--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is a delicious thing to write, to be…" description: "\"It is a delicious thing to write, to be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe of your own creating. Today, for instance, as man and woma..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/gustave-flaubert-354_afternoon_it-is-a-delicious-thing-to-write-to-be-n_1221206.jpg" --- # It is a delicious thing to write, to be no longer yourself… ![“It is a delicious thing to write, to be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe of your own creating. Today, for instance, as man and woman, both lover and mistress, I rode in a forest on an autumn afternoon under the yellow leaves, and I was also the horses, the leaves, the wind, the…” quote by Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/gustave-flaubert-354_afternoon_it-is-a-delicious-thing-to-write-to-be-n_1221206.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/gustave-flaubert-354_afternoon_it-is-a-delicious-thing-to-write-to-be-n_1221206.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/gustave-flaubert-354_afternoon_it-is-a-delicious-thing-to-write-to-be-n_1221206.jpg) > “It is a delicious thing to write, to be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe of your own creating. Today, for instance, as man and woman, both lover and mistress, I rode in a forest on an autumn afternoon under the yellow leaves, and I was also the horses, the leaves, the wind, the words my people uttered, even the red sun that made them almost close their love-drowned eyes.” [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing lets one dissolve personal boundaries and inhabit a vast, self‑created world, merging self with imagined realities. **In simple terms:** Writing expands identity into imagined worlds. Key Takeaway Write to explore beyond self. Themes creativity identity imagination transcendence literature Mood reflective inspirational Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - author workshops - creative retreats - fiction writing - role‑play - visual storytelling Key Concepts Narrative immersion self‑transformation creative freedom Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to lose yourself in creation? - How can you balance imagination with reality? A Different Perspective The metaphor may romanticize solitude, ignoring practical constraints of daily life. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Autumn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autumn/) [Creating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creating/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Forests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forests/) [Horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horse/) [Lover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lover/) [Lovers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lovers/) [Man and woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-and-woman/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Mistress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistress/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Red](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/red/) [Sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sun/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Yellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yellow/) ## Related quotes > [“It is a delightful thing to write, to cease to be oneself, to flow through the whole creation of which one speaks. Today, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/it-is-a-delightful-thing-to-write-to-cease-to-be-oneself-to-flow/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“It is a delicious thing to write, whether well or badly--to be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustav-flaubert/it-is-a-delicious-thing-to-write-whether-well-or-badly-to-be-no/) [Gustav Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustav-flaubert/) > [It's a delicious thing to write. To be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe of your own creating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/it-s-a-delicious-thing-to-write-to-be-no-longer-yourself-but-to-move/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“It is a delicious thing to write, whether well or badly - to be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/it-is-a-delicious-thing-to-write-whether-well-or-badly-to-be-no-2/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“It is impossible to get enough books, don't you find? But where are we without them? Just words on the wind... Not words on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvyn-bragg/it-is-impossible-to-get-enough-books-don-t-you-find-but-where-are-we/) [Melvyn Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvyn-bragg/) > [“Then Lord Eddard is a man in ten thousand. Most of us are not so strong. What is honor compared to a woman's love?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/then-lord-eddard-is-a-man-in-ten-thousand-most-of-us-are-not-so/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [“Slowly, like a whisper almost blown away in the wind, two words streaked across her mind. Kiss me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaitlyn-davis/slowly-like-a-whisper-almost-blown-away-in-the-wind-two-words/) [Kaitlyn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaitlyn-davis/) > [Even your pity is like a blast of wind and the words you speak would strip a tree of its blossoms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsidas/even-your-pity-is-like-a-blast-of-wind-and-the-words-you-speak-would/) [Tulsidas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsidas/) > [“Said the straight man to the late man Where have you been I've been here and I've been there And I've been in between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-crimson/said-the-straight-man-to-the-late-man-where-have-you-been-i-ve-been/) King Crimson > [Wind and words. We are only human, and the gods have fashioned us for love. That is our great glory, and our great tragedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wind-and-words-we-are-only-human-and-the-gods-have-fashioned-us-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What is honor compared to a woman's love? What is duty against the feel of a newborn son in your arms . . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-honor-compared-to-a-woman-s-love-what-is-duty-against-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Words are wind, even words like love and peace. I put more trust in deeds.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/words-are-wind-even-words-like-love-and-peace-i-put-more-trust-in/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [“Emma was just like any other mistress; and the charm of novelty, falling down slowly like a dress, exposed only the eternal monotony of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/emma-was-just-like-any-other-mistress-and-the-charm-of-novelty/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“You ask yourself: where are your dreams now? And you shake your head and say how swiftly the years fly by! And you ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dostoevsky/you-ask-yourself-where-are-your-dreams-now-and-you-shake-your-head/) [Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dostoevsky/) > [“I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-had-always-heard-your-entire-life-flashes-in-front-of-your-eyes-the/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) ## More by Gustave Flaubert > [As for the piano, the faster her fingers flew over it, the more he marveled. She struck the keys with aplomb and ran from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/as-for-the-piano-the-faster-her-fingers-flew-over-it-the-more-he/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Caught up in life, you see it badly. You suffer from it or enjoy it too much. The artist, in my