--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing I write ever has a moral. If it…" description: "\"Nothing I write ever has a moral. If it seems to a reader that there is one, that is unintentional.\" — Louise Erdrich" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/364/louise-erdrich-1271_books_nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-s_2167867.png" --- # Nothing I write ever has a moral. If it seems to a reader… ![“Nothing I write ever has a moral. If it seems to a reader that there is one, that is unintentional.” quote by Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/364/louise-erdrich-1271_books_nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-s_2167867.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/364/louise-erdrich-1271_books_nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-s_2167867.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/364/louise-erdrich-1271_books_nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-s_2167867.png) > “Nothing I write ever has a moral. If it seems to a reader that there is one, that is unintentional.” [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) ## 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 does not intend moral lessons; any perceived moral is accidental, emphasizing artistic freedom. **In simple terms:** Stories need not carry explicit morals. Key Takeaway Create without imposing moral judgments. Themes artistic freedom interpretation authorial intent Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - writing workshops - literary analysis - creative projects Key Concepts literature creative expression Questions to Reflect On - Do you seek moral messages in art? - How does authorial intent affect your reading? A Different Perspective Readers may still infer morals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [Unintentional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unintentional/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [It's disingenous for me to say that I wasn't trying to write a moral novel. By its very nature as a novel about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-abrams/it-s-disingenous-for-me-to-say-that-i-wasn-t-trying-to-write-a-moral/) [Dave Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-abrams/) > [Unintentional comedy is comedy just the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-geist/unintentional-comedy-is-comedy-just-the-same/) [Willie Geist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-geist/) > [Hmmm! Faith is the unintentional plan, with sole surety upon your commitments, which in true describes you and yourself tc n ks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sardar-hyder-abbas/hmmm-faith-is-the-unintentional-plan-with-sole-surety-upon-your/) [Sardar Hyder Abbas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sardar-hyder-abbas/) > [The tragic evils of our life are so commonly unintentional. We did not start out for that poor, cheap goal. That aim was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-emerson-fosdick/the-tragic-evils-of-our-life-are-so-commonly-unintentional-we-did-not/) [Harry Emerson Fosdick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-emerson-fosdick/) > [Personally, getting into college was a big deal because I realized it's probably one of the only things I've fully planned. The rest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yara-shahidi/personally-getting-into-college-was-a-big-deal-because-i-realized-it/) [Yara Shahidi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yara-shahidi/) > [“Nobody sane wants to disappoint himself intentionally.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/nobody-sane-wants-to-disappoint-himself-intentionally/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“All of life is a meditation, most of it unintentional.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/all-of-life-is-a-meditation-most-of-it-unintentional/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Unintentionally, I push people away. It's not personal, it's just my feelings being afraid to stay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/unintentionally-i-push-people-away-it-s-not-personal-it-s-just-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“So his ego was the size of Uranus—and, no, the pun is not unintentional.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-nash/so-his-ego-was-the-size-of-uranus-and-no-the-pun-is-not-unintentional/) [Graham Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-nash/) > [I'm not a very intentional writer. I try to be as unintentional as possible. What I basically try to do is invite the zeitgeist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/i-m-not-a-very-intentional-writer-i-try-to-be-as-unintentional-as/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [Fear is ... a kind of unintentional storytelling that we are all born knowing how to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/fear-is-a-kind-of-unintentional-storytelling-that-we-are-all-born/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [“English: "Allow yourself to make an exception of some your rule sometimes, but be aware not to make those exceptions an unwanted rule." Česky:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebasti-n-wortys/english-allow-yourself-to-make-an-exception-of-some-your-rule/) [Sebastián Wortys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebasti-n-wortys/) > [“Right now I am making the choice to live out this day choosing to be intentional about not being unintentional.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/right-now-i-am-making-the-choice-to-live-out-this-day-choosing-to-be/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“That’s the beautiful thing about love … it’s unintentional, and it can happen when we least expect it,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-de-jong/that-s-the-beautiful-thing-about-love-it-s-unintentional-and-it-can/) [Lisa De Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-de-jong/) > [The beauty of New York is unintentional; it arose independent of human design, like a stalagmite cavern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-beauty-of-new-york-is-unintentional-it-arose-independent-of-human/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) ## More by Louise Erdrich > [Can you stop your mother from singing to you? Who would do such a thing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/can-you-stop-your-mother-from-singing-to-you-who-would-do-such-a-thing/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [“Emotions unreel in her like spools of cotton.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/emotions-unreel-in-her-like-spools-of-cotton/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [“Other freshmen were already moving into their dormitory rooms when we arrived, with their parents helping haul. I saw boxes of paperbacks, stereo equipment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/other-freshmen-were-already-moving-into-their-dormitory-rooms-when-we/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [My father is my biggest literary influence. Recently, I've been looking through his letters. He was in the National Guard when I was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/my-father-is-my-biggest-literary-influence-recently-i-ve-been-looking/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [What is this life but the sound of an appalling love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/what-is-this-life-but-the-sound-of-an-appalling-love/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [Looking at the shape of the world, I see how we're in a time where women are the subject of hatred, fear, and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/looking-at-the-shape-of-the-world-i-see-how-we-re-in-a-time-where/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [She had always been a reader… but now she was obsessed. Since her discovery of the book hoard downstairs from her job, she’d been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/she-had-always-been-a-reader-but-now-she-was-obsessed-since-her/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [Time was rushing around me like water around a big wet rock. The only difference is, I was not so durable as stones. Very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/time-was-rushing-around-me-like-water-around-a-big-wet-rock-the-only/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [The greatest wisdom doesn't know itself. The richest plan is not to have one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/the-greatest-wisdom-doesn-t-know-itself-the-richest-plan-is-not-to/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [“Delphine began to read with a mad attention when she wanted to talk to Clarisse. She saw that in her life there was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/delphine-began-to-read-with-a-mad-attention-when-she-wanted-to-talk/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [But if there was embellishment, it only had to do with the facts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/but-if-there-was-embellishment-it-only-had-to-do-with-the-facts/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [Things which do not grow and change are dead things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/things-which-do-not-grow-and-change-are-dead-things/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [I have to write. I have to be an artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/i-have-to-write-i-have-to-be-an-artist/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [“The Creator made us for each other. Me here. Zelia there. Space was put between us by human error. But our hearts listened to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/the-creator-made-us-for-each-other-me-here-zelia-there-space-was-put/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [So many things in the world have happened before. But it's like they never did. Every new thing that happens to a person, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/so-many-things-in-the-world-have-happened-before-but-it-s-like-they/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) [Explore all 262 Louise Erdrich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) ## More Books 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/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [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/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [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/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [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/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Nothing I write ever has a moral. If it seems to a reader that there is one, that is unintentional.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Louise Erdrich" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-seems-to-a-reader-that-there/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-seems-to-a-reader-that-there/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/364/louise-erdrich-1271_books_nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-s_2167867.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/364/louise-erdrich-1271_books_nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-s_2167867.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/364/louise-erdrich-1271_books_nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-s_2167867.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Nothing I write ever has a moral. If it seems to a reader that there is one, that is unintentional.” — Louise Erdrich", "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": "Louise Erdrich", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Nothing I write ever has a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-seems-to-a-reader-that-there/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/nothing-i-write-ever-has-a-moral-if-it-seems-to-a-reader-that-there/#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 } } ] } ```