--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Maybe it's because we as writers are…" description: "\"Maybe it's because we as writers are alone so often, are so attuned to listening to the run of our own thoughts, that we find it more natural to write ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6a/les-standiford-41302_aftermath_maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alo_1184900.jpg" --- # Maybe it's because we as writers are alone so often, are… ![“Maybe it's because we as writers are alone so often, are so attuned to listening to the run of our own thoughts, that we find it more natural to write down the thoughts rather than the deeds of our characters. But speaking as a teacher who has spent some twenty years slogging through manuscripts…” quote by Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6a/les-standiford-41302_aftermath_maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alo_1184900.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6a/les-standiford-41302_aftermath_maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alo_1184900.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6a/les-standiford-41302_aftermath_maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alo_1184900.jpg) > “Maybe it's because we as writers are alone so often, are so attuned to listening to the run of our own thoughts, that we find it more natural to write down the thoughts rather than the deeds of our characters. But speaking as a teacher who has spent some twenty years slogging through manuscripts where thoughts and exposition pile up as thick as the aftermath of a California mudslide, I can attest to the power of the evocative detail, gesture, or figment of speech.” [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writers often focus on internal thoughts rather than external actions, which can make narratives overly introspective; balancing thought and deed creates richer stories. **In simple terms:** Writers tend to over‑describe thoughts; balance with action. Key Takeaway Blend internal monologue with external plot. Themes creativity writing balance Mood reflective analytical Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - novel drafting - screenplay writing - creative workshops - editing sessions Key Concepts narrative technique character development psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can you ensure characters act as much as they think? - What techniques help you translate thought into visible action? A Different Perspective Too much introspection can stall narrative momentum. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aftermath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aftermath/) [California](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/california/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Deeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deeds/) [Gestures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gestures/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Teacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teacher/) [Twenties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twenties/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I do have a journal, that I write all my thoughts in every day. So that's kind of something. I also have a burn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-cosgrove/i-do-have-a-journal-that-i-write-all-my-thoughts-in-every-day-so-that/) [Miranda Cosgrove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-cosgrove/) > [I want to write my own thoughts and make my own music. I need to experiment with my sound and style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neha-bhasin/i-want-to-write-my-own-thoughts-and-make-my-own-music-i-need-to/) [Neha Bhasin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neha-bhasin/) > [I cannot easily buy a blank-book to write thoughts in; they are commonly ruled for dollars and cents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-cannot-easily-buy-a-blank-book-to-write-thoughts-in-they-are/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I think then I write, give my thoughts a light, begin pondering about life. Break it down then roll up the lyrics, I'm serious.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/i-think-then-i-write-give-my-thoughts-a-light-begin-pondering-about/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [I can recapture everything when I write, my thoughts, my ideals and my fantasies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-frank/i-can-recapture-everything-when-i-write-my-thoughts-my-ideals-and-my/) [Anne Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-frank/) > [True poets don't write their thoughts with a pen. They release the ink that flows from within their heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/true-poets-don-t-write-their-thoughts-with-a-pen-they-release-the-ink/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [Write down your fears. Write down your thoughts. Write down the feelings you want to have. Just release it, don't ignore it. It's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-kostek/write-down-your-fears-write-down-your-thoughts-write-down-the/) [Camille Kostek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-kostek/) > [Write down everything you can think of, no matter how stupid it seems. I always write down my thoughts throughout the day. Sometimes good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daya/write-down-everything-you-can-think-of-no-matter-how-stupid-it-seems/) [Daya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daya/) > [Ours is one of the last independent companies that offer a place you may write down your thoughts free from having to worry about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-watkins/ours-is-one-of-the-last-independent-companies-that-offer-a-place-you/) [Jim Watkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-watkins/) > [I keep a composition book with me at all times to write rhymes, to write down ideas, write down my thoughts, you know just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cordae/i-keep-a-composition-book-with-me-at-all-times-to-write-rhymes-to/) [Cordae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cordae/) > [“I would like to be everyone, a cripple, a dying man, a whore, and then come back to write about my thoughts, my emotions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-would-like-to-be-everyone-a-cripple-a-dying-man-a-whore-and-then-2/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [ “He began to write his thoughts and observations concerning the day's events \[...\] It helped him better understand everything he had seen and done… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-paolini/he-began-to-write-his-thoughts-and-observations-concerning-the-day-s/) [Christopher Paolini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-paolini/) > [“I would like to be everyone, a cripple, a dying man, a whore, and then come back to write about my thoughts, my emotions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-would-like-to-be-everyone-a-cripple-a-dying-man-a-whore-and-then/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [It may be glorious to write Thoughts that shall glad the two or three High souls, like those far stars that come in sight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-may-be-glorious-to-write-thoughts-that-shall-glad-the-two-or-three/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [When you write, you put your thoughts in the public space. You get both positive and negative feedback.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-subramanian/when-you-write-you-put-your-thoughts-in-the-public-space-you-get-both/) [Ravi Subramanian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-subramanian/) ## More by Les Standiford > [“It’s like you’ve been in a terrible accident and had your arm amputated,” she told him. “After a while, the pain goes away, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/it-s-like-you-ve-been-in-a-terrible-accident-and-had-your-arm/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [“Society.” John Forster, who would one day become Dickens’s great friend, adviser, editor, and first biographer, wrote in the Examiner that Dickens had excelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/society-john-forster-who-would-one-day-become-dickens-s-great-friend/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [And while dollars have little to do with it, the fiction writer should be asking the same question any capable film producer would ask:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/and-while-dollars-have-little-to-do-with-it-the-fiction-writer-should/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [Never open your story with a character thinking, I advise my students. As a further precaution, don’t put a character in a room alone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/never-open-your-story-with-a-character-thinking-i-advise-my-students/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [“That's easy," Russell said. "Because everybody else in this here place is crooked as a dog's hind leg. ...