--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Any story worth telling relates to real…" description: "\"Any story worth telling relates to real life in some meaningful way. Scifi allows you to tell meaningful stories without seeming too preachy - it adds ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/jane-espenson-24737_add_any-story-worth-telling-relates-to-real_2306178.jpg" --- # Any story worth telling relates to real life in some… ![“Any story worth telling relates to real life in some meaningful way. Scifi allows you to tell meaningful stories without seeming too preachy - it adds a metaphorical layer between the story and the real world. Scifi is dismissed as ungrounded fluff, but it's actually the opposite.” quote by Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/jane-espenson-24737_add_any-story-worth-telling-relates-to-real_2306178.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/jane-espenson-24737_add_any-story-worth-telling-relates-to-real_2306178.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4d/jane-espenson-24737_add_any-story-worth-telling-relates-to-real_2306178.jpg) > “Any story worth telling relates to real life in some meaningful way. Scifi allows you to tell meaningful stories without seeming too preachy - it adds a metaphorical layer between the story and the real world. Scifi is dismissed as ungrounded fluff, but it's actually the opposite.” [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Science‑fiction can convey real‑world truths through metaphor, making messages less preachy and more engaging. **In simple terms:** Sci‑fi hides lessons in metaphor. Key Takeaway Use genre to explore ideas. Themes literature science fiction metaphor Mood thoughtful inspirational Type analytical creative When to use this quote - teaching - storytelling - media production Key Concepts narrative technique cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance metaphor and clarity? - What real issues can sci‑fi illuminate? A Different Perspective Risk of being dismissed as escapism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Meaningful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaningful/) [Opposites](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposites/) [Real life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-life/) [Real world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-world/) [Scifi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scifi/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [My goals are to tell meaningful stories through songs and touch people's lives... and hopefully make a living doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordin-sparks/my-goals-are-to-tell-meaningful-stories-through-songs-and-touch/) [Jordin Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordin-sparks/) > [It's important to tell meaningful stories and to find new ways to communicate those stories to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karyn-kusama/it-s-important-to-tell-meaningful-stories-and-to-find-new-ways-to/) [Karyn Kusama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karyn-kusama/) > [The richest most meaningful stories are found in small places: made, carried, crafted, told, and retold by apparently unimportant people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-brown/the-richest-most-meaningful-stories-are-found-in-small-places-made/) [Louise Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-brown/) > [Meaningful stories have lots and lots of conflict. If we avoid conflict, our stories won't be meaningful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/meaningful-stories-have-lots-and-lots-of-conflict-if-we-avoid/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [I want to keep doing projects that speak for people within the community and tell different types of meaningful stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashton-sanders/i-want-to-keep-doing-projects-that-speak-for-people-within-the/) [Ashton Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashton-sanders/) > [“In order to tell you a story about who I am and why I am here, I must spend a little time asking myself...questions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annette-simmons/in-order-to-tell-you-a-story-about-who-i-am-and-why-i-am-here-i-must/) Annette Simmons > [Every day is a new opportunity to make your life a story worth telling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jairek-robbins/every-day-is-a-new-opportunity-to-make-your-life-a-story-worth-telling/) [Jairek Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jairek-robbins/) > [And what it depends on, of course, is whether the story itself is worth the ethical compromise it requires and whether the competition is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-mudd/and-what-it-depends-on-of-course-is-whether-the-story-itself-is-worth/) [Roger Mudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-mudd/) > [I would love to sign on to do a movie if it was the right role and if it was the right script, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/i-would-love-to-sign-on-to-do-a-movie-if-it-was-the-right-role-and-if/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [“No story is worth telling without the twists and turns. Make them count instead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-eriksson/no-story-is-worth-telling-without-the-twists-and-turns-make-them/) [Charlotte Eriksson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-eriksson/) > [Any story worth telling is worth exaggerating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/any-story-worth-telling-is-worth-exaggerating/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [“Stories that do not signal or illustrate a change in wisdom, growth or circumstance do not fulfill the basic requirements of a story worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-parnell/stories-that-do-not-signal-or-illustrate-a-change-in-wisdom-growth-or/) [Rob Parnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-parnell/) > [Anyone can have a once-upon-a-time or a happily-ever-after, but it's the journey between that makes the story worth telling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-colfer/anyone-can-have-a-once-upon-a-time-or-a-happily-ever-after-but-it-s/) [Chris Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-colfer/) > [It is my opinion that a story worth reading only in childhood is not worth reading even then.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-my-opinion-that-a-story-worth-reading-only-in-childhood-is-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“A picture is worth a thousand words. A story is worth a thousand images”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-m-kin/a-picture-is-worth-a-thousand-words-a-story-is-worth-a-thousand-images/) M.M. Kin ## More by Jane Espenson > [It is possible to care too much. It is possible to believe that you will never be as good as anyone else. And it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/it-is-possible-to-care-too-much-it-is-possible-to-believe-that-you/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [Luck is opportunity plus preparation plus luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/luck-is-opportunity-plus-preparation-plus-luck/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [I hope I am pigeonholed with comedy. I'm really not interested in writing the darker stuff, the emotional stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/i-hope-i-am-pigeonholed-with-comedy-i-m-really-not-interested-in/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [ Melissa \[ Rosenberg\] really has mastered coming from character. Everything radiates from the characters in this work. You don't feel like anything's imposed. