--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There's something very self-conscious…" description: "\"There's something very self-conscious about a writer who's addressing his reader. Don't do that.\" — Ewan McGregor" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b01/ewan-mcgregor-2364_books_there-s-something-very-self-conscious-ab_1831195.jpg" --- # There's something very self-conscious about a writer who's… ![“There's something very self-conscious about a writer who's addressing his reader. Don't do that.” quote by Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b01/ewan-mcgregor-2364_books_there-s-something-very-self-conscious-ab_1831195.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b01/ewan-mcgregor-2364_books_there-s-something-very-self-conscious-ab_1831195.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b01/ewan-mcgregor-2364_books_there-s-something-very-self-conscious-ab_1831195.jpg) > “There's something very self-conscious about a writer who's addressing his reader. Don't do that.” [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A writer overly aware of the audience can become self-conscious, which hinders authentic storytelling **In simple terms:** Self-consciousness about readers blocks authentic writing Key Takeaway Write for the story, not the audience Themes writing authenticity self-consciousness audience Mood introspective encouraging Type creative advisory When to use this quote - author workshops - draft revisions - public readings - literary criticism Key Concepts narrative voice creative confidence Questions to Reflect On - How to stay true to your voice? - What techniques reduce self-consciousness? A Different Perspective Overthinking audience may stifle creativity; confidence needed ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-conscious/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The less conscious one is of being a writer, the better the writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-less-conscious-one-is-of-being-a-writer-the-better-the-writing/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“On being conscious of being a writer: As soon as one is aware of being “somebody,” to be watched and listened to with extra…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/on-being-conscious-of-being-a-writer-as-soon-as-one-is-aware-of-being/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Because this business of becoming conscious, of being a writer, is ultimately about asking yourself, How alive am I willing to be?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/because-this-business-of-becoming-conscious-of-being-a-writer-is/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [Most of the methods of training the conscious side of the writer-the craftsman and the critic in him- are actually hostile to the good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-brande/most-of-the-methods-of-training-the-conscious-side-of-the-writer-the/) [Dorothea Brande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-brande/) > [“To participate requires self-discipline and trust and courage, because this business of becoming conscious, of being a writer, is ultimately about asking yourself, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/to-participate-requires-self-discipline-and-trust-and-courage-because/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [It's like a relay race of being ignored. It is really challenging, but whenever I get asked that stuff, I feel really self-conscious about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-rossdale/it-s-like-a-relay-race-of-being-ignored-it-is-really-challenging-but/) [Gavin Rossdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-rossdale/) > [For the whole consequence of evolution from blind impulse through conscious will to self conscious knowledge, seems still somehow to correspond to a continued…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-rank/for-the-whole-consequence-of-evolution-from-blind-impulse-through/) [Otto Rank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-rank/) > [There's almost a fear that if you understood too deeply the way you arrived at choices, you could become self-conscious. In any case, many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-weir/there-s-almost-a-fear-that-if-you-understood-too-deeply-the-way-you/) [Peter Weir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-weir/) > [What’s the point of opening yourself up to your friends if they don’t notice you in your vulnerable state? The point of it all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-earl/what-s-the-point-of-opening-yourself-up-to-your-friends-if-they-don-t/) [Esther Earl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-earl/) > [I think most of us become self-critical as soon as we become self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/i-think-most-of-us-become-self-critical-as-soon-as-we-become-self/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [Great acting can be almost a psychotic mix of self-consciousness and unself-consciousness. And thats the terrible conflict. You have to be free to jump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alec-baldwin/great-acting-can-be-almost-a-psychotic-mix-of-self-consciousness-and/) [Alec Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alec-baldwin/) > [Salvador Dali has been called kitsch, but, although some of this work may be grotesque, its brazenly self-conscious bad taste saves it from being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-dutton/salvador-dali-has-been-called-kitsch-but-although-some-of-this-work/) [Denis Dutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-dutton/) > [I'm very self-conscious as an actor, with performances and things, and I don't like watching my own stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lewis/i-m-very-self-conscious-as-an-actor-with-performances-and-things-and/) [Matthew Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lewis/) > [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) ## More by Ewan McGregor > [I love film people and actors and I am in the right world because I am one of those people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-love-film-people-and-actors-and-i-am-in-the-right-world-because-i/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I don't want to make decisions about what I'm going to do before I'm doing it because I base my acting off my partner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-don-t-want-to-make-decisions-about-what-i-m-going-to-do-before-i-m/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I wanted to be an actor since I was nine years old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-wanted-to-be-an-actor-since-i-was-nine-years-old/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I've got a black woolen hat and it's got Pervert written across the front of it. It's the name of the clothing label. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-ve-got-a-black-woolen-hat-and-it-s-got-pervert-written-across-the/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [There is some really good crack when I come back here. This is where I learned to swear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/there-is-some-really-good-crack-when-i-come-back-here-this-is-where-i/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I think if you're going on thinking oh, I can do this with my eyes shut, then it's probably not the right thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-think-if-you-re-going-on-thinking-oh-i-can-do-this-with-my-eyes/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I was nine years old when I made up my mind that that was what I definitely wanted to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-was-nine-years-old-when-i-made-up-my-mind-that-that-was-what-i/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I was born in '71, so I remember bits of glam rock on 'Top of the Pops' toward the late '70s, but I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-was-born-in-71-so-i-remember-bits-of-glam-rock-on-top-of-the-pops/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I'm sometimes asked 'Can you lose the accent?'and I say 'No, but I can put on another one'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-m-sometimes-asked-can-you-lose-the-accent-and-i-say-no-but-i-can/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I've never worked with an acting coach, no.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-ve-never-worked-with-an-acting-coach-no/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I especially love my Moto Guzzi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-especially-love-my-moto-guzzi/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I've never found acting that difficult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-ve-never-found-acting-that-difficult/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I love skiing, scuba diving and hang-gliding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-love-skiing-scuba-diving-and-hang-gliding/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [There's something that happens where you go, if you're lucky, goodness me, from film to another film to another film. And you can sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/there-s-something-that-happens-where-you-go-if-you-re-lucky-goodness/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I don't care about Oscars. It's such self-aggrandizing nonsense. It's a way to manipulate people into believing that their choices are what's good. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-don-t-care-about-oscars-it-s-such-self-aggrandizing-nonsense-it-s-a/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) [Explore all 170 Ewan McGregor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) ## 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": "There's something very self-conscious about a writer who's addressing his reader. 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