--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I'm working on a short story, I…" description: "\"When I'm working on a short story, I could duck into a bathroom at a crowded party and write a scene, which is to say I can work in a very incremental ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b58/laura-van-den-berg-4314_duck_when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-coul_2203181.jpg" --- # When I'm working on a short story, I could duck into a… ![“When I'm working on a short story, I could duck into a bathroom at a crowded party and write a scene, which is to say I can work in a very incremental way.” quote by Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b58/laura-van-den-berg-4314_duck_when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-coul_2203181.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b58/laura-van-den-berg-4314_duck_when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-coul_2203181.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b58/laura-van-den-berg-4314_duck_when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-coul_2203181.jpg) > “When I'm working on a short story, I could duck into a bathroom at a crowded party and write a scene, which is to say I can work in a very incremental way.” [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer describes using brief, opportunistic moments, like a bathroom at a party, to make incremental progress on a short story. **In simple terms:** She writes in small bursts during idle moments to advance her story. Key Takeaway Leverage micro‑moments for creative work. Themes writing productivity incremental progress Mood focused resourceful Type practical motivational When to use this quote - busy schedules - travel - commutes - waiting rooms Key Concepts micro‑writing time‑boxing creative discipline Questions to Reflect On - How can you protect focus in brief bursts? - What tools help capture ideas quickly? A Different Perspective Distractions may interrupt the flow of ideas. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Duck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/duck/) [Incremental Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incremental-way-4848416/) [Party Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party-write-4848414/) [Short](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short/) [Short story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-story/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Work Incremental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-incremental-4848415/) [Write Scene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-scene-1095162/) ## Related quotes > [I can't write a scene unless I've visualized it. Unless I can actually see it, and that's why a lot of reviewers have said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-van-lustbader/i-can-t-write-a-scene-unless-i-ve-visualized-it-unless-i-can-actually/) [Eric Van Lustbader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-van-lustbader/) > [I'll generally write out every scene that's in the film on a couple of pieces of paper, just with a little one-line. And then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-pearce/i-ll-generally-write-out-every-scene-that-s-in-the-film-on-a-couple/) [Guy Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-pearce/) > [I start with an image, then I go from the image toward exploring the situation. Then I write a scene, and from the scene…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-chaon/i-start-with-an-image-then-i-go-from-the-image-toward-exploring-the/) [Dan Chaon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-chaon/) > [When I first started writing, there was no way I'd write a sex scene. That just seemed impossible. 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Writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laini-taylor/never-sit-staring-at-a-blank-page-or-screen-if-you-find-yourself/) [Laini Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laini-taylor/) > [A lot of times you can write a scene with a specific song in mind, and then you lay it over the image, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harmony-korine/a-lot-of-times-you-can-write-a-scene-with-a-specific-song-in-mind-and/) [Harmony Korine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harmony-korine/) > [Now, what sort of person would write a scene where a young man stumbles upon a castle full only of beautiful young women? Answer:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-palin/now-what-sort-of-person-would-write-a-scene-where-a-young-man/) [Michael Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-palin/) > [There's a special gut-check moment the first time you write a scene in which somebody casts a spell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/there-s-a-special-gut-check-moment-the-first-time-you-write-a-scene/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [Sometimes I write about my own life. And sometimes I write about situations I see my friends going through. Sometimes I write about a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/sometimes-i-write-about-my-own-life-and-sometimes-i-write-about/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [I know exactly what it's like to stand on top of a tall building or in a high place and look down and go,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-know-exactly-what-it-s-like-to-stand-on-top-of-a-tall-building-or/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [You don’t have the slightest idea of what it means to write a scene and a character in the English language, with images and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/you-don-t-have-the-slightest-idea-of-what-it-means-to-write-a-scene/) [Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/) > [If you give me a typewriter and I'm having a good day, I can write a scene that will astonish its readers. That will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/if-you-give-me-a-typewriter-and-i-m-having-a-good-day-i-can-write-a/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [The Florida in my novels is not as seedy as the real Florida. It's hard to stay ahead of the curve. Every time I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/the-florida-in-my-novels-is-not-as-seedy-as-the-real-florida-it-s/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [What I would do is I would just remember the scene and I'd go home and I'd write out the scene from memory. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/what-i-would-do-is-i-would-just-remember-the-scene-and-i-d-go-home/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) ## More by Laura van den Berg > [I was born and raised in Orlando, where the economy and culture has been powerfully shaped by tourism, and so I've long been interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-was-born-and-raised-in-orlando-where-the-economy-and-culture-has/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [I lived in Boston for three years, and during that time, I wrote my first collection of stories, 'What the World Will Look Like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-lived-in-boston-for-three-years-and-during-that-time-i-wrote-my/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [I take a pretty expansive view of craft, which is to say I don't see craft as just being technique - it's also process;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-take-a-pretty-expansive-view-of-craft-which-is-to-say-i-don-t-see/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [To me, in general, something that's really rich in terms of identity about transit spaces is that they're so intimate. 