--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the pen really is mightier than the…" description: "\"“If the pen really is mightier than the sword then you guys better watch out, because I wrote my whole 700,000 w0rd trilogy in longhand!”\" — M.R. Mathias" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fd/m-r-mathias-52245_quote_if-the-pen-really-is-mightier-than-the-s_1734380.jpg" --- # If the pen really is mightier than the sword then you guys… ![“If the pen really is mightier than the sword then you guys better watch out, because I wrote my whole 700,000 w0rd trilogy in longhand!” quote by M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fd/m-r-mathias-52245_quote_if-the-pen-really-is-mightier-than-the-s_1734380.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fd/m-r-mathias-52245_quote_if-the-pen-really-is-mightier-than-the-s_1734380.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fd/m-r-mathias-52245_quote_if-the-pen-really-is-mightier-than-the-s_1734380.jpg) > ““If the pen really is mightier than the sword then you guys better watch out, because I wrote my whole 700,000 w0rd trilogy in longhand!”” [M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing a massive work by hand demonstrates dedication and defiance of digital norms. **In simple terms:** Hand‑written 700k‑word trilogy shows true commitment. Key Takeaway Embrace disciplined creativity. Themes discipline creativity defiance Mood determined proud reflective Type inspirational personal When to use this quote - novel writing - personal projects Key Concepts manual writing literary ambition Questions to Reflect On - What drives you to choose manual methods? - How does the process affect your connection to the work? A Different Perspective Physical writing is time‑consuming and may limit revisions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Sword](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sword/) ## Related quotes > [When I first got back from the war, I said, 'I'm gonna write the Great American Novel about the Vietnam War.' So I sat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marlantes/when-i-first-got-back-from-the-war-i-said-i-m-gonna-write-the-great/) [Karl Marlantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marlantes/) > [I write longhand on legal pads, about half at home and half in cafes. I drink a lot of water and eat a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-write-longhand-on-legal-pads-about-half-at-home-and-half-in-cafes-i/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [When it comes to actually writing the book/story, I work on a computer. I wish I could write longhand, but I can't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/when-it-comes-to-actually-writing-the-book-story-i-work-on-a-computer/) [Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/) > [I've always preferred writing in longhand. I've always written first drafts in longhand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-ve-always-preferred-writing-in-longhand-i-ve-always-written-first/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I write in longhand on yellow legal pads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beverly-cleary/i-write-in-longhand-on-yellow-legal-pads/) [Beverly Cleary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beverly-cleary/) > [I tend to elongate the sentences as I'm writing and editing, and there is just something about the feeling of writing longhand that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-king/i-tend-to-elongate-the-sentences-as-i-m-writing-and-editing-and-there/) [Lily King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-king/) > [I love writing in longhand. Writing in longhand, I think, is a marvelous thing to do for a writer these days. If you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-love-writing-in-longhand-writing-in-longhand-i-think-is-a-marvelous/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I write longhand and I type and I rewrite on the typed pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/i-write-longhand-and-i-type-and-i-rewrite-on-the-typed-pages/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [Longhand isn't well suited to my way of writing. I tend to end up with dozens of pages of crossings-out and margin scribbles just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-hall/longhand-isn-t-well-suited-to-my-way-of-writing-i-tend-to-end-up-with/) [Steven Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-hall/) > [“Logic. It could get you every time, but he preferred to cut it down with a sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-illene/logic-it-could-get-you-every-time-but-he-preferred-to-cut-it-down/) [Susan Illene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-illene/) > [“His pen spoke more to her than he ever did”. In the war of words, some are unwritten and some are unspoken.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishikant/his-pen-spoke-more-to-her-than-he-ever-did-in-the-war-of-words-some/) [Nishikant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishikant/) > [I find it rude to laugh at a man with a sword.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-landy/i-find-it-rude-to-laugh-at-a-man-with-a-sword/) [Derek Landy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-landy/) > [“But I saw the pair of them, along with everyone else. Hard to miss. Him towering like a raggedy scarecrow in that flapping black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/but-i-saw-the-pair-of-them-along-with-everyone-else-hard-to-miss-him/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [“If the pen is mightier than the sword, then what is the laptop? A light saber or a life saver?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-the-pen-is-mightier-than-the-sword-then-what-is-the-laptop-a-light/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The truth is heavier than a sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naiyem-chowdhury-rony/the-truth-is-heavier-than-a-sword/) [Naiyem Chowdhury Rony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naiyem-chowdhury-rony/) ## More by M.R. Mathias > [“We love books because they are the greatest escape. That is because our own minds eye is the purest form of virtual reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-mathias/we-love-books-because-they-are-the-greatest-escape-that-is-because/) [M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) > [“Don’t worry about how you got here. You are here, and if you want to survive you have to keep doing everything that needs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-mathias/don-t-worry-about-how-you-got-here-you-are-here-and-if-you-want-to/) [M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) > [“Just because it isn't perfect, doesn't mean it isn't awesome.