--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She had a brief affair with a novelist…" description: "\"“She had a brief affair with a novelist, W. L. River, whose Death of a Young Man had been published several years earlier. He called her Motsie and ple..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/erik-larson-1710_death_she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w_3194347.png" --- # She had a brief affair with a novelist, W. L. River, whose… ![“She had a brief affair with a novelist, W. L. River, whose Death of a Young Man had been published several years earlier. He called her Motsie and pledged himself to her in letters composed of stupendously long run-on sentences, in one case seventy-four lines of single-spaced typewriting. At the…” quote by Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/erik-larson-1710_death_she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w_3194347.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/erik-larson-1710_death_she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w_3194347.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/erik-larson-1710_death_she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w_3194347.png) > ““She had a brief affair with a novelist, W. L. River, whose Death of a Young Man had been published several years earlier. He called her Motsie and pledged himself to her in letters composed of stupendously long run-on sentences, in one case seventy-four lines of single-spaced typewriting. At the time this passed for experimental prose. “I want nothing from life except you,” he wrote. “I want to be with you forever, to work and write for you, to live wherever you want to live, to love nothing, nobody but you, to love you with the passion of earth but also with the above earthly elements of more eternal, spiritual love.…” He did not, however, get his wish.”” [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A tragic love story where a writer’s passionate devotion is unreciprocated, ending in unfulfilled longing. **In simple terms:** A writer’s love remains unreturned. Key Takeaway Accept that not all love is mutual. Themes love unrequited love literary romance passion loneliness Mood melancholic reflective Type literary romantic When to use this quote - personal relationships - artistic collaborations - letter writing - creative projects Key Concepts unrequited affection emotional sacrifice creative expression Questions to Reflect On - What does this story teach about realistic expectations? - How can we balance passion with self‑care? A Different Perspective Idealizing love can ignore practical realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affair Novelist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affair-novelist-5904623/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Life Wrote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-wrote-389845/) [Novelist River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelist-river-5904622/) [Prose Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose-want-1191805/) [Spiritual love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual-love/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Wrote Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote-want-5904624/) [Young man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-man/) ## Related quotes > [When I was little, I had to write down what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I wrote, 'I want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-greene/when-i-was-little-i-had-to-write-down-what-i-wanted-to-be-when-i-grew/) [Ellen Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-greene/) > [“To want to give to prose the rhythm of verse (but keeping it very much prose), and to want to write about ordinary life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustav-flaubert/to-want-to-give-to-prose-the-rhythm-of-verse-but-keeping-it-very-much/) [Gustav Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustav-flaubert/) > [Let my life as Poet begin. I want the life of the Poet. I have labored for over twelve years, one thousand pages of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/let-my-life-as-poet-begin-i-want-the-life-of-the-poet-i-have-labored/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [My object when writing prose is to write as clearly as possible. I think I know what I'm saying in prose, and I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pattiann-rogers/my-object-when-writing-prose-is-to-write-as-clearly-as-possible-i/) [Pattiann Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pattiann-rogers/) > [I didn't fit into the Christian college my parents sent me to. I felt tarnished by tragedy, between my brother's death and Escuela Caribe,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-scheeres/i-didn-t-fit-into-the-christian-college-my-parents-sent-me-to-i-felt/) [Julia Scheeres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-scheeres/) > [“In life,” she wrote, “fantastically gifted people, people who are driven, can be too much to handle; they can be a pain. In plays,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-kellow/in-life-she-wrote-fantastically-gifted-people-people-who-are-driven/) [Brian Kellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-kellow/) > [“All the characters in my book are fictional, but every single one of them was inspired by someone I knew and loved who didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanela-ramic-jurich/all-the-characters-in-my-book-are-fictional-but-every-single-one-of/) [Sanela Ramic Jurich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanela-ramic-jurich/) > [I have people constantly come up to me telling me that I have written their life. When I wrote the story I thought it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blackie/i-have-people-constantly-come-up-to-me-telling-me-that-i-have-written/) [Blackie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blackie/) > [Hello. My name is Henry. I am a fan. Somewhere in the late 1980s’, I got tired of people telling me to get a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-jenkins/hello-my-name-is-henry-i-am-a-fan-somewhere-in-the-late-1980s-i-got/) [Henry Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-jenkins/) > [I read the way a person might swim, to save his or her life. I wrote that way too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/i-read-the-way-a-person-might-swim-to-save-his-or-her-life-i-wrote/) [Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/) > [An angel opened the book of life and wrote down my babys birth. And whispered as she closed it Too beautiful for earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babloo/an-angel-opened-the-book-of-life-and-wrote-down-my-babys-birth-and/) [Babloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babloo/) > [“Life' wrote a friend of mine, 'is a public performance on the violin, in which you must learn the instrument as you go along.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/life-wrote-a-friend-of-mine-is-a-public-performance-on-the-violin-in/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [“Nothing gets in the way of love. Generosity of spirit empowers us to perform miracles and wonders.