--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You have to live a life to become a writer." description: "\"You have to live a life to become a writer.\" — Joel Surnow" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a3/joel-surnow-56035_life_you-have-to-live-a-life-to-become-a-writ_2819806.png" --- # You have to live a life to become a writer. ![“You have to live a life to become a writer.” quote by Joel Surnow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a3/joel-surnow-56035_life_you-have-to-live-a-life-to-become-a-writ_2819806.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a3/joel-surnow-56035_life_you-have-to-live-a-life-to-become-a-writ_2819806.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a3/joel-surnow-56035_life_you-have-to-live-a-life-to-become-a-writ_2819806.png) > “You have to live a life to become a writer.” [Joel Surnow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-surnow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Becoming a writer requires living a full life, implying experience fuels storytelling. **In simple terms:** Live fully to write well. Key Takeaway Gather experiences for storytelling. Themes creativity experience writing life lessons Mood inspirational practical Type thoughtful encouraging When to use this quote - travel - career changes - personal growth Key Concepts narrative authenticity inspiration Questions to Reflect On - What experiences could enrich your writing? - How does life inform your creative voice? A Different Perspective Stories need depth from lived experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Live life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-life/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I started out life as a writer, and writers write in part because they don't want to talk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-started-out-life-as-a-writer-and-writers-write-in-part-because-they/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [“The life of a writer is absolute hell compared with the life of a businessman. The writer has to force himself to work. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roald-dahl/the-life-of-a-writer-is-absolute-hell-compared-with-the-life-of-a/) [Roald Dahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roald-dahl/) > [What has stayed true in my life as a writer is my dedication to writing - I try to write every day, no matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-duhamel/what-has-stayed-true-in-my-life-as-a-writer-is-my-dedication-to/) [Denise Duhamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-duhamel/) > [What I really wanted was every kind of life, and the writer’s life seemed the most inclusive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/what-i-really-wanted-was-every-kind-of-life-and-the-writer-s-life/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [To make your life being a writer, it's an auto-slavery ... you are both the slave and the task-master.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/to-make-your-life-being-a-writer-it-s-an-auto-slavery-you-are-both/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [I sometimes have the sense that I live my life as a writer with my nose pressed against the wide, shiny plate glass window…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-clausen/i-sometimes-have-the-sense-that-i-live-my-life-as-a-writer-with-my/) [Jan Clausen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-clausen/) > [I was one of those kids who looks really good on paper, I tested very well, I went to a fancy college, won some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-bardugo/i-was-one-of-those-kids-who-looks-really-good-on-paper-i-tested-very/) [Leigh Bardugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-bardugo/) > [Don't put down too many roots in terms of a domicile. 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They might be millionaires, or they might be starving people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-think-it-s-quite-difficult-to-understand-what-kind-of-life-a-writer/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“The Ordinary is Extraordinary ..." my motto for life as a writer/Mom/woman”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-barr/the-ordinary-is-extraordinary-my-motto-for-life-as-a-writer-mom-woman/) Lisa Barr > [“I wrote the last sentence of The Patron Saint of Liars in early April and stumbled out of my apartment and into the beautiful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/i-wrote-the-last-sentence-of-the-patron-saint-of-liars-in-early-april/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [Dad has worked as a banker at the same firm in Boston, living in the same suburban neighborhood for over 50 years. Later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amor-towles/dad-has-worked-as-a-banker-at-the-same-firm-in-boston-living-in-the/) [Amor Towles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amor-towles/) ## More by Joel Surnow > [I went to the top of the mountain in television and could do anything I wanted, but I wanted to do an independent film,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-surnow/i-went-to-the-top-of-the-mountain-in-television-and-could-do-anything/) [Joel Surnow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-surnow/) > [A good movie with bad music can kill a great dramatic scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-surnow/a-good-movie-with-bad-music-can-kill-a-great-dramatic-scene/) [Joel Surnow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-surnow/) > [A script is just a script. A good script can be a bad movie, so easily. It's the process that makes it good. 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