--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can't even imagine writing nonfiction…" description: "\"I can't even imagine writing nonfiction by hand. I think if I didn't have a computer, I just couldn't do it. Maybe it's a brain-section issue.\" — Jenni..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/jennifer-egan-825_computer_i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction_1110060.jpg" --- # I can't even imagine writing nonfiction by hand. I think… ![“I can't even imagine writing nonfiction by hand. I think if I didn't have a computer, I just couldn't do it. Maybe it's a brain-section issue.” quote by Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/jennifer-egan-825_computer_i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction_1110060.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/jennifer-egan-825_computer_i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction_1110060.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/jennifer-egan-825_computer_i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction_1110060.jpg) > “I can't even imagine writing nonfiction by hand. I think if I didn't have a computer, I just couldn't do it. Maybe it's a brain-section issue.” [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author suggests that modern technology is essential for producing nonfiction, implying that without computers the task would be impossible. **In simple terms:** Writing nonfiction feels impossible without a computer. Key Takeaway Embrace digital tools for writing. Themes technology creativity writing Mood reflective analytical Type observational critical When to use this quote - journalism - academic research - personal essays - book projects Key Concepts digital dependence cognitive load Questions to Reflect On - How does technology shape your writing process? - Can you write without digital assistance? A Different Perspective Relies heavily on tech; may undervalue manual drafting. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Computer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hand/) [I think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-think/) [Imagine Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagine-writing-856148/) [Maybe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maybe/) [Maybe Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maybe-brain-1881480/) [Nonfiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonfiction/) [Nonfiction Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonfiction-hand-2953008/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing nonfiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-nonfiction/) ## Related quotes > [I write fiction longhand. That's not so much about rejecting technology as being unable to write fiction on a computer for some reason. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-write-fiction-longhand-that-s-not-so-much-about-rejecting/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I started writing nonfiction because nonfiction is well-suited to subjects that, if you wrote them as fiction, people would say, "I don't believe this.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-monroe/i-started-writing-nonfiction-because-nonfiction-is-well-suited-to/) [Debra Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-monroe/) > [I love playing with language and the rhythm of language - for some reason, this seems so much easier for me to do when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uzodinma-iweala/i-love-playing-with-language-and-the-rhythm-of-language-for-some/) [Uzodinma Iweala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uzodinma-iweala/) > [There is always a certain leap of faith that editors have made with their nonfiction writers. If the trust is broken, things can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-scott-berg/there-is-always-a-certain-leap-of-faith-that-editors-have-made-with/) [A. Scott Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-scott-berg/) > [If you go through any newspaper or magazine and look for active, kicking verbs in the sentences, you will realize that this lack of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-flesch/if-you-go-through-any-newspaper-or-magazine-and-look-for-active/) [Rudolf Flesch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-flesch/) > [Writing nonfiction is more like sculpture, a matter of shaping the research into the finished thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/writing-nonfiction-is-more-like-sculpture-a-matter-of-shaping-the-2/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [When I'm writing fiction I'm thinking, God, this is so hard - I have to make all this stuff up! I wish I were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/when-i-m-writing-fiction-i-m-thinking-god-this-is-so-hard-i-have-to/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [I suppose writing nonfiction did prepare me for writing fiction. Whenever you write anything, you're honing your skills for writing anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-suppose-writing-nonfiction-did-prepare-me-for-writing-fiction/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“Writing nonfiction means I tell people's stories for them, not because they're special but because we all are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-deurbrouck/writing-nonfiction-means-i-tell-people-s-stories-for-them-not-because/) [Jo Deurbrouck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-deurbrouck/) > [Writing fiction is for me a fraught business, an occasion of daily dread for at least the first half of the novel, and sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/writing-fiction-is-for-me-a-fraught-business-an-occasion-of-daily/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [It's exhausting writing nonfiction, particularly when it's personal. It's tiring, always speaking about things that are not necessarily fun retelling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ishmael-beah/it-s-exhausting-writing-nonfiction-particularly-when-it-s-personal-it/) [Ishmael Beah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ishmael-beah/) > [Writing nonfiction is more like sculpture, a matter of shaping the research into the finished thing. Novels are like paintings, specifically watercolors. Every stroke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/writing-nonfiction-is-more-like-sculpture-a-matter-of-shaping-the/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [I feel like I'm almost ready to write fiction about the border. But even after 10 years of writing nonfiction about it, I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/i-feel-like-i-m-almost-ready-to-write-fiction-about-the-border-but/) [William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/) > [Writing nonfiction of various kinds has been instructive and entertaining as well as paying the rent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-dunn/writing-nonfiction-of-various-kinds-has-been-instructive-and/) [Katherine Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-dunn/) > [“Writing a nonfiction book should primarily be about establishing credibility and authority in a specific domain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hassan-osman/writing-a-nonfiction-book-should-primarily-be-about-establishing/) [Hassan Osman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hassan-osman/) ## More by Jennifer Egan > [“Behind the desk was nothing but view-the whole city flung out in front of us the way street vendors fling out their towels packed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/behind-the-desk-was-nothing-but-view-the-whole-city-flung-out-in/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I just think that, for my particular personality, feeling slightly invisible is always a help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-just-think-that-for-my-particular-personality-feeling-slightly/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Between books, I have to throw out everything I did before, because the tools I've used to write the previous book will not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/between-books-i-have-to-throw-out-everything-i-did-before-because-the/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [As a reader and a writer, I'm happiest when apparently mutually exclusive states can somehow coexist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/as-a-reader-and-a-writer-i-m-happiest-when-apparently-mutually/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I teach intermittently, and while I enjoy it, I don't find that it's a calling