---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Writing is physical for me. I always have…"
description: "\"Writing is physical for me. I always have the sense that the words are coming out of my body, not just my mind.\" — Jonathan Lethem"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/724/jonathan-lethem-1403_body_writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have_2065836.png"
---

#  Writing is physical for me. I always have the sense that…

![“Writing is physical for me. I always have the sense that the words are coming out of my body, not just my mind.” quote by Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/724/jonathan-lethem-1403_body_writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have_2065836.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/724/jonathan-lethem-1403_body_writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have_2065836.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/724/jonathan-lethem-1403_body_writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have_2065836.png)

> “Writing is physical for me. I always have the sense that the words are coming out of my body, not just my mind.”

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Writing feels bodily, as if words emerge from the body rather than just the mind.

**In simple terms:** Writing feels like a bodily action.

Key Takeaway

Treat writing as a physical practice.

Themes

writing embodiment creativity physicality mind‑body connection

Mood

reflective energetic

Type

creative motivational

When to use this quote

- author workshop
- writing retreat
- physical therapy
- mindfulness class
- performance art

Key Concepts

somatic writing creative flow embodied cognition

Questions to Reflect On

- How does physical sensation affect your prose?
- Can you train your body to write better?

A Different Perspective

May not apply to all writers, especially those who type.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Coming out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coming-out/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [The words that are coming out of my mouth and how I mean them, it's so much different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-sweatshirt/the-words-that-are-coming-out-of-my-mouth-and-how-i-mean-them-it-s-so/)

[Earl Sweatshirt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-sweatshirt/)

> [Writing is physical work. It's sweaty work. You just can't will yourself to become a good writer. You really have to work at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wil-haygood/writing-is-physical-work-it-s-sweaty-work-you-just-can-t-will/)

Wil Haygood

> [To me, writing is a very physical process. I lay out the entire book with the two narratives side by side on my bedroom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/to-me-writing-is-a-very-physical-process-i-lay-out-the-entire-book/)

[Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/)

> [“Writing is a physical art. And writing a book is a lot more like making a complex sculpture out of bronze than writing a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-sellers/writing-is-a-physical-art-and-writing-a-book-is-a-lot-more-like/)

[Heather Sellers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-sellers/)

> [“Writing is physical work. It’s sweaty work. You can’t just will yourself to become a good writer. You really have to work at it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-haygood/writing-is-physical-work-it-s-sweaty-work-you-can-t-just-will/)

Will Haygood

> [“Lots of things are more than what they seem in a purely physical sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/lots-of-things-are-more-than-what-they-seem-in-a-purely-physical-sense/)

[Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/)

> [The axioms of physics translate the laws of ethics. Thus, "the whole is greater than its part;" "reaction is equal to action;" "the smallest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-axioms-of-physics-translate-the-laws-of-ethics-thus-the-whole-is/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [Nothing physical which sense-experience sets before our eyes, or which necessary demonstrations prove to us, ought to be called in question (much less condemned)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/nothing-physical-which-sense-experience-sets-before-our-eyes-or-which/)

[Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/)

> [“When our poor, faultily sensitive vision can perceive a thing, we say that it is visible. When the nerves of touch can feel it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-stevens/when-our-poor-faultily-sensitive-vision-can-perceive-a-thing-we-say-2/)

Francis Stevens

> [I'm a very physical actor. I use everything - toes, teeth, ears, everything. I don't simply mean physical in the sense of movement and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-o-toole/i-m-a-very-physical-actor-i-use-everything-toes-teeth-ears-everything/)

[Peter O'Toole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-o-toole/)

> [Somewhere there is an essence. It is not a physical somewhere. There is no sense of world, of time and space. That is nirvana.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/somewhere-there-is-an-essence-it-is-not-a-physical-somewhere-there-is/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [“When our poor, faultily sensitive vision can perceive a thing, we say that it is visible. When the nerves of touch can feel it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-vandermeer/when-our-poor-faultily-sensitive-vision-can-perceive-a-thing-we-say/)

[Jeff VanderMeer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-vandermeer/)

> [Walking the thin line between hope and fear. Words coming out crystal clear. As though Judgement were hear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boonaa-mohammed/walking-the-thin-line-between-hope-and-fear-words-coming-out-crystal/)

[Boonaa Mohammed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boonaa-mohammed/)

