--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I want to write books that unlock the…" description: "\"I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in everybody's head.\" — John Updike" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eed/john-updike-396_book_i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-tr_2528212.png" --- # I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in… ![“I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in everybody's head.” quote by John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eed/john-updike-396_book_i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-tr_2528212.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eed/john-updike-396_book_i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-tr_2528212.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eed/john-updike-396_book_i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-tr_2528212.png) > “I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in everybody's head.” [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) ## 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 desires to craft books that clear mental blockages and inspire new thinking. **In simple terms:** Write to unlock mental roadblocks. Key Takeaway Write to inspire fresh ideas. Themes creativity mental clarity writing inspiration education Mood thoughtful hopeful Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - author workshops - creative retreats - education curricula - self-help literature Key Concepts cognitive psychology literary art problem solving Questions to Reflect On - What mental blocks do you face when reading? - How can literature make complex ideas accessible? A Different Perspective Complex ideas may not resonate with all readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Traffic jam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traffic-jam/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Drivers in a traffic jam, frustrated by each others presence, are not the most amiable of men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-riesman/drivers-in-a-traffic-jam-frustrated-by-each-others-presence-are-not/) [David Riesman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-riesman/) > [See beauty in those unexpected places. (she asked herself how people could let Bach be background noise.) See the opportunity in what looks like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-anne-radmacher/see-beauty-in-those-unexpected-places-she-asked-herself-how-people/) [Mary Anne Radmacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-anne-radmacher/) > [The fact is I like Mumbai less and less. My son says, 'Baba, let's go for a drive', and I tell him, 'Where's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/om-puri/the-fact-is-i-like-mumbai-less-and-less-my-son-says-baba-let-s-go-for/) [Om Puri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/om-puri/) > [There are never any traffic jams on the extra mile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/there-are-never-any-traffic-jams-on-the-extra-mile/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [Everyone can relate to being stuck in a traffic jam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mercedes-schlapp/everyone-can-relate-to-being-stuck-in-a-traffic-jam/) [Mercedes Schlapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mercedes-schlapp/) > [Doing stand-up comedy is in the middle of a traffic jam getting everybody moving again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/doing-stand-up-comedy-is-in-the-middle-of-a-traffic-jam-getting/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [Transport drives me crazy. I find myself on this constant conveyor belt and the planes, buses, traffic jams, ugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-wolf/transport-drives-me-crazy-i-find-myself-on-this-constant-conveyor/) [Patrick Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-wolf/) > [It is like sitting in a traffic jam on the San Diego Freeway with your windows rolled up and Portuguese music booming out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/it-is-like-sitting-in-a-traffic-jam-on-the-san-diego-freeway-with/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There is an element of mystique to radio, and I often listen to cricket commentary on radio, especially when one is stuck in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahul-dravid/there-is-an-element-of-mystique-to-radio-and-i-often-listen-to/) [Rahul Dravid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahul-dravid/) > [America to me is so varied and exciting. I always feel nostalgia for the place I'm not in, and then I get there and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-frazier/america-to-me-is-so-varied-and-exciting-i-always-feel-nostalgia-for/) [Ian Frazier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-frazier/) > [“If you're going to be in a traffic jam, at least enjoy the flavor. Make some toast.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bashar/if-you-re-going-to-be-in-a-traffic-jam-at-least-enjoy-the-flavor-make/) [Bashar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bashar/) > [The truth is that stress doesn't come from your boss, your kids, your spouse, traffic jams, health challenges, or other circumstances. It comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-that-stress-doesn-t-come-from-your-boss-your-kids-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If I was a Mayor, I would sort the traffic out and that includes public transport. The traffic jams really get on my nerves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delia-smith/if-i-was-a-mayor-i-would-sort-the-traffic-out-and-that-includes/) [Delia Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delia-smith/) > [I'm being followed so much I'm causing traffic jams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/i-m-being-followed-so-much-i-m-causing-traffic-jams/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [If our goal is to be tolerant of people who are different than we are, then we really are aiming quite low. Traffic jams…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glennon-melton/if-our-goal-is-to-be-tolerant-of-people-who-are-different-than-we-are/) [Glennon Melton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glennon-melton/) ## More by John Updike > [Life is a roller coaster, you have your ups and downs unless you fall off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/life-is-a-roller-coaster-you-have-your-ups-and-downs-unless-you-fall/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Children are not a zoo of entertainingly exotic creatures, but an array of mirrors in which the human predicament leaps out at us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/children-are-not-a-zoo-of-entertainingly-exotic-creatures-but-an/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I assume my stance, and take back the club, low, slowly; at the top, my eyes fog over, and my joints dip and swirl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-assume-my-stance-and-take-back-the-club-low-slowly-at-the-top-my/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The New England spirit does not seek solutions in a crowd; raw light and solitariness are less dreaded than welcomed as enhancers of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-new-england-spirit-does-not-seek-solutions-in-a-crowd-raw-light/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I imagine most of that stuff on the information highway is roadkill anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-imagine-most-of-that-stuff-on-the-information-highway-is-roadkill/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Families, doing everything for each other out of imagined obligation and always getting in each other's way, what a tangle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/families-doing-everything-for-each-other-out-of-imagined-obligation/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The fucking world is running out of gas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-fucking-world-is-running-out-of-gas/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The theme of old age doesn't seem to fascinate Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-theme-of-old-age-doesn-t-seem-to-fascinate-hollywood/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The mind cannot fall asleep as long as it watches itself. Only when the mind moves unwatched and becomes absorbed in images that tug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-mind-cannot-fall-asleep-as-long-as-it-watches-itself-only-when/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“it was somehow wonderful of her to be, in every detail, herself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/it-was-somehow-wonderful-of-her-to-be-in-every-detail-herself/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [In fiction, imaginary people become realer to us than any named celebrity glimpsed in a series of rumored events, whose causes and subtler ramifications…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/in-fiction-imaginary-people-become-realer-to-us-than-any-named/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Her hair had been going gray as long as he could remember; she bundled it behind in a bun held with hairpins that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/her-hair-had-been-going-gray-as-long-as-he-could-remember-she-bundled/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Possession diminishes perception of value, immediately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/possession-diminishes-perception-of-value-immediately/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I can't bear to finish things, beyond a certain point they get heavy. There's something so dead about a finished painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-can-t-bear-to-finish-things-beyond-a-certain-point-they-get-heavy/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Some people find fall depressing, others hate spring. I've always been a spring person myself. All that growth, you can feel Nature groaning, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/some-people-find-fall-depressing-others-hate-spring-i-ve-always-been/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Explore all 592 John Updike quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in everybody's head.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Updike" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-traffic-jam-in-everybody-s-head/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-traffic-jam-in-everybody-s-head/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eed/john-updike-396_book_i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-tr_2528212.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eed/john-updike-396_book_i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-tr_2528212.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eed/john-updike-396_book_i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-tr_2528212.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in everybody's head.” — John Updike", "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": "John Updike", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I want to write books that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-traffic-jam-in-everybody-s-head/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-want-to-write-books-that-unlock-the-traffic-jam-in-everybody-s-head/#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 } } ] } ```