for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-teach-intermittently-and-while-i-enjoy-it-i-don-t-find-that-it-s-a/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Like all failed experiments, that one taught me something I didn’t expect: one key ingredient of so-called experience is the delusional faith that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/like-all-failed-experiments-that-one-taught-me-something-i-didn-t/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [“Thousands of solar panels lift and tilt at the same time, in the same way. I clutch at Dad's arm: "Why are they doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/thousands-of-solar-panels-lift-and-tilt-at-the-same-time-in-the-same/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [It was the hat. He looked sweet in the hat. How could a man in a fuzzy blue hat have used human bones to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/it-was-the-hat-he-looked-sweet-in-the-hat-how-could-a-man-in-a-fuzzy/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I was a stepchild in two different families. The hardest thing about being a stepchild is you know that in some way everything would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-was-a-stepchild-in-two-different-families-the-hardest-thing-about/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [“The seconds pass. I know what’s going on because it’s the same thing that always happens: give me something nice, something I love or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/the-seconds-pass-i-know-what-s-going-on-because-it-s-the-same-thing/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I had this idea that I could hire myself out as a person to go on archeological digs and dig, without any training! I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-had-this-idea-that-i-could-hire-myself-out-as-a-person-to-go-on/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [At night, the house thick with sleep, she would peer out her bedroom window at the trees and sky and feel the presence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/at-night-the-house-thick-with-sleep-she-would-peer-out-her-bedroom/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-book-is-done-i-ll-have-75-or-80/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Read at the level at which you want to write. Reading is the nourishment that feeds the kind of writing you want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/read-at-the-level-at-which-you-want-to-write-reading-is-the/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I was a stepchild in two different families. The hardest thing about being a stepchild is you know that in some way everything would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-was-a-stepchild-in-two-different-families-the-hardest-thing-about-2/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) [Explore all 358 Jennifer Egan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) ## More Computer quotes > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [The display is the computer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-hsun-huang/the-display-is-the-computer/) [Jen-Hsun Huang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-hsun-huang/) > [It's interesting that the greatest minds of computer science, the founding fathers, like Alan Turing and Claude Shannon and Norbert Wiener, they all looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-kasparov/it-s-interesting-that-the-greatest-minds-of-computer-science-the/) [Garry Kasparov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-kasparov/) > [One of our big goals in search is to make search that really understands exactly what you want, understands everything in the world. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-page/one-of-our-big-goals-in-search-is-to-make-search-that-really/) [Larry Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-page/) > [We are beginning to see intimations of this in the implantation of computer devices into the human body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kurzweil/we-are-beginning-to-see-intimations-of-this-in-the-implantation-of/) [Ray Kurzweil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kurzweil/) > [I'm from the South, so I'm very old-fashioned and I'm not very computer savvy at all, but I'm getting it. I understand that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angie-harmon/i-m-from-the-south-so-i-m-very-old-fashioned-and-i-m-not-very/) [Angie Harmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angie-harmon/) > [“To all the secret writers, late-night painters, would-be singers, lapsed and scared artists of every stripe, dig out your paintbrush, or your flute, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/to-all-the-secret-writers-late-night-painters-would-be-singers-lapsed/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [A little bit more than 50% of what you see on screen is handcrafted and the other 50% was about emulating these textures on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-abreu/a-little-bit-more-than-50-of-what-you-see-on-screen-is-handcrafted/) [Alex Abreu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-abreu/) > [Well I'm trying to think what I put in... I think I put in 'why?' to see if I'd confuse the computer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pilkington/well-i-m-trying-to-think-what-i-put-in-i-think-i-put-in-why-to-see-if/) [Karl Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pilkington/) > [Our brains are great at knowing what to forget. We actually have to teach computers to do the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-maney/our-brains-are-great-at-knowing-what-to-forget-we-actually-have-to/) [Kevin Maney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-maney/) > [Nor would anybody suspect. If was one thing all people took for granted, was conviction that if you feed honest figures into a computer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/nor-would-anybody-suspect-if-was-one-thing-all-people-took-for/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [In nine months, a group of children left alone with a computer in any language will reach the same standard as an office secretary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sugata-mitra/in-nine-months-a-group-of-children-left-alone-with-a-computer-in-any/) [Sugata Mitra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sugata-mitra/) > [Why do you do what you do? Why do you dress the way you dress?Why do you do what you do with your time?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-conway/why-do-you-do-what-you-do-why-do-you-dress-the-way-you-dress-why-do/) [Tim Conway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-conway/) > [Yeah, I'm a geek. I read sci-fi and I watch sci-fi films. I love my computer and I love to fix it. I'm a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-benson/yeah-i-m-a-geek-i-read-sci-fi-and-i-watch-sci-fi-films-i-love-my/) [Amber Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-benson/) [Browse all 3,924 Computer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I can't even imagine writing nonfiction by hand. I think if I didn't have a computer, I just couldn't do it. Maybe it's a brain-section issue.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jennifer Egan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction-by-hand-i-think-if-i-didn-t/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Computer" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction-by-hand-i-think-if-i-didn-t/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/jennifer-egan-825_computer_i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction_1110060.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/jennifer-egan-825_computer_i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction_1110060.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/039/jennifer-egan-825_computer_i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction_1110060.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I can't even imagine writing nonfiction by hand. I think if I didn't have a computer, I just couldn't do it…” — Jennifer Egan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jennifer Egan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I can't even imagine writing nonfiction...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction-by-hand-i-think-if-i-didn-t/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-can-t-even-imagine-writing-nonfiction-by-hand-i-think-if-i-didn-t/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```