--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You're often looking at writing from…" description: "\"You're often looking at writing from writers who, for the most part, are working in forms that traditionally fit into other genres. But sometimes, in t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/732/john-d-agata-13689_cracks_you-re-often-looking-at-writing-from-wri_1278774.jpg" --- # You're often looking at writing from writers who, for the… ![“You're often looking at writing from writers who, for the most part, are working in forms that traditionally fit into other genres. But sometimes, in the midst of their better-known stuff, there's this wayward thing, and because it's wayward it isn't considered representative of their work, so it…” quote by John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/732/john-d-agata-13689_cracks_you-re-often-looking-at-writing-from-wri_1278774.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/732/john-d-agata-13689_cracks_you-re-often-looking-at-writing-from-wri_1278774.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/732/john-d-agata-13689_cracks_you-re-often-looking-at-writing-from-wri_1278774.jpg) > “You're often looking at writing from writers who, for the most part, are working in forms that traditionally fit into other genres. But sometimes, in the midst of their better-known stuff, there's this wayward thing, and because it's wayward it isn't considered representative of their work, so it falls through the cracks.” [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It observes that writers often produce work outside their usual genre, which is overlooked because it doesn't fit expectations. **In simple terms:** Unconventional works are ignored. Key Takeaway Seek out hidden facets of creators. Themes genre creativity oversight Mood curious thoughtful Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - publishing - reading - creative workshops Key Concepts literary criticism boundary crossing Questions to Reflect On - Why do we ignore atypical pieces? - How can we broaden our literary expectations? A Different Perspective Risk of misinterpretation of marginal works. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cracks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cracks/) [Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall/) [Fit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fit/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Genre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genre/) [Genres Midst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genres-midst-4124557/) [Known](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/known/) [Midst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midst/) [Representatives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/representatives/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Stuff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stuff/) [Stuff Wayward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stuff-wayward-4124555/) [Thing Wayward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-wayward-4124556/) [Wayward Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wayward-thing-2223280/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writers Working](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers-working-595616/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Obviously the whole Wayward thing hasn't been explained to you properly. 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If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-gordon/people-don-t-want-to-pay-for-pitches-they-want-to-see-it-if-you-hear/) [Mark Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-gordon/) > [For writers from working-class families, the making of art is cultural disenfranchisement, for we do not belong in literary circles and our writing rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-miner/for-writers-from-working-class-families-the-making-of-art-is-cultural/) [Valerie Miner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-miner/) > [“One thing that separates would-be writers from working writers is that the latter know their work will never match their dreams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-keyes/one-thing-that-separates-would-be-writers-from-working-writers-is/) [Ralph Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-keyes/) > [Even though I've mostly done movies, TV has developed in such a wonderful way over the past few years in the sense that film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thekla-reuten/even-though-i-ve-mostly-done-movies-tv-has-developed-in-such-a/) [Thekla Reuten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thekla-reuten/) > [I just love working with actors, and I love working with writers, working with designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-just-love-working-with-actors-and-i-love-working-with-writers/) [Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/) > [For many imaginative writers, working for the press is a fact of their life. 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There's a lot of variety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-jacobson/sometimes-i-work-in-my-office-just-reading-material-meeting-writers/) [Nina Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-jacobson/) > [What happens is that the experience of writers working together and the idea of creative collaboration is so delightful, but it has been relegated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akiva-goldsman/what-happens-is-that-the-experience-of-writers-working-together-and/) [Akiva Goldsman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akiva-goldsman/) > [Of course, I don't mean to imply that all writers are working in the deep waters that border on the divine. Most writers are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-keck/of-course-i-don-t-mean-to-imply-that-all-writers-are-working-in-the/) [Kevin Keck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-keck/) > [The figure of the enthusiast who has just discovered jogging or a new way to fix tofu can be said to stand or, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-h-lapham/the-figure-of-the-enthusiast-who-has-just-discovered-jogging-or-a-new/) [Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) > [Most startups are not just built for the person who is using them. When you do that, every now and then you get really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmett-shear/most-startups-are-not-just-built-for-the-person-who-is-using-them/) [Emmett Shear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmett-shear/) > [How do you, on the one hand, not object to Hillary Clinton being elected, and then, on the other hand, tell people, "Elect me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/how-do-you-on-the-one-hand-not-object-to-hillary-clinton-being/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) ## More by John D'Agata > [Inclusiveness isn't what I want to push back against. The obsession with facts is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/inclusiveness-isn-t-what-i-want-to-push-back-against-the-obsession/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [Yet there are some critics in the nonfiction world who still look at some of today's stranger interpretations of the essay and say "You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/yet-there-are-some-critics-in-the-nonfiction-world-who-still-look-at/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [I think that in a lot of readers' minds the essay is a lot more utilitarian than it is