---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A non-event ... is better to write about…"
description: "\"A non-event ... is better to write about than an event, because with a non-event you can make up the meaning yourself, it means whatever you say it mea..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e4/margaret-atwood-40_events_a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-tha_2885272.jpg"
---

#  A non-event ... is better to write about than an event…

![“A non-event ... is better to write about than an event, because with a non-event you can make up the meaning yourself, it means whatever you say it means.” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e4/margaret-atwood-40_events_a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-tha_2885272.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e4/margaret-atwood-40_events_a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-tha_2885272.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e4/margaret-atwood-40_events_a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-tha_2885272.jpg)

> “A non-event ... is better to write about than an event, because with a non-event you can make up the meaning yourself, it means whatever you say it means.”

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Non‑events allow writers to assign meaning, offering creative freedom.

**In simple terms:** Write about nothing and give it meaning.

Key Takeaway

Use emptiness to shape story.

Themes

writing creativity meaning

Mood

thoughtful creative

Type

experimental literary

When to use this quote

- fiction
- experimental literature
- storytelling workshops

Key Concepts

narrative construction authorial control interpretation

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you make a non‑event compelling?
- What limits does this approach have?

A Different Perspective

Risk of vague storytelling.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Better Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-write-501919/) [Event Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/event-better-3644208/) [Event Non](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/event-non-4021919/) [Events](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/events/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Non Event](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/non-event-4021920/) [Whatever you say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whatever-you-say/) [Write Event](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-event-4021921/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [That some good can be derived from every event is a better proposition than that everything happens for the best, which it assuredly does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-some-good-can-be-derived-from-every-event-is-a-better/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It's incredibly easy as a director to be egotistical. Of course, it is because you have 200 people on set every day listening to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mazer/it-s-incredibly-easy-as-a-director-to-be-egotistical-of-course-it-is/)

[Dan Mazer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mazer/)

> [Whatever is expressed is impressed. Whatever you say to yourself, with emotion, generates thoughts, ideas and behaviors consistent with those words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/whatever-is-expressed-is-impressed-whatever-you-say-to-yourself-with/)

[Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/)

> [ Whatever you say about Fergus McCann, if this \[Celtic Park\] is the legacy, then I am absolutely delighted with it. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-o-neill/whatever-you-say-about-fergus-mccann-if-this-celtic-park-is-the/)

[Martin O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-o-neill/)

> [I would like a world full of love. But remember, that love has no opposite to it. It is simply because you inside yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/i-would-like-a-world-full-of-love-but-remember-that-love-has-no/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [The world is a mirror for us – whatever you say about others is really how you feel about yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-world-is-a-mirror-for-us-whatever-you-say-about-others-is-really/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [I've always found that whatever you say about indie rock, it is the most inclusive genre or title for anything. It doesn't pin you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-bird/i-ve-always-found-that-whatever-you-say-about-indie-rock-it-is-the-2/)

[Andrew Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-bird/)

> [Whatever you say it is, is simply what YOU SAY it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-korzybski/whatever-you-say-it-is-is-simply-what-you-say-it-is/)

[Alfred Korzybski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-korzybski/)

> [Whatever you say, say nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/whatever-you-say-say-nothing/)

[Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/)

> [Some people demand a five-line capsule summary. Something you'd read in a magazine. They want you to say, 'This is the story of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/some-people-demand-a-five-line-capsule-summary-something-you-d-read/)

[Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/)

> [Never hide yourself! When you say something, don't be in the shadow; let everyone see you! Whatever you say always put your name under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/never-hide-yourself-when-you-say-something-don-t-be-in-the-shadow-let/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [Music is an opportunity to say every single thing that you want to say. People will pore over whatever you say and however you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-cole-smith/music-is-an-opportunity-to-say-every-single-thing-that-you-want-to/)

[Zachary Cole Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-cole-smith/)

> [In assembling this group of portraits of women, I'm aware that I'm treading on dangerous ground. When I was in college, I learned to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alec-soth/in-assembling-this-group-of-portraits-of-women-i-m-aware-that-i-m/)

[Alec Soth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alec-soth/)

> [You should not say anything that you cannot put your totality behind. The total value of you is that whatever you say, you stick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/you-should-not-say-anything-that-you-cannot-put-your-totality-behind/)

[Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/)

> [Whatever you say about something, it is not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-korzybski/whatever-you-say-about-something-it-is-not/)

[Alfred Korzybski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-korzybski/)

## More by Margaret Atwood

> [“I'm fine," said Pilar, "for the moment. And the moment is the only time we can be fine in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-m-fine-said-pilar-for-the-moment-and-the-moment-is-the-only-time-we/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [And yet it disturbs me to learn I have hurt someone unintentionally. I want all my hurts to be intentional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/and-yet-it-disturbs-me-to-learn-i-have-hurt-someone-unintentionally-i/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Mary: Some call this "Eve's curse," but I think that is stupid because the real curse of Eve was having to put up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/mary-some-call-this-eve-s-curse-but-i-think-that-is-stupid-because/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“The birds were singing around me, but I reflected that the very birds were strangers to me, for I did not even know their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-birds-were-singing-around-me-but-i-reflected-that-the-very-birds/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Strange how we decorate pain. These ribbons, for instance, and the small hard teardrops of blood. Who are they for? Do we think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/strange-how-we-decorate-pain-these-ribbons-for-instance-and-the-small/)

