--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One of the problems with a lot of…" description: "\"One of the problems with a lot of \"confessional\" writing is that it starts and stops with the confessional and doesn't really tie the \"I\" into a \"we\" a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aab/kiese-laymon-23232_critics_one-of-the-problems-with-a-lot-of-confes_1775693.jpg" --- # One of the problems with a lot of "confessional" writing… ![“One of the problems with a lot of "confessional" writing is that it starts and stops with the confessional and doesn't really tie the "I" into a "we" at all. I'm still surprised at how mad critics get at that kind of confessional writing.” quote by Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aab/kiese-laymon-23232_critics_one-of-the-problems-with-a-lot-of-confes_1775693.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aab/kiese-laymon-23232_critics_one-of-the-problems-with-a-lot-of-confes_1775693.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aab/kiese-laymon-23232_critics_one-of-the-problems-with-a-lot-of-confes_1775693.jpg) > “One of the problems with a lot of "confessional" writing is that it starts and stops with the confessional and doesn't really tie the "I" into a "we" at all. I'm still surprised at how mad critics get at that kind of confessional writing.” [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Confessional writing often isolates personal experience, failing to connect individual narratives to collective contexts, limiting broader relevance. **In simple terms:** Personal stories stay isolated, not linking self to community. Key Takeaway Bridge personal insight with shared experience. Themes identity community literary style authorship criticism Mood reflective critical analytical Type essay literary criticism When to use this quote - creative writing workshops - literary criticism - teaching composition - author interviews Key Concepts Narrative voice collective identity reader engagement Questions to Reflect On - How can writers maintain personal truth while fostering communal relevance? - What benefits arise from linking “I” to “we”? A Different Perspective May dilute personal authenticity when forced into collective framing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Confessional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confessional/) [Confessional Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confessional-doesn-1818696/) [Confessional Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confessional-writing-1818697/) [Critics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critics/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Kind Confessional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind-confessional-1818699/) [Mad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mad/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Stops Confessional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stops-confessional-1818698/) [Ties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ties/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I'm interested in how the confessional is so abrasively critiqued today. I'm not really comfortable with simply confessing but I do think "confessing" is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-interested-in-how-the-confessional-is-so-abrasively-critiqued/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [“Bye Bye , Father,' I said as the confessional door clicked shut behind me, 'Ah's' eyes following me, wondering, I suppose, what He'd been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-mccabe/bye-bye-father-i-said-as-the-confessional-door-clicked-shut-behind-me/) [Patrick McCabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-mccabe/) > [I was obsessed with 'The Velvet Rope' for a year straight, letting Janet Jackson's confessional lyrics lull me to sleep and comfort me when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-mock/i-was-obsessed-with-the-velvet-rope-for-a-year-straight-letting-janet/) [Janet Mock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-mock/) > [You're just a recent caught up sprung confessional ex. \*DONE](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-re-just-a-recent-caught-up-sprung-confessional-ex-done/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People assume when they come into a church and see a person up there speaking, 'That person must be a good person.' My challenge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/people-assume-when-they-come-into-a-church-and-see-a-person-up-there/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [When you have power, that's your confessional booth - you can go in there and confess and be cleaned of all sins. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/when-you-have-power-that-s-your-confessional-booth-you-can-go-in/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [I'm not a very confessional artist, you know. I don't ever reveal what I'm feeling in my work, or what I think about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vija-celmins/i-m-not-a-very-confessional-artist-you-know-i-don-t-ever-reveal-what/) [Vija Celmins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vija-celmins/) > [“Mike Romano slipped into the confessional. The screen behind the lattice grill slid open. “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.” “For the love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-watson/mike-romano-slipped-into-the-confessional-the-screen-behind-the/) [Galen Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-watson/) > ["Confessional poetry" is another one of those labels. It goes in and out of fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/confessional-poetry-is-another-one-of-those-labels-it-goes-in-and-out/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I've been accused of my publicist of being too confessional... it's probably my Celtic upbringing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brosnan/i-ve-been-accused-of-my-publicist-of-being-too-confessional-it-s/) [Pierce Brosnan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brosnan/) > [I get told I'm a confessional songwriter, which gets on my tits because I think of negative connotations attached to the word "confessional". I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-orton/i-get-told-i-m-a-confessional-songwriter-which-gets-on-my-tits/) [Beth Orton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-orton/) > [“That pew became a confessional. There, with a fully clothed, fully present Kyle, he left his plans for lifelong commitment to only the Church…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-anastasia/that-pew-became-a-confessional-there-with-a-fully-clothed-fully/) [Debra Anastasia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-anastasia/) > [Maybe I should, I don't know leave? Because this is starting to sound like one of those reality shows I don't want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-caine/maybe-i-should-i-don-t-know-leave-because-this-is-starting-to-sound/) [Rachel Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-caine/) > [I want to remind priests that the confessional must not be a torture chamber but rather an encounter with the Lord’s mercy which spurs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/i-want-to-remind-priests-that-the-confessional-must-not-be-a-torture/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [When I listen to my songs, they seem like pieces of music or art, like a painting that you look at. The reality is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-wainwright/when-i-listen-to-my-songs-they-seem-like-pieces-of-music-or-art-like/) [Martha Wainwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-wainwright/) ## More by Kiese Laymon > [I allude to Back to the Future in the 1985 story to let folks know it was an inspiration and because it literally was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-allude-to-back-to-the-future-in-the-1985-story-to-let-folks-know-it/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [“I lie in a bathtub of cold water, still sweating and singing love songs to myself. I put the gun to my head and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-lie-in-a-bathtub-of-cold-water-still-sweating-and-singing-love/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [I'm a black writer from Mississippi. That's what I most consider myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-a-black-writer-from-mississippi-that-s-what-i-most-consider-myself/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [In essay writing, I'm trying to push the form of expository writing. I'm trying to remember, trying to reckon, trying to find connections with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/in-essay-writing-i-m-trying-to-push-the-form-of-expository-writing-i/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [I wish every American explored the importance of novel writing, identity, honesty, character and place in fresh-ass ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-wish-every-american-explored-the-importance-of-novel-writing/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [“I swear that white folks need to just shut the hell up sometimes. Y'all make it hard for everybody.