> [Those are pretty strong words coming from Macaulay Culkins little brother!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cena/those-are-pretty-strong-words-coming-from-macaulay-culkins-little/)

[John Cena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cena/)

> [“These are Tyler's words coming out of my mouth. I am Tyler's mouth. I am Tyler's hands.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/these-are-tyler-s-words-coming-out-of-my-mouth-i-am-tyler-s-mouth-i/)

[Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/)

## More by Jonathan Lethem

> [It was often this way, life consisted of a series of false beginnings, bluff declarations of arrival to destinations not even glimpsed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/it-was-often-this-way-life-consisted-of-a-series-of-false-beginnings/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [I've been an advocate against the view of the writer as a partitioned genius hanging in conceptual space, or up on a mountain, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/i-ve-been-an-advocate-against-the-view-of-the-writer-as-a-partitioned/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“I suppose there was never a reason for tearing down a cabin or scrapping a stopped automobile, if you had all those acres.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/i-suppose-there-was-never-a-reason-for-tearing-down-a-cabin-or/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [Life is fundamentally up for grabs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/life-is-fundamentally-up-for-grabs/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [My heart, to put it more simply, got nostalgic for the present. Always a bad sign.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/my-heart-to-put-it-more-simply-got-nostalgic-for-the-present-always-a/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [It's impossible to overstate how my relationship to music forms a preserve for the esoteric or even spiritual aspect of my relationship to cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/it-s-impossible-to-overstate-how-my-relationship-to-music-forms-a/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“If. If Mingus Rude could be kept in this place, kept somehow in Dylan's pocket, in his stinging, smudgy hands, then summer wouldn't give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/if-if-mingus-rude-could-be-kept-in-this-place-kept-somehow-in-dylan-s/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [I had always wanted to be a writer who confused genre boundaries and who was read in multiple contexts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/i-had-always-wanted-to-be-a-writer-who-confused-genre-boundaries-and/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“Memory is a rehearsal for a show that never goes on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/memory-is-a-rehearsal-for-a-show-that-never-goes-on/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“There is nothing Tourettic about the New York City subways.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/there-is-nothing-tourettic-about-the-new-york-city-subways/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“Mingus Rude, Arthur Lomb, Gabriel Stern and Tim Vandertooth, even Aaron K. Doily: Dylan never met anyone who wasn't about to change immediately into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/mingus-rude-arthur-lomb-gabriel-stern-and-tim-vandertooth-even-aaron/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [I try to write every day. I don't beat myself up about word counts, or how many hours are ticking by on the clock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/i-try-to-write-every-day-i-don-t-beat-myself-up-about-word-counts-or/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“Enough of this. Does every conversation with you have to be the director's cut? Get out of the car.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/enough-of-this-does-every-conversation-with-you-have-to-be-the/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“The stumbling block will turn out to be the traditional one for students of consciousness: the flashlight is incapable of shining on itself, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/the-stumbling-block-will-turn-out-to-be-the-traditional-one-for/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

> [“May one plead, Your Honor, postmodernism as an involuntary condition?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/may-one-plead-your-honor-postmodernism-as-an-involuntary-condition/)

[Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

[Explore all 241 Jonathan Lethem quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/)

## More Body quotes

> [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/)

[Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/)

> [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/)

[Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/)

> [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/)

[Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/)

> [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/)

[Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/)

> [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/)

[Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/)

> [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/)

Jennifer Siebel Newsom

> [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/)

[Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/)

[Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/)

> [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/)

[Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/)

> [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/)

[Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/)

> [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/)

[Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/)

> [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/)

[Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/)

> [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/)

[Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/)

[Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Writing is physical for me. I always have the sense that the words are coming out of my body, not just my mind.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jonathan Lethem"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have-the-sense-that-the-words-are/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Body"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have-the-sense-that-the-words-are/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/724/jonathan-lethem-1403_body_writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have_2065836.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/724/jonathan-lethem-1403_body_writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have_2065836.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/724/jonathan-lethem-1403_body_writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have_2065836.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Writing is physical for me. I always have the sense that the words are coming out of my body, not just my…” — Jonathan Lethem",
                "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": "Jonathan Lethem",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Writing is physical for me. I...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have-the-sense-that-the-words-are/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/writing-is-physical-for-me-i-always-have-the-sense-that-the-words-are/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