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-mathias/just-because-it-isn-t-perfect-doesn-t-mean-it-isn-t-awesome/) [M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) > [“If you look deeply into my eyes, you will see my eyeballs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-mathias/if-you-look-deeply-into-my-eyes-you-will-see-my-eyeballs/) [M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) > [“A picture may be worth a thousand words, but a thousand words is only three pages.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-mathias/a-picture-may-be-worth-a-thousand-words-but-a-thousand-words-is-only/) [M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) > [“Karma is a tricky thing. To serve Karma, one must repay good Karma to others. To serve Karma well, one must sometimes deliver bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-mathias/karma-is-a-tricky-thing-to-serve-karma-one-must-repay-good-karma-to/) [M.R. Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) [Explore all 7 M.R. Mathias quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-mathias/) ## More Sword quotes > [“The truth is heavier than a sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naiyem-chowdhury-rony/the-truth-is-heavier-than-a-sword/) [Naiyem Chowdhury Rony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naiyem-chowdhury-rony/) > [“If the pen is mightier than the sword, then what is the laptop? A light saber or a life saver?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-the-pen-is-mightier-than-the-sword-then-what-is-the-laptop-a-light/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But I saw the pair of them, along with everyone else. Hard to miss. Him towering like a raggedy scarecrow in that flapping black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/but-i-saw-the-pair-of-them-along-with-everyone-else-hard-to-miss-him/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [I find it rude to laugh at a man with a sword.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-landy/i-find-it-rude-to-laugh-at-a-man-with-a-sword/) [Derek Landy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-landy/) > [“His pen spoke more to her than he ever did”. In the war of words, some are unwritten and some are unspoken.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishikant/his-pen-spoke-more-to-her-than-he-ever-did-in-the-war-of-words-some/) [Nishikant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishikant/) > [“Logic. It could get you every time, but he preferred to cut it down with a sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-illene/logic-it-could-get-you-every-time-but-he-preferred-to-cut-it-down/) [Susan Illene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-illene/) > [Technology is, of course, a double edged sword. Fire can cook our food but also burn us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-silva/technology-is-of-course-a-double-edged-sword-fire-can-cook-our-food/) [Jason Silva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-silva/) > [A sword by itself does not slay; it is merely the weapon used by the slayer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/a-sword-by-itself-does-not-slay-it-is-merely-the-weapon-used-by-the/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [“In Japanese swordsmanship, it is not uncommon to speak of a unity of mind, body, and sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-e-davey/in-japanese-swordsmanship-it-is-not-uncommon-to-speak-of-a-unity-of/) [H.E. Davey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-e-davey/) > [“Though sword shall be rusted, And throne and crown perish With strength that men trusted And wealth that they cherish, Here grass is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/though-sword-shall-be-rusted-and-throne-and-crown-perish-with/) [J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/) > [I couldn't pick up a sword and go fight anyone, let me put it that way. It's choreography and it's acting. The best sword…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolaj-coster-waldau/i-couldn-t-pick-up-a-sword-and-go-fight-anyone-let-me-put-it-that-way/) [Nikolaj Coster-Waldau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikolaj-coster-waldau/) > [I'm useless with a sword in real life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bradley-west/i-m-useless-with-a-sword-in-real-life/) [John Bradley-West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bradley-west/) > [“Inscribed on it was a verse from the Quatrains of Omar Khayyam, the eleventh-century Persian mystic. Reading the words aloud I prepared for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/inscribed-on-it-was-a-verse-from-the-quatrains-of-omar-khayyam-the/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“The pen is truly mightier than the sword. Unless you're holding a pen and the other guy's holding a sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-besseling/the-pen-is-truly-mightier-than-the-sword-unless-you-re-holding-a-pen/) Dave Besseling > [“In the words of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant: “There never was a time when, in my opinion, some way could not be found to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-g-moore/in-the-words-of-gen-ulysses-s-grant-there-never-was-a-time-when-in-my/) [Harold G. Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-g-moore/) [Browse all 721 Sword quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sword/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If the pen really is mightier than the sword then you guys better watch out, because I wrote my whole 700,000 w0rd trilogy in longhand!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "M.R. 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