--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Writing novels is sitting in a room by…" description: "\"Writing novels is sitting in a room by yourself for a year.\" — Greg Iles" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/greg-iles-4609_books_writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-y_2471677.png" --- # Writing novels is sitting in a room by yourself for a year. ![“Writing novels is sitting in a room by yourself for a year.” quote by Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/greg-iles-4609_books_writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-y_2471677.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/greg-iles-4609_books_writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-y_2471677.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/greg-iles-4609_books_writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-y_2471677.png) > “Writing novels is sitting in a room by yourself for a year.” [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing novels requires long solitary focus and dedication over an extended period. **In simple terms:** Novel writing needs solitude and time. Key Takeaway Commit to regular, uninterrupted writing sessions. Themes creativity discipline solitude Mood reflective determined Type literary motivational When to use this quote - writing a novel - research phase - drafting - editing - publishing Key Concepts authorial process long‑term projects Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance solitude with constructive critique? - What routines help sustain focus over a year? A Different Perspective May overlook the need for external feedback and community support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [With novels, you're sitting at a desk, alone, going slightly crazy, for anywhere from six months to a year with zero feedback.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duane-swierczynski/with-novels-you-re-sitting-at-a-desk-alone-going-slightly-crazy-for/) [Duane Swierczynski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duane-swierczynski/) > [“For several moments he did not move from the doorway: he heard the girl’s soft, thin voice rise above the murmur of the assembled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-williams/for-several-moments-he-did-not-move-from-the-doorway-he-heard-the/) [John Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-williams/) > [“Most people in this "normal" society of ours begin sitting still in a room for six to eight hours beginning in childhood. They continue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-b-truant/most-people-in-this-normal-society-of-ours-begin-sitting-still-in-a/) [Johnny B. Truant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-b-truant/) > [My dream job would be sitting in a room, cranking out hits for Rihanna.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grimes/my-dream-job-would-be-sitting-in-a-room-cranking-out-hits-for-rihanna/) [Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grimes/) > [What good is sitting all alone in your room?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-minnelli/what-good-is-sitting-all-alone-in-your-room/) [Liza Minnelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-minnelli/) > [Alone time is sitting down in a room, close the door, close your eyes and say, 'Alright Uriah, what's up?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uriah-hall/alone-time-is-sitting-down-in-a-room-close-the-door-close-your-eyes/) [Uriah Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uriah-hall/) > [When you are sitting in a room and somebody does something or says something and a thought comes, an idea or a melody -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-louis-walker/when-you-are-sitting-in-a-room-and-somebody-does-something-or-says/) [Joe Louis Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-louis-walker/) > [“The sitting room is subdued, symmetrical; it’s one of the shapes money takes when it freezes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-sitting-room-is-subdued-symmetrical-it-s-one-of-the-shapes-money-2/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“A flower, a painting or an item you put in an empty room only fills the place where it is placed; but a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/a-flower-a-painting-or-an-item-you-put-in-an-empty-room-only-fills/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [You can get help from teachers, but you are going to have to learn a lot by yourself, sitting alone in a room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss/you-can-get-help-from-teachers-but-you-are-going-to-have-to-learn-a/) [Dr. Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss/) > [I was shown into a room. A red room. Red wallpaper, red curtains, red carpet. They said it was a sitting-room, but I don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/i-was-shown-into-a-room-a-red-room-red-wallpaper-red-curtains-red/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [“I have spent years of my life sitting in my room, creating defenses of cynicism, darkness, and bleakness. Jed's friendship is the skeleton key…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-have-spent-years-of-my-life-sitting-in-my-room-creating-defenses-of/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [“The sitting room is subdued, symmetrical; it's one of the shapes money takes when it freezes. Money has trickled through this room for years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-sitting-room-is-subdued-symmetrical-it-s-one-of-the-shapes-money/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“I need a sitting room where I can entertain my friends, but I must have a library where my books entertain me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/great-grandson-of-john-abigail-adams-brooks-adams/i-need-a-sitting-room-where-i-can-entertain-my-friends-but-i-must/) great-grandson of John & Abigail Adams Brooks Adams > [I am sitting in my room, looking thru the window, staring at the stars, I whisper..wish you were here..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-am-sitting-in-my-room-looking-thru-the-window-staring-at-the-stars/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) ## More by Greg Iles > [“path of least resistance, or the walk over hot coals.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/path-of-least-resistance-or-the-walk-over-hot-coals/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [Like my best friend, I asked for drums for Christmas, and got them. But when he moved on to guitar, I realized two things:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/like-my-best-friend-i-asked-for-drums-for-christmas-and-got-them-but/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [“We do not just belong to this universe, we are it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/we-do-not-just-belong-to-this-universe-we-are-it/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [“The mills of the gods grind slowly…but they grind to dust. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/the-mills-of-the-gods-grind-slowly-but-they-grind-to-dust/) [greg iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [...the larger world lay not across oceans but within the human mind and heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/the-larger-world-lay-not-across-oceans-but-within-the-human-mind-and/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [Experiences are like hoarded gold. Whenever I dole out a piece of my private suffering, that is when I get letters from all over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/experiences-are-like-hoarded-gold-whenever-i-dole-out-a-piece-of-my/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [“Because death is the end, and if a man doesn’t speak before it silences him, then the things he holds closest die with him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/because-death-is-the-end-and-if-a-man-doesn-t-speak-before-it/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [I deal with the human psychology and evil. They are my twin issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/i-deal-with-the-human-psychology-and-evil-they-are-my-twin-issues/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [“When we reach the intersection with Homochitto Street, I turn right, into town, and soon we’re passing Dunleith, the antebellum mansion that I always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/when-we-reach-the-intersection-with-homochitto-street-i-turn-right/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [The South is the home of 'an eye for an eye.' 'Turning the other cheek'? The South can't see that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/the-south-is-the-home-of-an-eye-for-an-eye-turning-the-other-cheek/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [Some things we must pass over in silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/some-things-we-must-pass-over-in-silence/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [“Let me tell you a secret, Caitlin. We’re still in the cave. It’s just bigger, and we wear nicer clothes. We make alliances and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/let-me-tell-you-a-secret-caitlin-we-re-still-in-the-cave-it-s-just/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [I'll read anything that's good. I have no artificial barriers based on genre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/i-ll-read-anything-that-s-good-i-have-no-artificial-barriers-based-on/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [My father has always been the heart of my Penn Cage novels,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/my-father-has-always-been-the-heart-of-my-penn-cage-novels/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [I've learned as much about writing from songwriters as I have from other writers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/i-ve-learned-as-much-about-writing-from-songwriters-as-i-have-from/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) [Explore all 106 Greg Iles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) ## 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": "Writing novels is sitting in a room by yourself for a year.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Greg Iles" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-yourself-for-a-year/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-yourself-for-a-year/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/greg-iles-4609_books_writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-y_2471677.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/greg-iles-4609_books_writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-y_2471677.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/greg-iles-4609_books_writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-y_2471677.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Writing novels is sitting in a room by yourself for a year.” — Greg Iles", "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": "Greg Iles", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Writing novels is sitting in a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-yourself-for-a-year/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/writing-novels-is-sitting-in-a-room-by-yourself-for-a-year/#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 } } ] } ```