--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I still read Hemingway. I still read his…" description: "\"I still read Hemingway. I still read his short stories because they're so good. He doesn't waste any words.\" — Elmore Leonard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/866/elmore-leonard-3471_books_i-still-read-hemingway-i-still-read-his_2578551.jpg" --- # I still read Hemingway. I still read his short stories… ![“I still read Hemingway. I still read his short stories because they're so good. He doesn't waste any words.” quote by Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/866/elmore-leonard-3471_books_i-still-read-hemingway-i-still-read-his_2578551.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/866/elmore-leonard-3471_books_i-still-read-hemingway-i-still-read-his_2578551.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/866/elmore-leonard-3471_books_i-still-read-hemingway-i-still-read-his_2578551.jpg) > “I still read Hemingway. I still read his short stories because they're so good. He doesn't waste any words.” [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hemingway’s concise style makes his short stories compelling and efficient. **In simple terms:** Hemingway writes tightly. Key Takeaway Study brevity to improve writing. Themes writing conciseness literature efficiency Mood inspired practical Type literary educational When to use this quote - creative writing workshops - editing practice - literary analysis Key Concepts minimalism storytelling craftsmanship Questions to Reflect On - What makes brevity powerful? - How can you balance detail with concision? A Different Perspective Over‑editing can strip meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good/) [Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hemingway/) [Hemingway Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hemingway-read-1758719/) [Read Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read-hemingway-1758718/) [Short](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short/) [Short stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-stories/) [Short story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-story/) [Still](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/still/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-good-515996/) [Waste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waste/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [As to Hemingway, I read him for the first time in the early 'forties, something about bells, balls and bulls, and loathed it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/as-to-hemingway-i-read-him-for-the-first-time-in-the-early-forties/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [I read Nabakov for style, Mary Karr for heart and resonance of where I come from. She's from the same part of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/i-read-nabakov-for-style-mary-karr-for-heart-and-resonance-of-where-i/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [From the time I read my first Hemingway work, The Sun Also Rises, as a student at Soldan High School in St. Louis, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-e-hotchner/from-the-time-i-read-my-first-hemingway-work-the-sun-also-rises-as-a/) [A. E. Hotchner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-e-hotchner/) > [Before I was reading science fiction, I read Hemingway. Farewell to Arms was my first adult novel that said not everything ends well. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/before-i-was-reading-science-fiction-i-read-hemingway-farewell-to/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) > [I like simple writing. I'd rather read Hemingway than Burroughs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yannis-philippakis/i-like-simple-writing-i-d-rather-read-hemingway-than-burroughs/) [Yannis Philippakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yannis-philippakis/) > [What's impossible not to notice, though - it's all around us - is the diminution of American prose: How pedestrian it has become. Pick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/what-s-impossible-not-to-notice-though-it-s-all-around-us-is-the/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [I started out of course with Hemingway when I learned how to write. Until I realized Hemingway doesn't have a sense of humor. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-started-out-of-course-with-hemingway-when-i-learned-how-to-write/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I would say just start writing. You've got to write every day. Copy someone that you like if you think that perhaps could become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-would-say-just-start-writing-you-ve-got-to-write-every-day-copy/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [The truth is that the writers who most influenced me weren't people categorized as crime writers. I'd say I learned more from John O'Hara,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/the-truth-is-that-the-writers-who-most-influenced-me-weren-t-people/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I think I succeeded as a writer because I did not come out of an English department. I used to write in the chemistry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-think-i-succeeded-as-a-writer-because-i-did-not-come-out-of-an/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [I get stage fright with short stories. For me it feels like standup comedy: kill or die. I'm more confident when I begin a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sefi-atta/i-get-stage-fright-with-short-stories-for-me-it-feels-like-standup/) [Sefi Atta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sefi-atta/) > [Novels are more difficult simply because they are longer and require more juggling, but short stories are closer to perfection, if you can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/novels-are-more-difficult-simply-because-they-are-longer-and-require/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I regret that there aren't more short stories in other magazines. But in a certain way, I think the disappearance of the short-story template…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorin-stein/i-regret-that-there-aren-t-more-short-stories-in-other-magazines-but/) [Lorin Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorin-stein/) > [I began writing early - very, very early... I was already writing short stories for the radio and selling poems to poetry and art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/i-began-writing-early-very-very-early-i-was-already-writing-short/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-writing-novels-is-like-planting-a-forest-then-writing-short/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## More by Elmore Leonard > [It took me 20 years to buy an electric typewriter, because I was afraid it would be too sensitive. I like to bang the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/it-took-me-20-years-to-buy-an-electric-typewriter-because-i-was/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [These are rules I've picked up along the way to help me remain invisible when I'm writing a book, to help me show rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/these-are-rules-i-ve-picked-up-along-the-way-to-help-me-remain/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [“There’s something happening here, I know it. It’s right in front of my face, but I just can’t see it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/there-s-something-happening-here-i-know-it-it-s-right-in-front-of-my/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/the-line-of-dialogue-belongs-to-the-character-the-verb-is-the-writer/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [“I try to leave out the parts that people skip.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-try-to-leave-out-the-parts-that-people-skip/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I have fun writing. I don't make it a chore. I don't have to struggle with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-have-fun-writing-i-don-t-make-it-a-chore-i-don-t-have-to-struggle/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it. Or, if proper usage gets in the way, it may have to go. I can't allow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/if-it-sounds-like-writing-i-rewrite-it-or-if-proper-usage-gets-in-the/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I don’t think writers compete, I think they’re all doing separate things in their own style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-don-t-think-writers-compete-i-think-they-re-all-doing-separate/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [After 58 years you'd think writing would get easier. It doesn't. If you're lucky, you become harder to please. That's all right, it's still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/after-58-years-you-d-think-writing-would-get-easier-it-doesn-t-if-you/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [“He saw Harvey and Edgar catch each other's eye as he looked off toward the strains of "Alley Cat," Jesus, hoping they'd rush it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/he-saw-harvey-and-edgar-catch-each-other-s-eye-as-he-looked-off/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I'm not going to write for posterity. I'm going to write to make a buck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-m-not-going-to-write-for-posterity-i-m-going-to-write-to-make-a-buck/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [“A wife's faithful to her husband, subject to him. It's in the bible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/a-wife-s-faithful-to-her-husband-subject-to-him-it-s-in-the-bible/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [Using adverbs is a mortal sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/using-adverbs-is-a-mortal-sin/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [Try not to write the parts that people skip.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/try-not-to-write-the-parts-that-people-skip/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [I want the reader to know what's going on. So there's never a mystery in my books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-want-the-reader-to-know-what-s-going-on-so-there-s-never-a-mystery/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) [Explore all 130 Elmore Leonard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "I still read Hemingway. I still read his short stories because they're so good. 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