--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's a lot easier to write about people…" description: "\"It's a lot easier to write about people when you're not living with them!\" — Maggie Nelson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f3/maggie-nelson-4294_easier_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people_2563701.jpg" --- # It's a lot easier to write about people when you're not… ![“It's a lot easier to write about people when you're not living with them!” quote by Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f3/maggie-nelson-4294_easier_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people_2563701.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f3/maggie-nelson-4294_easier_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people_2563701.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f3/maggie-nelson-4294_easier_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people_2563701.jpg) > “It's a lot easier to write about people when you're not living with them!” [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing about others feels easier when distance prevents personal bias or emotional entanglement. **In simple terms:** Distance makes it simpler to write about people. Key Takeaway Maintain healthy boundaries in storytelling. Themes writing distance objectivity Mood thoughtful analytical Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - journalism - fiction - memoir - conflict resolution Key Concepts empathy narrative ethics personal space Questions to Reflect On - When does closeness improve your writing? - How can you balance intimacy and objectivity? A Different Perspective Proximity can also foster deeper insight. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I say it's easier to write for other people than write for myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/partynextdoor/i-say-it-s-easier-to-write-for-other-people-than-write-for-myself/) PartyNextDoor > [Weirdly, it's much easier to write a poem than a film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-key/weirdly-it-s-much-easier-to-write-a-poem-than-a-film/) [Tim Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-key/) > [“it's a lot easier to be lost than found.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-be-lost-than-found/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I often think my life would be a lot easier if I were a mute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-gaffney/i-often-think-my-life-would-be-a-lot-easier-if-i-were-a-mute/) [Patricia Gaffney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-gaffney/) > [When you have guards that are versatile, it just makes it a lot easier in terms of who you put on the court.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-harris/when-you-have-guards-that-are-versatile-it-just-makes-it-a-lot-easier/) [Joe Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-harris/) > [It gets a lot easier to deal with life's curveballs when you're not hiding under layers of fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-vincent/it-gets-a-lot-easier-to-deal-with-life-s-curveballs-when-you-re-not/) [Ali Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-vincent/) > [Life was a lot easier when the only thing I had to take care of was a Tamagotchi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-was-a-lot-easier-when-the-only-thing-i-had-to-take-care-of-was-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's a lot easier to like people when they can't make life miserable for you anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-kendall/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-like-people-when-they-can-t-make-life-miserable/) [Carol Kendall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-kendall/) > [There's a theory, and I think the theory is right, that in order to make a change you've got to make the whole language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/there-s-a-theory-and-i-think-the-theory-is-right-that-in-order-to/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [It's one thing to support your kid, but if you have an interest in what your child is doing, it makes it a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/it-s-one-thing-to-support-your-kid-but-if-you-have-an-interest-in/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [If you can see it, and believe it, it is a LOT easier to achieve it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/if-you-can-see-it-and-believe-it-it-is-a-lot-easier-to-achieve-it/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [There are so many fun things that you live that you can write about and people of all ages can connect to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maren-morris/there-are-so-many-fun-things-that-you-live-that-you-can-write-about/) [Maren Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maren-morris/) > [Don't try to write what other people are writing - write what is true to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/don-t-try-to-write-what-other-people-are-writing-write-what-is-true/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [Everybody won’t like everything you write. Some people won’t like anything you write. Get over it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/everybody-won-t-like-everything-you-write-some-people-won-t-like/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [Sometimes I worry I've said too much. But it's easier to write about things that are fresh in your mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lapsley/sometimes-i-worry-i-ve-said-too-much-but-it-s-easier-to-write-about/) [Lapsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lapsley/) ## More by Maggie Nelson > [“When I was alive, I aimed to be a student not of longing but of light.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/when-i-was-alive-i-aimed-to-be-a-student-not-of-longing-but-of-light/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [I think writing kind of burns out the flaming question. Sometimes it might feel like when you're living with certain paradoxes and they're unarticulated,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/i-think-writing-kind-of-burns-out-the-flaming-question-sometimes-it/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“I want you to know, if you ever read this, there was a time when I would rather have had you by my side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/i-want-you-to-know-if-you-ever-read-this-there-was-a-time-when-i/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“It is absurd, Barthes says, to try to flee from language's assertive nature 'adding to each sentence some little phrase of uncertainty, as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/it-is-absurd-barthes-says-to-try-to-flee-from-language-s-assertive/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“I can remember a time when I took Henry James's advice--'try to be one of the people on whom nothing is lost!'--deeply to heart.