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/that-s-easy-russell-said-because-everybody-else-in-this-here-place-is/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [“Permanent construction of the sort Flagler was referring to would not come cheaply, however. Early in 1910, Flagler wrote to John Carrere, designer of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/permanent-construction-of-the-sort-flagler-was-referring-to-would-not/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [“The more a man learns, Dickens said, “the better, gentler, kinder man he must become. When he knows how much great minds have suffered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/the-more-a-man-learns-dickens-said-the-better-gentler-kinder-man-he/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [“Daniel Maclise (whose 1839 oil of Dickens hangs today at the National Portrait Gallery).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/daniel-maclise-whose-1839-oil-of-dickens-hangs-today-at-the-national/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) > [There are vast differences between scripts and stories, of course. Few fiction writers would want to give up the opportunity to explore how the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/there-are-vast-differences-between-scripts-and-stories-of-course-few/) [Les Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) [Explore all 10 Les Standiford quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/) ## More Aftermath quotes > [Affirmative action was designed to recognize the uniquely difficult journey of African-Americans. This policy was justifiable and understandable, even to those who came from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-webb/affirmative-action-was-designed-to-recognize-the-uniquely-difficult/) [Jim Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-webb/) > [“She might have been there for you in the aftermath, but I was there when everything came crashing down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-duke/she-might-have-been-there-for-you-in-the-aftermath-but-i-was-there/) [Megan Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-duke/) > [Most people may not think about it, but the aftermath of war is very costly. Costly not just in lives, but the treatment. Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-inouye/most-people-may-not-think-about-it-but-the-aftermath-of-war-is-very/) [Daniel Inouye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-inouye/) > ['Life's That Way' was an extraordinarily difficult book to write, because it wasn't written as a book. It was written as a journal of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-beaver/life-s-that-way-was-an-extraordinarily-difficult-book-to-write/) [Jim Beaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-beaver/) > [It's common knowledge that every act has an aftermath factor. It can be positive or negative. Whatever the result its always important that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-matobo/it-s-common-knowledge-that-every-act-has-an-aftermath-factor-it-can/) [Frank Matobo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-matobo/) > ['The Accursed' is very much a novel about social injustice as the consequence of the terrible, tragic division of classes - the exploitation not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-accursed-is-very-much-a-novel-about-social-injustice-as-the/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [In the aftermath of 9/11, people had not a good time, but a deep, profound, rousing time, woke up from their ennui and isolation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/in-the-aftermath-of-9-11-people-had-not-a-good-time-but-a-deep/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [They were anticipating a different kind of immediate aftermath of the fall of Baghdad, it turned out to be not exactly as they had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/they-were-anticipating-a-different-kind-of-immediate-aftermath-of-the/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [In a brilliant fusion of fact and fiction, Jayne Anne Phillips has written the novel of the year. It's the story of a serial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/in-a-brilliant-fusion-of-fact-and-fiction-jayne-anne-phillips-has/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [In the aftermath of 9/11 and in the build-up to the invasion of Iraq, few questioned the idea that the United States was likely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-jacques/in-the-aftermath-of-9-11-and-in-the-build-up-to-the-invasion-of-iraq/) [Martin Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-jacques/) > [In the aftermath of any war or genocide, healing and reconciliation are ultimate aspirations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janine-di-giovanni/in-the-aftermath-of-any-war-or-genocide-healing-and-reconciliation/) [Janine di Giovanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janine-di-giovanni/) > [I wish I had been more mature. I wish I had handled the immediate aftermath of the accident involving my family better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/i-wish-i-had-been-more-mature-i-wish-i-had-handled-the-immediate/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [But I don't know what to him about the aftermath of killing a person. About how they never leave you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/but-i-don-t-know-what-to-him-about-the-aftermath-of-killing-a-person/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [We need to have a modicum of faith in people's common sense, creativity and will to survive and prosper even in the face of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-higgs/we-need-to-have-a-modicum-of-faith-in-people-s-common-sense/) [Robert Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-higgs/) > [ I can't think of any time we had a discussion \[with Dre\] about the aftermath of what happened the night before. We just had… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-le/i-can-t-think-of-any-time-we-had-a-discussion-with-dre-about-the/) [Michel'le](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-le/) [Browse all 218 Aftermath quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aftermath/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Maybe it's because we as writers are alone so often, are so attuned to listening to the run of our own thoughts, that we find it more natural to write down the thoughts rather than the deeds of our characters. But speaking as a teacher who has spent some twenty years slogging through manuscripts where thoughts and exposition pile up as thick as the aftermath of a California mudslide, I can attest to the power of the evocative detail, gesture, or figment of speech.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Les Standiford" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alone-so-often-are-so-attuned-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aftermath" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alone-so-often-are-so-attuned-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6a/les-standiford-41302_aftermath_maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alo_1184900.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6a/les-standiford-41302_aftermath_maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alo_1184900.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6a/les-standiford-41302_aftermath_maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alo_1184900.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Maybe it's because we as writers are alone so often, are so attuned to listening to the run of our own…” — Les Standiford", "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": "Les Standiford", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-standiford/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Maybe it's because we as writers...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alone-so-often-are-so-attuned-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-standiford/maybe-it-s-because-we-as-writers-are-alone-so-often-are-so-attuned-to/#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 } } ] } ```