we-care-not-how-many-see-us-in-choler-when-we-rave-and-bluster-and/) [Walter Savage Landor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-savage-landor/) > [ To give \[the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba\] even covert support is on a par with the hypocrisy and cynicism for which the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/to-give-the-bay-of-pigs-invasion-of-cuba-even-covert-support-is-on-a/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [“Racist intentions—not policies—became covert after the 1960s.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/racist-intentions-not-policies-became-covert-after-the-1960s/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [Quietly, Macey went through her options. Even though the masked men were asking for cell phones, the gunmen were making so much noise that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-carter/quietly-macey-went-through-her-options-even-though-the-masked-men/) [Ally Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-carter/) > [Decisions concerning covert actions are not often easily reached.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hoekstra/decisions-concerning-covert-actions-are-not-often-easily-reached/) [Pete Hoekstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hoekstra/) > [The ecological movement is concerned about this, and this is in here, where everything is public. In Iran, where everything is covert, we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akbar-ganji/the-ecological-movement-is-concerned-about-this-and-this-is-in-here/) [Akbar Ganji](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akbar-ganji/) > [It was during George W. Bush's presidency that Iran mastered the nuclear fuel cycle, that they built covert facilities, that they stocked them with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/it-was-during-george-w-bush-s-presidency-that-iran-mastered-the/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) [Browse all 109 Covert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covert/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For me to write I have to be, a, alone, and b, know that nobody is going to question me. I write the way a thief steals; it's a little covert.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Edna O'Brien" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and-b-know-that-nobody-is-going/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Covert" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and-b-know-that-nobody-is-going/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c4/edna-o-brien-2155_covert_for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and_1237504.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c4/edna-o-brien-2155_covert_for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and_1237504.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c4/edna-o-brien-2155_covert_for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and_1237504.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For me to write I have to be, a, alone, and b, know that nobody is going to question me. I write the way a…” — Edna O'Brien", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Edna O'Brien", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For me to write I have...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and-b-know-that-nobody-is-going/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/for-me-to-write-i-have-to-be-a-alone-and-b-know-that-nobody-is-going/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```