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/melissa-rosenberg-really-has-mastered-coming-from-character/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [I recently had to wait two and a half hours in a doctor's office, just waiting to be seen. I literally was genuinely thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/i-recently-had-to-wait-two-and-a-half-hours-in-a-doctor-s-office-just/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [Movies are always made by committees, and the writer is not at the head of the committee. Thus, mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/movies-are-always-made-by-committees-and-the-writer-is-not-at-the/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [Mercy is the mark of a great man! (stabs defeated opponent) I guess I'm just a good man. (stabs opponent again) Well ... I'm alright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/mercy-is-the-mark-of-a-great-man-stabs-defeated-opponent-i-guess-i-m/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [You embraced what was already on the page, worked with it, massaged it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/you-embraced-what-was-already-on-the-page-worked-with-it-massaged-it/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [Forgive my rudeness. I cannot abide useless people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/forgive-my-rudeness-i-cannot-abide-useless-people/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [If we can't write diversity into sci-fi, then what's the point? You don't create new worlds to give them all the same limits of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/if-we-can-t-write-diversity-into-sci-fi-then-what-s-the-point-you-don/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [“Why Banning Miller, what a vision you are in your fine dress. Must've taken a dozen slaves a dozen days to get you into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/why-banning-miller-what-a-vision-you-are-in-your-fine-dress-must-ve/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [I saw it on the Twitter of today, on the online boards. There was a huge amount of negative reaction that's been forgotten because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/i-saw-it-on-the-twitter-of-today-on-the-online-boards-there-was-a/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [You are full of love. You love with all of your soul. It's brighter than the fire ... blinding. That's why you pull away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/you-are-full-of-love-you-love-with-all-of-your-soul-it-s-brighter/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [I think we should all start worrying about being downloaded and put in robots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/i-think-we-should-all-start-worrying-about-being-downloaded-and-put/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) > [In the case of judges, I wouldn't be shocked to find out the number on television exceeds the number in real life — what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/in-the-case-of-judges-i-wouldn-t-be-shocked-to-find-out-the-number-on/) [Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) [Explore all 24 Jane Espenson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/) ## More Add quotes > [Most marriages don't add two people together. They subtract one from the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-fleming/most-marriages-don-t-add-two-people-together-they-subtract-one-from/) [Ian Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-fleming/) > [Friendship, "the wine of life," should, like a well-stocked cellar, be continually renewed; and it is consolatory to think, that although we can seldom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-boswell/friendship-the-wine-of-life-should-like-a-well-stocked-cellar-be/) [James Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-boswell/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/) [Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/) > [A 'modern' man has nothing to add to modernism, if only because he has nothing to oppose it with. The well-adapted drop off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elias-canetti/a-modern-man-has-nothing-to-add-to-modernism-if-only-because-he-has/) [Elias Canetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elias-canetti/) > [Observation and theory get on best when they are mixed together, both helping one another in the pursuit of truth. It is a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-eddington/observation-and-theory-get-on-best-when-they-are-mixed-together-both/) [Arthur Eddington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-eddington/) > [I may add that we have more than once stated our willingness to conclude nonaggression pacts with the states neighboring our own!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-may-add-that-we-have-more-than-once-stated-our-willingness-to/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [The American Constitution declares 'All men are born equal.' The British Socialist Party add: 'All men must be kept equal'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-american-constitution-declares-all-men-are-born-equal-the-british/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Thirty days is just about the right amount of time to add a new habit or subtract a habit - like watching the news…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-cutts/thirty-days-is-just-about-the-right-amount-of-time-to-add-a-new-habit/) [Matt Cutts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-cutts/) > [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/) [John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/) > [The Greeks said grandly in their tragic phrase, 'Let no one be called happy till his death;' to which I would add, 'Let no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-barrett-browning/the-greeks-said-grandly-in-their-tragic-phrase-let-no-one-be-called/) [Elizabeth Barrett Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-barrett-browning/) > [Mostly we just add to the piles of rainbow glass that's been blown off the exteriors of the cany-colored buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/mostly-we-just-add-to-the-piles-of-rainbow-glass-that-s-been-blown/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Global is a unifying bond for people. Once they get outside their own heads and their own communities and see themselves in a broader…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-calvin/global-is-a-unifying-bond-for-people-once-they-get-outside-their-own/) [Kathy Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-calvin/) Browse all 2,710 Add quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Any story worth telling relates to real life in some meaningful way. Scifi allows you to tell meaningful stories without seeming too preachy - it adds a metaphorical layer between the story and the real world. 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