art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/i-think-that-in-a-lot-of-readers-minds-the-essay-is-a-lot-more/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [As frustrating as my time in grad school felt, it also helped tremendously because it challenged me to figure out what it was I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/as-frustrating-as-my-time-in-grad-school-felt-it-also-helped/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [I'm not worried about what part of their life they needed to massage in order to achieve something that I get to experience as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/i-m-not-worried-about-what-part-of-their-life-they-needed-to-massage/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [You create your own audience, and your own community of peers, and in some ways you create your own forebears as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/you-create-your-own-audience-and-your-own-community-of-peers-and-in/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [Even if it's a definition that feels oppressive to us, that oppression can be inspiring because it helps us push up against something while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/even-if-it-s-a-definition-that-feels-oppressive-to-us-that-oppression/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [I thought that I wasn't an essayist because I just didn't see myself in a lot of the essays that were popular at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/i-thought-that-i-wasn-t-an-essayist-because-i-just-didn-t-see-myself/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [A risk is something that feels risky to the person who's taking it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/a-risk-is-something-that-feels-risky-to-the-person-who-s-taking-it/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [You move your life across the country and make a commitment to a place, and to a genre, and then you realize that neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/you-move-your-life-across-the-country-and-make-a-commitment-to-a/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [Pedagogically, we need definitions and borders. They help us get our heads around what we're talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/pedagogically-we-need-definitions-and-borders-they-help-us-get-our/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [“Maybe every essay automatically is in some way experimental — less an outline traveling toward a foregone conclusion than an unmapped quest that has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/maybe-every-essay-automatically-is-in-some-way-experimental-less-an/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [I wanted to create an environment in which more than just personal essays could be represented, and in which stranger approaches to making essays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/i-wanted-to-create-an-environment-in-which-more-than-just-personal/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [Sometimes what I'm looking for is the thing that will help renew people's interest in a writer that they may have written off as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/sometimes-what-i-m-looking-for-is-the-thing-that-will-help-renew/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [It's fun to just skim through piles of books in the stacks of a library.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/it-s-fun-to-just-skim-through-piles-of-books-in-the-stacks-of-a/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) [Explore all 49 John D'Agata quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) ## More Cracks quotes > [Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage! Blow! You cataracts and hurricanoes, spout Till you have drenched our teeples, drowned the cocks! You sulphurour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/blow-winds-and-crack-your-cheeks-rage-blow-you-cataracts-and/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I'm 45 years old. I used to be a club girl, but that's not my world anymore. That doesn't mean I can't make music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-manson/i-m-45-years-old-i-used-to-be-a-club-girl-but-that-s-not-my-world/) [Shirley Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-manson/) > [There's material that I read that I fall in love with, and I always get a little bit sad because I know that, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-chriqui/there-s-material-that-i-read-that-i-fall-in-love-with-and-i-always/) [Emmanuelle Chriqui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-chriqui/) > [The world is a stone wall ... and they have put the stones so close together that there is not a single crack through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eiji-yoshikawa/the-world-is-a-stone-wall-and-they-have-put-the-stones-so-close/) [Eiji Yoshikawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eiji-yoshikawa/) > [Interesting, isn’t it? What do you have to say about that, Fury? (Savitar) They’re on crack. (Fury) Anyone else on crack? (Savitar)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/interesting-isn-t-it-what-do-you-have-to-say-about-that-fury-savitar/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [You boys know what tropism is, it's what makes a plant grow toward the light. Everything aspires to the light. You don't have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/you-boys-know-what-tropism-is-it-s-what-makes-a-plant-grow-toward-the/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [What am I doing with my life am I living it or am I just going to some hum drum job that I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kai-greene/what-am-i-doing-with-my-life-am-i-living-it-or-am-i-just-going-to/) [Kai Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kai-greene/) > [Then there were the shabti, magical figurines that were supposed to come to life when summoned. A few months ago, I’d fallen for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/then-there-were-the-shabti-magical-figurines-that-were-supposed-to/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [When I was younger, I used humour as a tool to avoid getting too serious with people - if there was deep emotional stuff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-perry/when-i-was-younger-i-used-humour-as-a-tool-to-avoid-getting-too/) [Matthew Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-perry/) > [I'm a girl who has been tamping down her emotions and keeping them tightly guarded her whole life. And that works really well for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/i-m-a-girl-who-has-been-tamping-down-her-emotions-and-keeping-them/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [I was on the verge of something numinous and profound and in one more second the universe was going to crack open and arcana…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/i-was-on-the-verge-of-something-numinous-and-profound-and-in-one-more/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [It doesn't have the ability to think rationally this economic model. 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This is where I learned to swear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/there-is-some-really-good-crack-when-i-come-back-here-this-is-where-i/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) [Browse all 1,039 Cracks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cracks/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You're often looking at writing from writers who, for the most part, are working in forms that traditionally fit into other genres. 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