--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The (editing) work was like peeling an…" description: "\"The (editing) work was like peeling an onion. The outer skin came off with difficulty... but in no time youd be down to its innards, tears streaming fr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/edward-blishen-81509_beautiful_the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-oni_2823122.png" --- # The (editing) work was like peeling an onion. The outer… ![“The (editing) work was like peeling an onion. The outer skin came off with difficulty... but in no time youd be down to its innards, tears streaming from your eyes as more and more beautiful reductions became possible.” quote by Edward Blishen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/edward-blishen-81509_beautiful_the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-oni_2823122.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/edward-blishen-81509_beautiful_the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-oni_2823122.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/edward-blishen-81509_beautiful_the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-oni_2823122.png) > “The (editing) work was like peeling an onion. The outer skin came off with difficulty... but in no time youd be down to its innards, tears streaming from your eyes as more and more beautiful reductions became possible.” [Edward Blishen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-blishen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Editing is a layered process, peeling back layers to reveal emotional truth and beauty. **In simple terms:** Editing uncovers deeper meaning. Key Takeaway Embrace the editing process. Themes creativity process emotional depth Mood introspective melancholic Type literary artistic When to use this quote - writing - film - music - visual arts - null Key Concepts layered analysis self‑reflection artistic refinement Questions to Reflect On - How does vulnerability shape art? - What techniques help manage emotional overload? A Different Perspective Can be emotionally draining. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Difficulty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficulty/) [Editing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/editing/) [Editing Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/editing-work-1767896/) [Eye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eye/) [Like Peeling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-peeling-459538/) [Onions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/onions/) [Peeling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peeling/) [Peeling an onion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peeling-an-onion-141755/) [Reduction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reduction/) [Skins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skins/) [Streaming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streaming/) [Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears/) [Tears Streaming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears-streaming-2165440/) [Ur Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ur-eyes/) ## Related quotes > [Acting is like peeling an onion. You have to peel away each layer to reveal another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliette-binoche/acting-is-like-peeling-an-onion-you-have-to-peel-away-each-layer-to/) [Juliette Binoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliette-binoche/) > [The beauty of doing a series is that, over the course of time, it's like peeling an onion. You're able to reveal these layers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-lennix/the-beauty-of-doing-a-series-is-that-over-the-course-of-time-it-s/) [Harry Lennix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-lennix/) > [A good or great performance is like peeling an onion; in every scene you reveal another layer, something the audience hasn't seen until then.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-moss/a-good-or-great-performance-is-like-peeling-an-onion-in-every-scene/) [Larry Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-moss/) > [I've learned that ayahuasca works in levels, a little like peeling an onion. It is complex and something you really have to experience to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-helene/i-ve-learned-that-ayahuasca-works-in-levels-a-little-like-peeling-an/) [Zoe Helene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-helene/) > [As we go within the self, we discover that all the voices of our past lives are still there. As we peel ourselves, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/as-we-go-within-the-self-we-discover-that-all-the-voices-of-our-past/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Newton had a very good description of gravity, back in the day, and then Einstein came along and dug a little bit deeper. Science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-campbell/newton-had-a-very-good-description-of-gravity-back-in-the-day-and/) [Dallas Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-campbell/) > [Telling Sam and Daneca feels like peeling off my own skin to expose everything underneath. It hurts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-black/telling-sam-and-daneca-feels-like-peeling-off-my-own-skin-to-expose/) [Holly Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-black/) > [When you first start off trying to solve a problem, the first solutions you come up with are very complex, and most people stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/when-you-first-start-off-trying-to-solve-a-problem-the-first/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [Don't bother to argue anything on the Internet. And I mean, ANYTHING… The most innocuous, innocent, harmless, basic topics will be misconstrued by people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/don-t-bother-to-argue-anything-on-the-internet-and-i-mean-anything/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [When you start peeling the onion and uncovering layers and layers of inequity that have been subsidized by government, it makes a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-bullard/when-you-start-peeling-the-onion-and-uncovering-layers-and-layers-of/) [Robert D Bullard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-bullard/) > [He says I'm a regular onion! I keep him busy peeling away the layers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/he-says-i-m-a-regular-onion-i-keep-him-busy-peeling-away-the-layers/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [ I said this man \[Donald Trump\] is peeling back the onion of White civility; and every level of that onion that he peels back,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/i-said-this-man-donald-trump-is-peeling-back-the-onion-of-white/) [Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/) > [If you dig deep and keep peeling the onion, artists and freelance writers are the leaders in society - the people who start to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-savory/if-you-dig-deep-and-keep-peeling-the-onion-artists-and-freelance/) [Allan Savory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-savory/) > [It's toughest to forgive ourselves. So it's probably best to start with other people. It's almost like peeling an onion. Layer by layer, forgiving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-duke/it-s-toughest-to-forgive-ourselves-so-it-s-probably-best-to-start/) [Patty Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-duke/) > [It was what we Japanese called the onion life, peeling away a layer at a time and crying all the while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/it-was-what-we-japanese-called-the-onion-life-peeling-away-a-layer-at/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) ## More by Edward Blishen > [Education is not a discipline at all. Half vocational, half emptiness dressed up in garments borrowed from philosophy, psychology, literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-blishen/education-is-not-a-discipline-at-all-half-vocational-half-emptiness/) [Edward Blishen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-blishen/) > [Life is amazing: and the teacher had better prepare himself to be a medium for that amazement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-blishen/life-is-amazing-and-the-teacher-had-better-prepare-himself-to-be-a/) [Edward Blishen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-blishen/) [Explore all 3 Edward Blishen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-blishen/) ## More Beautiful quotes > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) > [Being beautiful comes naturally!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-beautiful-comes-naturally/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) [Tumblr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tumblr/) > [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/) [Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/) > [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [Sometimes it's about less is more. It's about the seed. Thinking about this gigantic tree that you think is so beautiful but it started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/sometimes-it-s-about-less-is-more-it-s-about-the-seed-thinking-about/) [Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/) > [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/) [Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/) [Browse all 17,976 Beautiful quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The (editing) work was like peeling an onion. The outer skin came off with difficulty... but in no time youd be down to its innards, tears streaming from your eyes as more and more beautiful reductions became possible.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Edward Blishen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-blishen/the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-onion-the-outer-skin-came-off/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beautiful" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-blishen/the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-onion-the-outer-skin-came-off/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/edward-blishen-81509_beautiful_the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-oni_2823122.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/edward-blishen-81509_beautiful_the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-oni_2823122.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/edward-blishen-81509_beautiful_the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-oni_2823122.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The (editing) work was like peeling an onion. The outer skin came off with difficulty... but in no time youd…” — Edward Blishen", "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": "Edward Blishen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-blishen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The (editing) work was like peeling...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-blishen/the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-onion-the-outer-skin-came-off/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-blishen/the-editing-work-was-like-peeling-an-onion-the-outer-skin-came-off/#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 } } ] } ```