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-swear-that-white-folks-need-to-just-shut-the-hell-up-sometimes-y/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [Long Division has a lot of Afrosurrealist impulses. I think the book was more Afrofuturist when it was like 700 pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/long-division-has-a-lot-of-afrosurrealist-impulses-i-think-the-book/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [“Y'all taught me that unacknowledged scars accumulated in battles won often hurt more than battles lost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/y-all-taught-me-that-unacknowledged-scars-accumulated-in-battles-won/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [First of all, the novel should be a critique of the novels that have come before it in a language that broadens the audience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/first-of-all-the-novel-should-be-a-critique-of-the-novels-that-have/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [I'm also, than anything else, a teacher and a student. And without the four hours, I'm pretty monsterish. For real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-also-than-anything-else-a-teacher-and-a-student-and-without-the/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [I'm an obsessive writer who needs and loves revision. Writing helps me learn and helps me teach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-an-obsessive-writer-who-needs-and-loves-revision-writing-helps-me/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [I'm accountable - this sounds emo - to black American writing, Southern writing, Southern black American writing, American writing and my people. That's kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-accountable-this-sounds-emo-to-black-american-writing-southern/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [I'm not good enough as a person and definitely not good enough as a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-not-good-enough-as-a-person-and-definitely-not-good-enough-as-a/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [“I think of my grandma and remember that old feeling of being so in love that nothing matters except seeing and being seen by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-think-of-my-grandma-and-remember-that-old-feeling-of-being-so-in/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [I'm interested in how the confessional is so abrasively critiqued today. I'm not really comfortable with simply confessing but I do think "confessing" is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-interested-in-how-the-confessional-is-so-abrasively-critiqued/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) [Explore all 26 Kiese Laymon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) ## More Confessional quotes > [When I listen to my songs, they seem like pieces of music or art, like a painting that you look at. The reality is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-wainwright/when-i-listen-to-my-songs-they-seem-like-pieces-of-music-or-art-like/) [Martha Wainwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-wainwright/) > [I want to remind priests that the confessional must not be a torture chamber but rather an encounter with the Lord’s mercy which spurs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/i-want-to-remind-priests-that-the-confessional-must-not-be-a-torture/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Maybe I should, I don't know leave? Because this is starting to sound like one of those reality shows I don't want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-caine/maybe-i-should-i-don-t-know-leave-because-this-is-starting-to-sound/) [Rachel Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-caine/) > [“That pew became a confessional. There, with a fully clothed, fully present Kyle, he left his plans for lifelong commitment to only the Church…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-anastasia/that-pew-became-a-confessional-there-with-a-fully-clothed-fully/) [Debra Anastasia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-anastasia/) > [I get told I'm a confessional songwriter, which gets on my tits because I think of negative connotations attached to the word "confessional". I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-orton/i-get-told-i-m-a-confessional-songwriter-which-gets-on-my-tits/) [Beth Orton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-orton/) > [I've been accused of my publicist of being too confessional... it's probably my Celtic upbringing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brosnan/i-ve-been-accused-of-my-publicist-of-being-too-confessional-it-s/) [Pierce Brosnan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brosnan/) > ["Confessional poetry" is another one of those labels. It goes in and out of fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/confessional-poetry-is-another-one-of-those-labels-it-goes-in-and-out/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [“Mike Romano slipped into the confessional. The screen behind the lattice grill slid open. “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.” “For the love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-watson/mike-romano-slipped-into-the-confessional-the-screen-behind-the/) [Galen Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-watson/) > [I'm not a very confessional artist, you know. I don't ever reveal what I'm feeling in my work, or what I think about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vija-celmins/i-m-not-a-very-confessional-artist-you-know-i-don-t-ever-reveal-what/) [Vija Celmins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vija-celmins/) > [When you have power, that's your confessional booth - you can go in there and confess and be cleaned of all sins. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/when-you-have-power-that-s-your-confessional-booth-you-can-go-in/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [People assume when they come into a church and see a person up there speaking, 'That person must be a good person.' My challenge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/people-assume-when-they-come-into-a-church-and-see-a-person-up-there/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [You're just a recent caught up sprung confessional ex. \*DONE](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-re-just-a-recent-caught-up-sprung-confessional-ex-done/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was obsessed with 'The Velvet Rope' for a year straight, letting Janet Jackson's confessional lyrics lull me to sleep and comfort me when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-mock/i-was-obsessed-with-the-velvet-rope-for-a-year-straight-letting-janet/) [Janet Mock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-mock/) > [“Bye Bye , Father,' I said as the confessional door clicked shut behind me, 'Ah's' eyes following me, wondering, I suppose, what He'd been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-mccabe/bye-bye-father-i-said-as-the-confessional-door-clicked-shut-behind-me/) [Patrick McCabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-mccabe/) > [“It takes, unhappily, no more than a desk and writing supplies to turn any room into a confessional. This may have nothing to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/it-takes-unhappily-no-more-than-a-desk-and-writing-supplies-to-turn/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) [Browse all 57 Confessional quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confessional/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One of the problems with a lot of \"confessional\" writing is that it starts and stops with the confessional and doesn't really tie the \"I\" into a \"we\" at all. 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