--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A beginning idea for a book might be: a…" description: "\"A beginning idea for a book might be: a boy emerges from a hole in the ground. He enters a house. The book will take place in the first ten minutes fol..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/jesse-ball-10640_arrivals_a-beginning-idea-for-a-book-might-be-a-b_2939270.jpg" --- # A beginning idea for a book might be: a boy emerges from a… ![“A beginning idea for a book might be: a boy emerges from a hole in the ground. He enters a house. The book will take place in the first ten minutes following his arrival.” quote by Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/jesse-ball-10640_arrivals_a-beginning-idea-for-a-book-might-be-a-b_2939270.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/jesse-ball-10640_arrivals_a-beginning-idea-for-a-book-might-be-a-b_2939270.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/jesse-ball-10640_arrivals_a-beginning-idea-for-a-book-might-be-a-b_2939270.jpg) > “A beginning idea for a book might be: a boy emerges from a hole in the ground. He enters a house. The book will take place in the first ten minutes following his arrival.” [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A story could start with a boy emerging from a hole, focusing on the first ten minutes of his arrival. **In simple terms:** Begin with a mysterious, immediate setting. Key Takeaway Use tight time frames to build intrigue. Themes storytelling mystery time Mood curious intrigued Type creative instructional When to use this quote - novel writing - screenplay drafting - creative workshops Key Concepts narrative structure character introduction Questions to Reflect On - How would you develop the plot beyond ten minutes? - What emotions should the opening evoke? A Different Perspective Limited time may restrict character depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arrivals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrivals/) [Beginning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning/) [Beginning Idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning-idea-1238108/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Boy Emerges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boy-emerges-4374532/) [Boys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boys/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Following](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/following/) [Holes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holes/) [House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/house/) [House Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/house-book-3142731/) [Idea Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idea-book-542474/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [Minutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minutes/) [Ten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten/) ## Related quotes > [We never had books in the house. Not any book in our house. Not a Bible, not anything. So, I would go the library…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/we-never-had-books-in-the-house-not-any-book-in-our-house-not-a-bible/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > ['Ninth House' is my first book for adults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-bardugo/ninth-house-is-my-first-book-for-adults/) [Leigh Bardugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-bardugo/) > [I don't leave the house without a book, and I never watch television without one, either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adriana-trigiani/i-don-t-leave-the-house-without-a-book-and-i-never-watch-television/) [Adriana Trigiani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adriana-trigiani/) > [If I look at my work from the beginning it is more the idea of trying to establish a kind of material that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-struth/if-i-look-at-my-work-from-the-beginning-it-is-more-the-idea-of-trying/) [Thomas Struth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-struth/) > [The reason is that they define how I have gone about my business. I have trusted to intuition. I did it at the beginning.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul/the-reason-is-that-they-define-how-i-have-gone-about-my-business-i/) [V. S. Naipaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-naipaul/) > [There is no reason to suppose that the world had a beginning at all. The idea that things must have a beginning is really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/there-is-no-reason-to-suppose-that-the-world-had-a-beginning-at-all/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [Whatever machine you use, however sophisticated your technology , it's ideas that count. In the beginning was the idea. No machine will give you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-crabtree/whatever-machine-you-use-however-sophisticated-your-technology-it-s/) [Tom Crabtree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-crabtree/) > [All achievements, all earned riches, have their beginning in an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/all-achievements-all-earned-riches-have-their-beginning-in-an-idea/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [The idea for a book usually bubbles up from my sub-conscious when I am drifting off to sleep. Each one has started as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-bradby/the-idea-for-a-book-usually-bubbles-up-from-my-sub-conscious-when-i/) [Marie Bradby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-bradby/) > [You never know how - or when - the idea for a book will appear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deb-caletti/you-never-know-how-or-when-the-idea-for-a-book-will-appear/) [Deb Caletti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deb-caletti/) > [The ideas aren't that important. Really they aren't. Everyone's got an idea for a book, a movie, a story, a TV series.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-ideas-aren-t-that-important-really-they-aren-t-everyone-s-got-an/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [The idea of an e-book has been around since the late 1970s, when researchers at Xerox PARC got on the case. Their prototype used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-platt/the-idea-of-an-e-book-has-been-around-since-the-late-1970s-when/) [Charles Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-platt/) > [“Rissa Kerguelen by F. M. Busby. I read this now largely forgotten science fiction book at about the time I was starting my company,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-ferriss/rissa-kerguelen-by-f-m-busby-i-read-this-now-largely-forgotten/) [Timothy Ferriss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-ferriss/) > [Book ideas are like planes, lined up to approach the runway. Some never leave the gate, but others move quickly to the front of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-millman/book-ideas-are-like-planes-lined-up-to-approach-the-runway-some-never/) [Dan Millman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-millman/) > [At the moment, I'm toying with a new idea for a book, but fully engaged with writing screenplays, so the book idea - which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-tremain/at-the-moment-i-m-toying-with-a-new-idea-for-a-book-but-fully-engaged/) [Rose Tremain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-tremain/) ## More by Jesse Ball > [“-Lara is a weasel. I've always hated her. The only happy week I had as a child was when she fell from the roof…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/lara-is-a-weasel-i-ve-always-hated-her-the-only-happy-week-i-had-as-a/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [I'd say writing is easier for me now than it once was, but I do less of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/i-d-say-writing-is-easier-for-me-now-than-it-once-was-but-i-do-less/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [“Our knowledge about ourselves is our least reliable knowledge. Yet, so thoroughly do we ordinarily champion our own cause that it is acknowledged effective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/our-knowledge-about-ourselves-is-our-least-reliable-knowledge-yet-so/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [Not that believing such things has anything to do with whether they are true. You see that, don't you?