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But ultimately,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/there-s-the-public-self-that-we-present-to-the-outer-world-there-s/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [I think my concern is I know my voice, and I know the kinds of landscapes that interest me, so my primary concern is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-think-my-concern-is-i-know-my-voice-and-i-know-the-kinds-of/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [My students are often asking me, 'What do you think are the most important qualities for a writer?' And one thing I always tells…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/my-students-are-often-asking-me-what-do-you-think-are-the-most/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [As a reader, I appreciate a world that feels unsettled and also visceral, inhabitable, so that's a quality I try and bring to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/as-a-reader-i-appreciate-a-world-that-feels-unsettled-and-also/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [Youth is such a fascinating and volatile concoction of vulnerability, dependence, restlessness, relentlessness. You're still learning the terms of the world and of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/youth-is-such-a-fascinating-and-volatile-concoction-of-vulnerability/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [As a genre, the best horror poses central human questions - Who can you trust? What is the cost of our secrets? What is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/as-a-genre-the-best-horror-poses-central-human-questions-who-can-you/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [Paradoxically, the only thing that helps when I'm feeling despairing about writing is to write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/paradoxically-the-only-thing-that-helps-when-i-m-feeling-despairing/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [“Over time, we became less sure we were something the other wanted to hold on to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/over-time-we-became-less-sure-we-were-something-the-other-wanted-to/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [Ever since I started writing in college, I have, save for a few short breaks here and there, been working away on something. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/ever-since-i-started-writing-in-college-i-have-save-for-a-few-short/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [I wager we have a vast amount of literature out there that tends to the stories of men, so I've never really worried too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-wager-we-have-a-vast-amount-of-literature-out-there-that-tends-to/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) [Explore all 113 Laura van den Berg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) ## More Duck quotes > [One night in a club in Boston, I tried the name Roger Duck. No laughs. The next night, I tried Orson Bean, putting together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-bean/one-night-in-a-club-in-boston-i-tried-the-name-roger-duck-no-laughs/) [Orson Bean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-bean/) > [I had my first French meal and I never got over it. It was just marvelous. We had oysters and a lovely dry white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/i-had-my-first-french-meal-and-i-never-got-over-it-it-was-just/) [Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/) > [One is never alone with a rubber duck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/one-is-never-alone-with-a-rubber-duck/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [SMILE is BETTER than DUCK FACE.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shennon-fabiano/smile-is-better-than-duck-face/) [Shennon Fabiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shennon-fabiano/) > [“I'm growing as a person. I'm self-farming. That's the highest form of farming, even greater than being a duck farmer, which, as you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-m-growing-as-a-person-i-m-self-farming-that-s-the-highest-form-of/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“We may even find out why the duck-billed platypus.\* \*Not why is it anything . Just why it is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/we-may-even-find-out-why-the-duck-billed-platypus-not-why-is-it/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [We sign contracts to fight, not to dip, duck and dodge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-stephens/we-sign-contracts-to-fight-not-to-dip-duck-and-dodge/) [Jeremy Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-stephens/) > [Perhaps the comparison is closer to the Chinese cook who leaves hardly any part of a duck unserved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/perhaps-the-comparison-is-closer-to-the-chinese-cook-who-leaves/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [I actually did a project with my puppet one time in fourth grade. 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Your account at your restaurant during the canvas-back season.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/duck-bill-n-your-account-at-your-restaurant-during-the-canvas-back/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) [Browse all 306 Duck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/duck/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I'm working on a short story, I could duck into a bathroom at a crowded party and write a scene, which is to say I can work in a very incremental way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Laura van den Berg" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-could-duck-into-a-bathroom-at-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Duck" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-could-duck-into-a-bathroom-at-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b58/laura-van-den-berg-4314_duck_when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-coul_2203181.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b58/laura-van-den-berg-4314_duck_when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-coul_2203181.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b58/laura-van-den-berg-4314_duck_when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-coul_2203181.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I'm working on a short story, I could duck into a bathroom at a crowded party and write a scene, which…” — Laura van den Berg", "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": "Laura van den Berg", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When I'm working on a short...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-could-duck-into-a-bathroom-at-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/when-i-m-working-on-a-short-story-i-could-duck-into-a-bathroom-at-a/#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 } } ] } ```