[margaret atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [I wanted to forget the past, but it refused to forget me; it waited for sleep, then cornered me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-wanted-to-forget-the-past-but-it-refused-to-forget-me-it-waited-for/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Back at home they drew the curtains and read, with disapproval, with relish, with avidity and glee - even the ones who'd never thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/back-at-home-they-drew-the-curtains-and-read-with-disapproval-with/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“It's my fault. I am forgetting too much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-my-fault-i-am-forgetting-too-much/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [All fiction is about people, unless it's about rabbits pretending to be people. It's all essentially characters in action, which means characters moving through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/all-fiction-is-about-people-unless-it-s-about-rabbits-pretending-to/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Simon walks back to the house alone. The night is clear and warm, with a moon, almost full, enclosed in a nimbus of mist;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/simon-walks-back-to-the-house-alone-the-night-is-clear-and-warm-with/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“There is indeed something delightful about being able to combine obedience and disobedience in the same act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-is-indeed-something-delightful-about-being-able-to-combine/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Every time the women appear, Snowman is astonished all over again. They're every known colour from the deepest black to whitest white, they're various…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/every-time-the-women-appear-snowman-is-astonished-all-over-again-they/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [Once you publish a book, it is out of your control. You cannot dictate how people read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/once-you-publish-a-book-it-is-out-of-your-control-you-cannot-dictate/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“The more difficult it was to love the particular man beside us, the more we believed in Love, abstract and total. We were waiting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-more-difficult-it-was-to-love-the-particular-man-beside-us-the/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“She knows she's deceiving herself about that, but she prefers to deceive herself. She desperately needs to believe such pure joy is still possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-knows-she-s-deceiving-herself-about-that-but-she-prefers-to/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

[Explore all 2,072 Margaret Atwood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

## More Events quotes

> [History is, in its essentials, the science of change. It knows and it teaches that it is impossible to find two events that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-bloch/history-is-in-its-essentials-the-science-of-change-it-knows-and-it/)

[Marc Bloch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-bloch/)

> [My political views have never made me insensitive to the pain and suffering caused to the innocent victims of events such as the Warrington…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-fox/my-political-views-have-never-made-me-insensitive-to-the-pain-and/)

[Claire Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-fox/)

> [Teaching children about the natural world should be seen as one of the most important events in their lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-berry/teaching-children-about-the-natural-world-should-be-seen-as-one-of/)

[Thomas Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-berry/)

> [In any event, it is one thing to assert, then or now, that the Iraq war was ill-advised. It is quite another to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-silberman/in-any-event-it-is-one-thing-to-assert-then-or-now-that-the-iraq-war/)

[Laurence Silberman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-silberman/)

> [I wasn’t like, boo hoo, Bin Laden’s dead, but I wasn’t jumping. America’s a very nationalistic country, and in episodes like that of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-scahill/i-wasn-t-like-boo-hoo-bin-laden-s-dead-but-i-wasn-t-jumping-america-s/)

[Jeremy Scahill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-scahill/)

> [Sometimes I am a collector of data, and only a collector, and am likely to be gross and miserly, piling up notes, pleased with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-fort/sometimes-i-am-a-collector-of-data-and-only-a-collector-and-am-likely/)

[Charles Fort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-fort/)

> [Things happen too quickly, crisis follows crisis, the soil of our minds is perpetually disturbed. Each of us, to relieve his feelings, broadcasts his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-struther/things-happen-too-quickly-crisis-follows-crisis-the-soil-of-our-minds/)

[Jan Struther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-struther/)

> [Do we make ourselves into what we become or is it built into our genes, into the fate spun for us by whatever shapes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-bruchac/do-we-make-ourselves-into-what-we-become-or-is-it-built-into-our/)

[Joseph Bruchac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-bruchac/)

> [First impressions are often the truest, as we find (not infrequently) to our cost, when we have been wheedled out of them by plausible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/first-impressions-are-often-the-truest-as-we-find-not-infrequently-to/)

[William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/)

> [The future and the past are equally meaningless because they are nebulous entities, times that do not exist, containing events which have no echo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-lebbon/the-future-and-the-past-are-equally-meaningless-because-they-are/)

[Tim Lebbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-lebbon/)

> [History employs evolution to structure biological events in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/history-employs-evolution-to-structure-biological-events-in-time/)

[Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/)

> [Sporting events like the Olympics have developed and maintained a clear message of promoting gender equality as an essential criterion in the success of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-attias/sporting-events-like-the-olympics-have-developed-and-maintained-a/)

[Richard Attias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-attias/)

> [There remains an experience of incomparable value . . . to see the great events of world history from below; from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/there-remains-an-experience-of-incomparable-value-to-see-the-great/)

[Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/)

> [It's really a pity that there are observers who view political events like comic strips. There has to be a Zorro, there has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sankara/it-s-really-a-pity-that-there-are-observers-who-view-political-events/)

[Thomas Sankara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sankara/)

> [Everything is not black-and-white . I'm really interested in the gray area - not justifying it, not glorifying it, not condoning it, but at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-washington/everything-is-not-black-and-white-i-m-really-interested-in-the-gray/)

[Isaiah Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah-washington/)

[Browse all 5,384 Events quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/events/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "A non-event ... is better to write about than an event, because with a non-event you can make up the meaning yourself, it means whatever you say it means.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Margaret Atwood"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-than-an-event-because-with-a-non/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Events"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-than-an-event-because-with-a-non/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e4/margaret-atwood-40_events_a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-tha_2885272.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e4/margaret-atwood-40_events_a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-tha_2885272.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e4/margaret-atwood-40_events_a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-tha_2885272.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“A non-event ... is better to write about than an event, because with a non-event you can make up the meaning…” — Margaret Atwood",
                "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": "Margaret Atwood",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "A non-event ... is better to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-than-an-event-because-with-a-non/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-non-event-is-better-to-write-about-than-an-event-because-with-a-non/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