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/not-that-believing-such-things-has-anything-to-do-with-whether-they/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [“We are born in this cemetery, but must not despair. -Piet Soron, 1847”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/we-are-born-in-this-cemetery-but-must-not-despair-piet-soron-1847/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [I have a different purpose in writing each novel. Some of them seem more similar than others, but the purposes are always different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/i-have-a-different-purpose-in-writing-each-novel-some-of-them-seem/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [Americans are genuinely and profoundly anti-intellectual. They are especially so in their pleasure-seeking, which is epically banal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/americans-are-genuinely-and-profoundly-anti-intellectual-they-are/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [Sunday was always the best of days for being the self you had intended to be, but were not, for one reason or another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/sunday-was-always-the-best-of-days-for-being-the-self-you-had/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [I don't think anything needs to happen in a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/i-don-t-think-anything-needs-to-happen-in-a-book/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [“Can you imagine? That you can say something, offhand, and it can matter, it can really matter to someone else? Can you imagine what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/can-you-imagine-that-you-can-say-something-offhand-and-it-can-matter/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [One can't say how one behaved or why, really. Such situations, they are far more complex than any either/or proposition. It is simplistic to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/one-can-t-say-how-one-behaved-or-why-really-such-situations-they-are/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [“One cultivates one's life, one's friends, one's means, one's hopes. One goes from place to place, from triumph to triumph, in search of ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/one-cultivates-one-s-life-one-s-friends-one-s-means-one-s-hopes-one/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [“The whole thing about people living on in memory is a crock of shit. The best you can do is try to remember what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/the-whole-thing-about-people-living-on-in-memory-is-a-crock-of-shit/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [That would be the death of anyone - to recognize false hopes with a certainty. One mustn't know that. If it is offered, refuse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/that-would-be-the-death-of-anyone-to-recognize-false-hopes-with-a/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [I believe in discovering the love that exists and then trying to understand it. Not to invent a love and try to make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/i-believe-in-discovering-the-love-that-exists-and-then-trying-to/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) [Explore all 63 Jesse Ball quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) ## More Arrivals quotes > [You are quite, quite wrong if you think that ... I find your happiness painful. What matters is that happiness - the golden day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winifred-holtby/you-are-quite-quite-wrong-if-you-think-that-i-find-your-happiness/) [Winifred Holtby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winifred-holtby/) > [Arrival = Prison, and the artist must never be a prisoner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-matisse/arrival-prison-and-the-artist-must-never-be-a-prisoner/) [Henri Matisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-matisse/) > [I see ... a pile of skulls and bones. For the first time since my arrival, what I see before me is too painful,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dith-pran/i-see-a-pile-of-skulls-and-bones-for-the-first-time-since-my-arrival/) [Dith Pran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dith-pran/) > [The future turns out to be something that you make instead of find. It isn't waiting for your arrival, either with an arrest warrant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-h-lapham/the-future-turns-out-to-be-something-that-you-make-instead-of-find-it/) [Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) > [The beauty of inspiration for me is that you can't predict when it's coming. I like that it just pops up out of nowhere.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scout-niblett/the-beauty-of-inspiration-for-me-is-that-you-can-t-predict-when-it-s/) [Scout Niblett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scout-niblett/) > [“When you are waiting for a train, don't keep perpetually looking to see if it is coming. The time of its arrival is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-are-waiting-for-a-train-don-t-keep-perpetually-looking-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Upon my arrival in the United States the religious aspect of the country was the first thing that struck my attention; and the longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/upon-my-arrival-in-the-united-states-the-religious-aspect-of-the/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [Unconscious of your story, you are in its grasp; but with consciousness, an alchemical process begins: The solidity of the complex dissolves and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-zweig/unconscious-of-your-story-you-are-in-its-grasp-but-with-consciousness/) [Connie Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-zweig/) > [Life is a continual process of arrival into who we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-popova/life-is-a-continual-process-of-arrival-into-who-we-are/) [Maria Popova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-popova/) > [Prison is a severe and terrible punishment; but for me, thanks to Arthur Balfour, this was not so. I was much cheered on my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/prison-is-a-severe-and-terrible-punishment-but-for-me-thanks-to/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [Death in Somalia seldom bothers to announce its arrival. In fact, death calls with the arrogance of a guest confident on receiving a warm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuruddin-farah/death-in-somalia-seldom-bothers-to-announce-its-arrival-in-fact-death/) [Nuruddin Farah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuruddin-farah/) > [The arrival of Ade Akinbiyi gave everyone a lift. He's a natural born goalscorer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-francis/the-arrival-of-ade-akinbiyi-gave-everyone-a-lift-he-s-a-natural-born/) [Trevor Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-francis/) > [many writers believe in arrival without leaving home. They believe in talent but not skill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-delton/many-writers-believe-in-arrival-without-leaving-home-they-believe-in/) [Judy Delton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-delton/) > [We become, after the arrival of the printing press in general, more attentive more attuned to contemplative ways of thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-g-carr/we-become-after-the-arrival-of-the-printing-press-in-general-more/) [Nicholas G. Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-g-carr/) > [Our tomorrows must be met at the time of their arrival... with the HOPE they are as BEAUTIFUL as today!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-peterson/our-tomorrows-must-be-met-at-the-time-of-their-arrival-with-the-hope/) [Joe Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-peterson/) [Browse all 173 Arrivals quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrivals/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A beginning idea for a book might be: a boy emerges from a hole in the ground. He enters a house. 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