opinion, is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/caught-up-in-life-you-see-it-badly-you-suffer-from-it-or-enjoy-it-too/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“When one does something, one must do it wholly and well. Those bastard existences where you sell suet all day and write poetry at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/when-one-does-something-one-must-do-it-wholly-and-well-those-bastard/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Isn’t ‘not to be bored’ one of the principal goals of life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/isn-t-not-to-be-bored-one-of-the-principal-goals-of-life/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Love is a springtime plant that perfumes everything with its hope, even the ruins to which it clings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/love-is-a-springtime-plant-that-perfumes-everything-with-its-hope/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“But her life was as cold as an attic facing north; and boredom, like a silent spider, was weaving its web in the shadows,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/but-her-life-was-as-cold-as-an-attic-facing-north-and-boredom-like-a/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [When you reduce a woman to writing, she makes you think of a thousand other women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/when-you-reduce-a-woman-to-writing-she-makes-you-think-of-a-thousand/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/travel-makes-one-modest-you-see-what-a-tiny-place-you-occupy-in-the/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“We must not touch our idols; the gilt sticks to our fingers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/we-must-not-touch-our-idols-the-gilt-sticks-to-our-fingers/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [A superhuman will is needed in order to write, and I am only a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/a-superhuman-will-is-needed-in-order-to-write-and-i-am-only-a-man/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [The writer must wade into life as into the sea, but only up to the navel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/the-writer-must-wade-into-life-as-into-the-sea-but-only-up-to-the/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [COLD. Healthier than heat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/cold-healthier-than-heat/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [And indeed, what is better than to sit by one's fireside in the evening with a book, while the wind beats against the window…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/and-indeed-what-is-better-than-to-sit-by-one-s-fireside-in-the/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [One's existence should be in two parts: one should live like a bourgeois and think like a demigod.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/one-s-existence-should-be-in-two-parts-one-should-live-like-a/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Emma was no asleep, she was pretending to be asleep; and, while he was dozing off at her side, she lay awake, dreaming other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/emma-was-no-asleep-she-was-pretending-to-be-asleep-and-while-he-was/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) [Explore all 526 Gustave Flaubert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) ## More Afternoon quotes > [I didn't grow up thinking of movies as film, or art, but as movies, something to do on a Saturday afternoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-pollack/i-didn-t-grow-up-thinking-of-movies-as-film-or-art-but-as-movies/) [Sydney Pollack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-pollack/) > [My dental hygienist is cute. Every time I visit, I eat a whole package of Oreo cookies while waiting in the lobby. Sometimes she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/my-dental-hygienist-is-cute-every-time-i-visit-i-eat-a-whole-package/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [Honestly, I'm living my fantasy. It's being with my family, preferably on a snowy afternoon with a fire going, cuddled up in blankets, playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-vieira/honestly-i-m-living-my-fantasy-it-s-being-with-my-family-preferably/) [Meredith Vieira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-vieira/) > [It was a very intense and stressful situation. There was playing in the Johnny-pump (an opened fire hydrant) and the ice-cream man coming around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/it-was-a-very-intense-and-stressful-situation-there-was-playing-in/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [Sunday afternoon is for papers and writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-haslam/sunday-afternoon-is-for-papers-and-writing/) [Nicholas Haslam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-haslam/) > [I think that if most guys in America could somehow get their fave-rave poster girl in bed and have total license to do whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-bangs/i-think-that-if-most-guys-in-america-could-somehow-get-their-fave/) [Lester Bangs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-bangs/) > [“If you come at four in the afternoon, I'll begin to be happy by three.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-come-at-four-in-the-afternoon-i-ll-begin-to-be-happy-by-three/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [At five in the afternoon. It was exactly five in the afternoon. A boy brought the white sheet at five in the afternoon. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-five-in-the-afternoon-it-was-exactly-five-in-the-afternoon-a-boy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The shadows in the early morning don't tell much. The shadows rest at that time. So it's useless to gaze very early in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/the-shadows-in-the-early-morning-don-t-tell-much-the-shadows-rest-at/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [“I discovered windows one afternoon and after that, nothing was ever the same.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-spollen/i-discovered-windows-one-afternoon-and-after-that-nothing-was-ever/) [Anne Spollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-spollen/) > [Look, science is hard, it has a reputation of being hard, and the facts are, it is hard, and that's the result of 400…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/look-science-is-hard-it-has-a-reputation-of-being-hard-and-the-facts/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [What'll we do with ourselves this afternoon? And the day after that, and the next thirty years?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/what-ll-we-do-with-ourselves-this-afternoon-and-the-day-after-that/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [Imagine you are walking down a leafy path…The sun is receding, and you are walking alone, caressed by the breezy light of the late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/imagine-you-are-walking-down-a-leafy-path-the-sun-is-receding-and-you/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [A good umpire is the umpire you don't even notice. He's there all afternoon but when the game is over, you don't even remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-johnson/a-good-umpire-is-the-umpire-you-don-t-even-notice-he-s-there-all/) Ban Johnson > [Sometimes in the afternoon sky the moon would pass white as a cloud, furtive, lusterless, like an actress who does not have to perform…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/sometimes-in-the-afternoon-sky-the-moon-would-pass-white-as-a-cloud/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) Browse all 1,085 Afternoon quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is a delicious thing to write, to be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe of your own creating. 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