--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One thing I had learnt, the last person…" description: "\"“One thing I had learnt, the last person you should ask for a solution is the author. If he knew where he was going, he’d stop dead in his tracks.”\" — ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc6/iain-sinclair-15185_books_one-thing-i-had-learnt-the-last-person-y_3180006.png" --- # One thing I had learnt, the last person you should ask for… ![“One thing I had learnt, the last person you should ask for a solution is the author. If he knew where he was going, he’d stop dead in his tracks.” quote by Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc6/iain-sinclair-15185_books_one-thing-i-had-learnt-the-last-person-y_3180006.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc6/iain-sinclair-15185_books_one-thing-i-had-learnt-the-last-person-y_3180006.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc6/iain-sinclair-15185_books_one-thing-i-had-learnt-the-last-person-y_3180006.png) > ““One thing I had learnt, the last person you should ask for a solution is the author. If he knew where he was going, he’d stop dead in his tracks.”” [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. If the author knows the solution, the story loses its tension. **In simple terms:** Authors should not reveal answers too early. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty in storytelling. Themes creativity uncertainty storytelling Mood enigmatic provocative Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - novel drafting - plot development - creative brainstorming Key Concepts narrative tension authorial restraint Questions to Reflect On - How does mystery drive engagement? - When should an author reveal answers? A Different Perspective Risk of stagnation if too vague. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Author Knew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/author-knew-4501968/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Knew Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knew-going/) [Learnt Person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learnt-person-5823104/) [Person Ask](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/person-ask-632290/) [Solution Author](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solution-author-5823103/) ## Related quotes > [I worked in publishing before I became an author, so I knew how a book gets made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-worked-in-publishing-before-i-became-an-author-so-i-knew-how-a-book/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“She wondered if that's what he said whenever people asked him where he was from. 'The front desk.' Then the person would ask, But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-post/she-wondered-if-that-s-what-he-said-whenever-people-asked-him-where/) [Nina Post](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-post/) > [It's always fun teasing the person. When they ask if I'm gay, I say, 'Oh, I don't know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-garcia/it-s-always-fun-teasing-the-person-when-they-ask-if-i-m-gay-i-say-oh/) [Adam Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-garcia/) > [ “People love to talk--especially when the talking involves answering the questions of others--because it makes them feel wanted. \[...\] I had long ago discovered… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bradley/people-love-to-talk-especially-when-the-talking-involves-answering/) [Alan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bradley/) > [I'm not even a dance type of person, you can ask anybody around me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-homie-quan/i-m-not-even-a-dance-type-of-person-you-can-ask-anybody-around-me/) [Rich Homie Quan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-homie-quan/) > [A skeptic is a person who would ask God for his ID card.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-a-shoaff/a-skeptic-is-a-person-who-would-ask-god-for-his-id-card/) [Edgar A Shoaff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-a-shoaff/) > [“They were silent for a second. The whispers of the candlelight were the only sounds, and the light outside the window began to fade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-g-night/they-were-silent-for-a-second-the-whispers-of-the-candlelight-were/) [S.G. Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-g-night/) > [I am not a private person; you can ask those who hang out with me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushant-singh-rajput/i-am-not-a-private-person-you-can-ask-those-who-hang-out-with-me/) [Sushant Singh Rajput](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushant-singh-rajput/) > [Before repeating something bad about another person, ask yourself these three questions: Is it true? Is it necessary for me to tell it? Is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-l-allen/before-repeating-something-bad-about-another-person-ask-yourself/) [Charles L. Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-l-allen/) > [“Are you a stalker or something?” “I’ve been called that a time or two, oddly enough.” My jaw unhinged. “And it’s funny, considering who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/are-you-a-stalker-or-something-i-ve-been-called-that-a-time-or-two/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) > [“Only a truly sane person would ask if he were mad." Avieyar, TheDreamMakers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diem-burden/only-a-truly-sane-person-would-ask-if-he-were-mad-avieyar/) [Diem Burden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diem-burden/) > [I've found that when you want to know the truth about someone that someone is probably the last person you should ask.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-ve-found-that-when-you-want-to-know-the-truth-about-someone-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm a real person. You can ask anybody who knows me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/letoya-luckett/i-m-a-real-person-you-can-ask-anybody-who-knows-me/) [LeToya Luckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/letoya-luckett/) > [“A whole and grown-­up person would go and simply tell him. I’m in love with you. A whole and grown-­up person would ask him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshilyn-jackson/a-whole-and-grown-up-person-would-go-and-simply-tell-him-i-m-in-love/) [Joshilyn Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshilyn-jackson/) > [“I’m no good with business, me. I’m the last person to ask when it comes to contracts and dough and all that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ozzy-osbourne/i-m-no-good-with-business-me-i-m-the-last-person-to-ask-when-it-comes/) [Ozzy Osbourne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ozzy-osbourne/) ## More by Iain Sinclair > [“Atkins knows two kinds of birds: seagulls and the ones that aren't seagulls.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/atkins-knows-two-kinds-of-birds-seagulls-and-the-ones-that-aren-t/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [“The faster we walk, the more ground we lose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/the-faster-we-walk-the-more-ground-we-lose/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [“Men of the cloth live in this monologue, it is their due: nobody talks back to a pulpit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/men-of-the-cloth-live-in-this-monologue-it-is-their-due-nobody-talks/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [“...drunk enough on earth's liquors to relish the prospect of the knife.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/drunk-enough-on-earth-s-liquors-to-relish-the-prospect-of-the-knife/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [“All kinds of weird stuff going down, whisperings in corners, significant matches struck and blown out. The whores, unoccupied, were drinking heavily. The police,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/all-kinds-of-weird-stuff-going-down-whisperings-in-corners/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [“I looked at this first sheet, words scribbled confidently on a lined pad. My attempt at making contact the spirit of Llandor. Disaster. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/i-looked-at-this-first-sheet-words-scribbled-confidently-on-a-lined/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [You can't leave the thing that you are, the house that has become your biography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/you-can-t-leave-the-thing-that-you-are-the-house-that-has-become-your/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [You'd better make it your business to understand the market. The ability to charm or play the game is useful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/you-d-better-make-it-your-business-to-understand-the-market-the/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [Culture isn't all just about what can be tweaked and twitched in the simplest possible way. As people move around, they literally don't see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/culture-isn-t-all-just-about-what-can-be-tweaked-and-twitched-in-the/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [You can't impose a legacy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/you-can-t-impose-a-legacy/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [The world changes, but I want that change to be necessary or respectful of what has happened before. Everything changes, and that's quite right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/the-world-changes-but-i-want-that-change-to-be-necessary-or/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [The only times I'm not relaxed are when I haven't got a project on the go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/the-only-times-i-m-not-relaxed-are-when-i-haven-t-got-a-project-on/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [I am crumbling in sync with old Hackney.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/i-am-crumbling-in-sync-with-old-hackney/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [“The suicide hour of cold coffee and alien voices on the radio.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/the-suicide-hour-of-cold-coffee-and-alien-voices-on-the-radio/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) > [For the bookish, London is a book. For criminals, a map of opportunities. For unpapered immigrants, it is a nest of skinned eyes; sanctioned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-sinclair/for-the-bookish-london-is-a-book-for-criminals-a-map-of-opportunities/) [Iain Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) [Explore all 44 Iain Sinclair quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-sinclair/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“One thing I had learnt, the last person you should ask for a solution is the author. 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