--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I write when something sticks in my craw…" description: "\"I write when something sticks in my craw. Writing is a compulsion — or an itch.\" — Hisaye Yamamoto" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/hisaye-yamamoto-242685_compulsion_i-write-when-something-sticks-in-my-craw_1665917.png" --- # I write when something sticks in my craw. Writing is a… ![“I write when something sticks in my craw. Writing is a compulsion — or an itch.” quote by Hisaye Yamamoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/hisaye-yamamoto-242685_compulsion_i-write-when-something-sticks-in-my-craw_1665917.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/hisaye-yamamoto-242685_compulsion_i-write-when-something-sticks-in-my-craw_1665917.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/hisaye-yamamoto-242685_compulsion_i-write-when-something-sticks-in-my-craw_1665917.png) > “I write when something sticks in my craw. Writing is a compulsion — or an itch.” Hisaye Yamamoto ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing is a compulsion, an itch that demands expression **In simple terms:** Writing feels like an uncontrollable itch Key Takeaway Listen to creative urges promptly Themes Writing Compulsion Creativity Mood Intense Reflective Type Poetic Motivational When to use this quote - Deadlines - Personal journals - Publications Key Concepts Artistic expression Therapeutic writing Professional writing Questions to Reflect On - How to channel creative itch product? - What balance between impulse and polish? A Different Perspective Compulsion may hinder reflection ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Compulsion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compulsion/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“Writing is a compulsion”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/airambooksie/writing-is-a-compulsion/) [Airambooksie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/airambooksie/) > [I wrote because I had to. I couldn't stop. There wasn't anything else I could do. If no one ever bought anything, anything I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/i-wrote-because-i-had-to-i-couldn-t-stop-there-wasn-t-anything-else-i/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [“I started writing to get women, or rather a particular woman, and I continue writing because it’s now a compulsion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-started-writing-to-get-women-or-rather-a-particular-woman-and-i/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [I've been writing since I was six. It is a compulsion, so I can't really say where the desire came from; I've always had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling-2/i-ve-been-writing-since-i-was-six-it-is-a-compulsion-so-i-can-t/) [J. K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling-2/) > [Even after The Kite Runner was published I continued to practice for another eighteen months. But I had always had a love of writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/even-after-the-kite-runner-was-published-i-continued-to-practice-for/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [For most people who write, writing is a compulsion. If I could be healed of it, I would, and I think a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-r-pearson-2/for-most-people-who-write-writing-is-a-compulsion-if-i-could-be/) T. R. Pearson > [“I feel strongly against professionalism, against someone’s feeling he has to write a book every year to keep his name before the public. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-taylor/i-feel-strongly-against-professionalism-against-someone-s-feeling-he/) [Peter Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-taylor/) > [Writing is more than anything a compulsion, like some people wash their hands thirty times a day for fear of awful consequences if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-burchill/writing-is-more-than-anything-a-compulsion-like-some-people-wash/) [Julie Burchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-burchill/) > [Those of us with this ancient compulsion to tell stories sometimes start with a single kernel of something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-p-jones/those-of-us-with-this-ancient-compulsion-to-tell-stories-sometimes/) [Edward P. Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-p-jones/) > [I think it's in our nature to try to get beyond that next horizon. I think that when we as a species are scratching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-howard/i-think-it-s-in-our-nature-to-try-to-get-beyond-that-next-horizon-i/) [Ron Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-howard/) > [Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/knowledge-which-is-acquired-under-compulsion-obtains-no-hold-on-the/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [For many people it's Facebook, or sports on TV, whatever it is. I have my own demons that I battle. But whatever they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-walter/for-many-people-it-s-facebook-or-sports-on-tv-whatever-it-is-i-have/) [Jess Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-walter/) > [The individual, by means of the discipline imposed on him by sport, not only plays and finds relaxation from the various compulsions to which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-individual-by-means-of-the-discipline-imposed-on-him-by-sport-not/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [“I take my actions because of my passion not because of compulsion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/i-take-my-actions-because-of-my-passion-not-because-of-compulsion/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) ## More Compulsion quotes > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [“I take my actions because of my passion not because of compulsion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/i-take-my-actions-because-of-my-passion-not-because-of-compulsion/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [The individual, by means of the discipline imposed on him by sport, not only plays and finds relaxation from the various compulsions to which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-individual-by-means-of-the-discipline-imposed-on-him-by-sport-not/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [For many people it's Facebook, or sports on TV, whatever it is. I have my own demons that I battle. But whatever they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-walter/for-many-people-it-s-facebook-or-sports-on-tv-whatever-it-is-i-have/) [Jess Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-walter/) > [Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/knowledge-which-is-acquired-under-compulsion-obtains-no-hold-on-the/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [I think it's in our nature to try to get beyond that next horizon. I think that when we as a species are scratching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-howard/i-think-it-s-in-our-nature-to-try-to-get-beyond-that-next-horizon-i/) [Ron Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-howard/) > [Those of us with this ancient compulsion to tell stories sometimes start with a single kernel of something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-p-jones/those-of-us-with-this-ancient-compulsion-to-tell-stories-sometimes/) [Edward P. Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-p-jones/) > [You develop an instant global consciousness, a people orientation, an intense dissatisfaction with the state of the world, and a compulsion to do something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/you-develop-an-instant-global-consciousness-a-people-orientation-an/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [I found myself compelled - like this weird, shameful compulsion - to draw cute animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynda-barry/i-found-myself-compelled-like-this-weird-shameful-compulsion-to-draw/) [Lynda Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynda-barry/) > [Why am I always at war with myself? Why have I told, as if upon compulsion, what I knew all along I ought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/why-am-i-always-at-war-with-myself-why-have-i-told-as-if-upon/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [It is true that the virtues which are less esteemed and practiced now--independence, self-reliance, and the willingness to bear risks, the readiness to back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/it-is-true-that-the-virtues-which-are-less-esteemed-and-practiced-now/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [Not merely by rules of conduct and religious observances, nor by much learning either, nor even by attainment of concentration, nor by sleeping alone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/not-merely-by-rules-of-conduct-and-religious-observances-nor-by-much/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I started off like everyone else does, slogging but having a compulsion to put words on paper. I didn't write or read horror or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/i-started-off-like-everyone-else-does-slogging-but-having-a/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [I have with me two gods, Persuasion and Compulsion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/themistocles/i-have-with-me-two-gods-persuasion-and-compulsion/) [Themistocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/themistocles/) > [When you are dealing with a serious compulsion or addictive pattern, then by definition self-will, self-discipline, and any other machinations of the conscious mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/when-you-are-dealing-with-a-serious-compulsion-or-addictive-pattern/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) [Browse all 513 Compulsion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compulsion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I write when something sticks in my craw. 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