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/i-can-remember-a-time-when-i-took-henry-james-s-advice-try-to-be-one/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [It is easier, of course, to find dignity in one's solitude. Loneliness is solitude with a problem. Can blue solve the problem, or can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/it-is-easier-of-course-to-find-dignity-in-one-s-solitude-loneliness/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“But “knowing the truth” does not come with redemption as a guarantee, nor does a feeling of redemption guarantee an end to a cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/but-knowing-the-truth-does-not-come-with-redemption-as-a-guarantee/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“Girls are cruelest to themselves,” observes Anne Carson in “The Glass Essay,” her brilliant long poem about the ravages of female anger, loneliness, grief,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/girls-are-cruelest-to-themselves-observes-anne-carson-in-the-glass/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“On one hand, the Aristotelian, perhaps evolutionary need to put everything into categories– predators, twilight, edible – on the other, the need to pay homage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/on-one-hand-the-aristotelian-perhaps-evolutionary-need-to-put/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“Do not, however, make the mistake of thinking that all desire is yearning.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/do-not-however-make-the-mistake-of-thinking-that-all-desire-is/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“Psychology forces everything we call love into the pathological or the delusional or the biologically explicable, that if that I was feeling wasn't love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/psychology-forces-everything-we-call-love-into-the-pathological-or/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“I edit myself into a boldness that is neither native or foreign to me. At times I grow tired of this approach, and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/i-edit-myself-into-a-boldness-that-is-neither-native-or-foreign-to-me/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“The idea is a complicated one, as the burden falls to us to differentiate this Divine Darkness from other kinds of darknesses-- that off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/the-idea-is-a-complicated-one-as-the-burden-falls-to-us-to/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [Yes, I'm writing about motherhood, but I bristle a little bit, especially living with someone whose parenting falls between the cracks of what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/yes-i-m-writing-about-motherhood-but-i-bristle-a-little-bit/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“I do not know the reason for this blue pussy, meant to convey both divine bewilderment and revelation. But I do feel that its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/i-do-not-know-the-reason-for-this-blue-pussy-meant-to-convey-both/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) [Explore all 111 Maggie Nelson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) ## More Easier quotes > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [I think hair gel was invented to make it easier to identify assholes from a distance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/i-think-hair-gel-was-invented-to-make-it-easier-to-identify-assholes/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) > [It is easier to say you're mad, rather than admitting you're hurt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-easier-to-say-you-re-mad-rather-than-admitting-you-re-hurt/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Nothing is easier than yesterday's solutions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-sperry/nothing-is-easier-than-yesterday-s-solutions/) Roger Sperry > [When you have a cavity in your tooth and you let it get worse, eventually you have to get a root canal. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-newton-john/when-you-have-a-cavity-in-your-tooth-and-you-let-it-get-worse/) [Olivia Newton-John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-newton-john/) > [Generally, I like all islands. There, it is easier to rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/generally-i-like-all-islands-there-it-is-easier-to-rule/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [It's funny, everything is so much easier when you do it yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carine-roitfeld/it-s-funny-everything-is-so-much-easier-when-you-do-it-yourself/) [Carine Roitfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carine-roitfeld/) > [It is easier to perceive error than to find truth, for the former lies on the surface and is easily seen, while the latter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/it-is-easier-to-perceive-error-than-to-find-truth-for-the-former-lies/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I'm truly, 100% guided by the characters and my Muse. If one of the characters suddenly decided to do something very different, I'd just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-foster/i-m-truly-100-guided-by-the-characters-and-my-muse-if-one-of-the/) [Lori Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-foster/) > [The easier it is to quantify, the less it's worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-easier-it-is-to-quantify-the-less-it-s-worth/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [“it is easier to do a job right than to explain why you didnt”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-van-buren/it-is-easier-to-do-a-job-right-than-to-explain-why-you-didnt/) [Martin Van Buren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-van-buren/) > [“Often we find it easier to think our way around things rather than to feel our way through them:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/often-we-find-it-easier-to-think-our-way-around-things-rather-than-to/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [I know it is easier said than done, but you have to find a way to surround yourself with positivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michaela-deprince/i-know-it-is-easier-said-than-done-but-you-have-to-find-a-way-to/) [Michaela DePrince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michaela-deprince/) > [God puts you where God needs you. You are where you are supposed to be. The job you are doing may not be any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-kushner/god-puts-you-where-god-needs-you-you-are-where-you-are-supposed-to-be/) [Lawrence Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-kushner/) Browse all 5,480 Easier quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's a lot easier to write about people when you're not living with them!", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Maggie Nelson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people-when-you-re-not-living-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Easier" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people-when-you-re-not-living-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f3/maggie-nelson-4294_easier_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people_2563701.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f3/maggie-nelson-4294_easier_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people_2563701.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f3/maggie-nelson-4294_easier_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people_2563701.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's a lot easier to write about people when you're not living with them!” — Maggie Nelson", "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": "Maggie Nelson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's a lot easier to write...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people-when-you-re-not-living-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-write-about-people-when-you-re-not-living-with/#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 } } ] } ```