--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If, in the very first pages, I'm forced…" description: "\"If, in the very first pages, I'm forced to read gratuitous phrases or banal metaphors, I won't be able to get inside the story. Only if the sentences '..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16b/herta-m-ller-4269_books_if-in-the-very-first-pages-i-m-forced-to_734602.jpg" --- # If, in the very first pages, I'm forced to read gratuitous… ![“If, in the very first pages, I'm forced to read gratuitous phrases or banal metaphors, I won't be able to get inside the story. Only if the sentences 'sparkle' can I get hooked.” quote by Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16b/herta-m-ller-4269_books_if-in-the-very-first-pages-i-m-forced-to_734602.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16b/herta-m-ller-4269_books_if-in-the-very-first-pages-i-m-forced-to_734602.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16b/herta-m-ller-4269_books_if-in-the-very-first-pages-i-m-forced-to_734602.jpg) > “If, in the very first pages, I'm forced to read gratuitous phrases or banal metaphors, I won't be able to get inside the story. Only if the sentences 'sparkle' can I get hooked.” [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer emphasizes that a story must captivate with vivid, original language; otherwise, readers lose interest. **In simple terms:** Boring prose kills a story. Key Takeaway Craft vivid, engaging sentences to hook readers. Themes writing engagement creativity Mood inspired analytical Type advice literary When to use this quote - novel writing - editing - teaching writing Key Concepts literary style reader experience Questions to Reflect On - What makes a sentence sparkle? - How can you avoid cliché in your prose? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Metaphors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphors/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes, when I couldn’t afford to pay the utility bill at the end of the month, I was forced to read by the light…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-stern/sometimes-when-i-couldn-t-afford-to-pay-the-utility-bill-at-the-end/) [Steve Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-stern/) > [“Anna Arkadyevna read and understood, but it was distasteful to her to read, that is, to follow the reflection of other people’s lives. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tolstoy/anna-arkadyevna-read-and-understood-but-it-was-distasteful-to-her-to/) [Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tolstoy/) > [I do like to read in bed, but because I have two kids I'm often forced to read in the bathroom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-colfer/i-do-like-to-read-in-bed-but-because-i-have-two-kids-i-m-often-forced/) [Eoin Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-colfer/) > [Turn," Liz said, trying not to hide her impatience at being forced to read at non-speed-of-light pace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-carter/turn-liz-said-trying-not-to-hide-her-impatience-at-being-forced-to/) [Ally Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-carter/) > [The life's story of great geniuses is a sad one, without much tangible reward, which does not inspire future generations to face a similar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-haydn/the-life-s-story-of-great-geniuses-is-a-sad-one-without-much-tangible/) [Joseph Haydn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-haydn/) > [One tires of a page of which every sentence sparkles with points, of a sentimentalist who is always pumping the tears from his eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/one-tires-of-a-page-of-which-every-sentence-sparkles-with-points-of-a/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [Kingsley Amis was one of a trio of brilliant comic novelists who made English literature sparkle in the twentieth century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-baker/kingsley-amis-was-one-of-a-trio-of-brilliant-comic-novelists-who-made/) [Russell Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-baker/) > [A pun, like champagne, loses its sparkle when too long drawn out. Its flash is its savor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-hosmer/a-pun-like-champagne-loses-its-sparkle-when-too-long-drawn-out-its/) [Harriet Hosmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-hosmer/) > [On the neck of the young man sparkles no gem so gracious as enterprise. Youth condemns; maturity condones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-lowell/on-the-neck-of-the-young-man-sparkles-no-gem-so-gracious-as/) [Amy Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-lowell/) > [I feel the stars. Each sparkle sets aflame the pain in my heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-jo-napoli/i-feel-the-stars-each-sparkle-sets-aflame-the-pain-in-my-heart/) [Donna Jo Napoli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-jo-napoli/) > [“For $425 you can buy pills containing real gold that make your poop sparkle. How have I lived this long without sparkly poop?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-makai/for-425-you-can-buy-pills-containing-real-gold-that-make-your-poop/) [Michael Makai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-makai/) > [I come from haunts of coot and hern, I make a sudden sally And sparkle out among the fern, To bicker down a valley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/i-come-from-haunts-of-coot-and-hern-i-make-a-sudden-sally-and-sparkle/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [To meet Roosevelt with all his buoyant sparkle, his iridescence, was like opening a bottle of champagne.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/to-meet-roosevelt-with-all-his-buoyant-sparkle-his-iridescence-was/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [“You can judge all the world on the the sparkle that you think it lacks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-dawes/you-can-judge-all-the-world-on-the-the-sparkle-that-you-think-it-lacks/) The Dawes > [Enthusiasm is the yeast that makes your hopes shine to the stars. Enthusiasm is the sparkle in your eyes, the swing in your gait.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/enthusiasm-is-the-yeast-that-makes-your-hopes-shine-to-the-stars/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) ## More by Herta Muller > [“And I’m different without you. You’re the only one who thinks you’re never different.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/and-i-m-different-without-you-you-re-the-only-one-who-thinks-you-re/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Working with language requires beauty for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/working-with-language-requires-beauty-for-me/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I wanted to work out a trade with things that aren’t alive but aren’t dead either. I wanted to make an emergency exchange, trading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-wanted-to-work-out-a-trade-with-things-that-aren-t-alive-but-aren-t/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [My first book, 'Nadirs,' was very important for me. I'll leave its literary worth for others to judge. But its publication in Berlin in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/my-first-book-nadirs-was-very-important-for-me-i-ll-leave-its/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I'm drawn outside to the empty yard of the afternoon. The wind tosses thin snow that crackles against my neck. With open hunger the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-m-drawn-outside-to-the-empty-yard-of-the-afternoon-the-wind-tosses/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The cabbage white flies through the tailor's cheek. The tailor sinks his head. The cabbage white flies out of the back of the tailor's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-cabbage-white-flies-through-the-tailor-s-cheek-the-tailor-sinks/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The reasaon I'm shy of objects is because I like them. I transfer the thoughts that are against me onto them. Then these thoughts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-reasaon-i-m-shy-of-objects-is-because-i-like-them-i-transfer-the/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The gym instructor was the first to raise his hand. All the other hands flew up after his. While raising their hands, everybody looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-gym-instructor-was-the-first-to-raise-his-hand-all-the-other/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [I have packed myself into silence so deeply and for so long that I can never unpack myself using words. When I speak, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-have-packed-myself-into-silence-so-deeply-and-for-so-long-that-i/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [I never wanted to be a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-writer/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [To combat death you don't need much of a life, just one that isn't yet finished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/to-combat-death-you-don-t-need-much-of-a-life-just-one-that-isn-t-yet/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Some people speak and sing and walk and sit and sleep and silence their homesickness, for a long time, and to no avail. Some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/some-people-speak-and-sing-and-walk-and-sit-and-sleep-and-silence/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I wanted love to grow back, like the grass when it’s mown down. To grow differently, if need be, like children’s teeth, like hair,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-wanted-love-to-grow-back-like-the-grass-when-it-s-mown-down-to-grow/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Whatever I read went under my skin. I almost devoured the literature, which became like a road to discovery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/whatever-i-read-went-under-my-skin-i-almost-devoured-the-literature/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“Some say that over time homesickness loses its specific content, that it starts to smolder and only then becomes all-consuming, because it’s no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/some-say-that-over-time-homesickness-loses-its-specific-content-that/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) [Explore all 92 Herta Muller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) ## 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": "If, in the very first pages, I'm forced to read gratuitous phrases or banal metaphors, I won't be able to get inside the story. 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