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthon-st-maarten/nothing-gets-in-the-way-of-love-generosity-of-spirit-empowers-us-to/) [Anthon St. Maarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthon-st-maarten/) > [“It is, often, in the utter despair of humanness that we become willing to consider deeply spiritual answers. Although the door and the guide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-goddard/it-is-often-in-the-utter-despair-of-humanness-that-we-become-willing/) [Donna Goddard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-goddard/) > [True love is not a potion one person can swallow and another refuse to drink. It happens only when the souls of two join…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/true-love-is-not-a-potion-one-person-can-swallow-and-another-refuse/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Erik Larson > [I've heard from the movie marketplace that James Cameron did such a killer job with 'Titanic' that it's almost impossible to do anything better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-ve-heard-from-the-movie-marketplace-that-james-cameron-did-such-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [As a rule, I am very skeptical of tying books to anniversaries. I don't think readers care. I also feel that it just about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/as-a-rule-i-am-very-skeptical-of-tying-books-to-anniversaries-i-don-t/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“look as if they had been plucked from the Palace of Versailles or a Jacobean mansion—that you were aboard a ship being propelled far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/look-as-if-they-had-been-plucked-from-the-palace-of-versailles-or-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [That's what I love about history - nuance. I don't believe in unalloyed heroes. Everyone's got warts, and everyone's got a surprise side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/that-s-what-i-love-about-history-nuance-i-don-t-believe-in-unalloyed/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Holmes was charming and gracious, but something about him made Belknap uneasy. He could not have defined it. Indeed, for the next several decades…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/holmes-was-charming-and-gracious-but-something-about-him-made-belknap/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [. . . why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging the impossible, others in the manufacture of sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/why-some-men-choose-to-fill-their-brief-allotment-of-time-engaging/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“At present," he said, "I am responsible for conveying my associates to a place called Chicago. I understand it is somewhere in the hinterland.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/at-present-he-said-i-am-responsible-for-conveying-my-associates-to-a/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I knew from an online search that the Wisconsin State Historical Society, on the vast University of Wisconsin campus, held the papers of Sigrid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-knew-from-an-online-search-that-the-wisconsin-state-historical/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [Dodd continued to hope that the murders would so outrage the German public that the regime would fall, but as the days passed he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/dodd-continued-to-hope-that-the-murders-would-so-outrage-the-german/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I envy other writers who claim to have a backlog of books they'd like to write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-envy-other-writers-who-claim-to-have-a-backlog-of-books-they-d-like/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [Trying to find ideas is the hardest part of my job. You'd think it would be the most fun. Just sitting around reading whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/trying-to-find-ideas-is-the-hardest-part-of-my-job-you-d-think-it/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Her blind endorsement of Hitler’s regime first faded to a kind of sympathetic skepticism, but as summer approached,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/her-blind-endorsement-of-hitler-s-regime-first-faded-to-a-kind-of/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“Perhaps, Herr Ditzen, it is less important where one lives than how one lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/perhaps-herr-ditzen-it-is-less-important-where-one-lives-than-how-one/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I figured, correctly, that Berlin in February was not a destination coveted by tourists. I found good airfares on Lufthansa, an airline I quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-figured-correctly-that-berlin-in-february-was-not-a-destination/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [“It was truly a transitional moment: There he was, at the cusp of the twentieth century, using the telephone to send a telegram.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/it-was-truly-a-transitional-moment-there-he-was-at-the-cusp-of-the/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) [Explore all 214 Erik Larson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [I do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) [J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/) > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-powers/) > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“She had a brief affair with a novelist, W. L. River, whose Death of a Young Man had been published several years earlier. He called her Motsie and pledged himself to her in letters composed of stupendously long run-on sentences, in one case seventy-four lines of single-spaced typewriting. At the time this passed for experimental prose. “I want nothing from life except you,” he wrote. “I want to be with you forever, to work and write for you, to live wherever you want to live, to love nothing, nobody but you, to love you with the passion of earth but also with the above earthly elements of more eternal, spiritual love.…” He did not, however, get his wish.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Erik Larson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w-l-river-whose-death-of-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w-l-river-whose-death-of-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/erik-larson-1710_death_she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w_3194347.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/erik-larson-1710_death_she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w_3194347.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b4/erik-larson-1710_death_she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w_3194347.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“She had a brief affair with a novelist, W. L. River, whose Death of a Young Man had been published several…” — Erik Larson", "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": "Erik Larson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“She had a brief affair with...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w-l-river-whose-death-of-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/she-had-a-brief-affair-with-a-novelist-w-l-river-whose-death-of-a/#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 } } ] } ```