--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: While he writes, I feel as if he is…" description: "\"“While he writes, I feel as if he is drawing me; or not drawing me, drawing on me--drawing on my skin--not with the pencil he is using, but with an old..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4bb/margaret-atwood-40_middle-of-the-night_while-he-writes-i-feel-as-if-he-is-drawi_96632.jpg" --- # While he writes, I feel as if he is drawing me; or not… ![“While he writes, I feel as if he is drawing me; or not drawing me, drawing on me--drawing on my skin--not with the pencil he is using, but with an old-fashioned goose pen, and not with the quill end but with the feather end. As if hundreds of butterflies have settled all over my face, and are…” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4bb/margaret-atwood-40_middle-of-the-night_while-he-writes-i-feel-as-if-he-is-drawi_96632.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4bb/margaret-atwood-40_middle-of-the-night_while-he-writes-i-feel-as-if-he-is-drawi_96632.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4bb/margaret-atwood-40_middle-of-the-night_while-he-writes-i-feel-as-if-he-is-drawi_96632.jpg) > ““While he writes, I feel as if he is drawing me; or not drawing me, drawing on me--drawing on my skin--not with the pencil he is using, but with an old-fashioned goose pen, and not with the quill end but with the feather end. As if hundreds of butterflies have settled all over my face, and are softly opening and closing their wings. But underneath that is another feeling, a feeling of being wide-eyed awake and watchful. It's like being wakened suddenly in the middle of the night, by a hand over your face, and you sit up with your heart going fast, and no one is there. And underneath that is another feeling still, a feeling like being torn open; not like a body of flesh, it is not painful as such, but like a peach; and not even torn open, but ripe and splitting open of its own accord. And inside the peach there's a stone.”” [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. The writer's act is described as an intimate, almost physical imprint on the reader, evoking sensations of being drawn, observed, and transformed, culminating in a revelation that contains both beauty and a hidden core. **In simple terms:** Writing as a visceral, transformative encounter. Key Takeaway Reading can feel like being physically marked and emotionally opened. Themes creativity sensory perception transformation vulnerability intimacy Mood wonder introspection awe Type metaphorical reflective poetic When to use this quote - reading a novel - listening to a poem - experiencing art - reflecting on personal growth Key Concepts author-reader relationship embodied metaphor inner revelation Practical Applications - creative writing workshops - literary analysis Questions to Reflect On - How does a text leave a lasting imprint on you? - What hidden 'stones' have you discovered in stories? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Middle of the night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-of-the-night/) ## Related quotes > [While he writes, I feel as if he is drawing me; or not drawing me, drawing on me - drawing on my skin -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/while-he-writes-i-feel-as-if-he-is-drawing-me-or-not-drawing-me-2/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I always have kind of underneath feeling of peace of mind that I get from just the basic tenants of spirituality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bernhard/i-always-have-kind-of-underneath-feeling-of-peace-of-mind-that-i-get/) [Sandra Bernhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bernhard/) > [You always feel the drawing you are working on is the best you've ever done... I am only interested in the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-hirschfeld/you-always-feel-the-drawing-you-are-working-on-is-the-best-you-ve/) [Al Hirschfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-hirschfeld/) > [There must be times when everybody writes when they feel they're evading writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/there-must-be-times-when-everybody-writes-when-they-feel-they-re/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [“She must have heard the door opening and closing in the middle of the night; she produces a smile, warm, conspiratorial, and I know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-must-have-heard-the-door-opening-and-closing-in-the-middle-of-the/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Songwriting is about getting the demon out of me. It's like being possessed. 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And I never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-collins/i-love-the-royal-family-i-even-got-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-to/) [Lily Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-collins/) > [“There's something not quite Christian about it," Tony said. He sat back in his chair and looked up to where his Bible sat on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-comeau/there-s-something-not-quite-christian-about-it-tony-said-he-sat-back/) [Joey Comeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-comeau/) > [“A Japanese woman we’d met in Paris came to the apartment yesterday and spent several hours explaining our appliances. The microwave, the water kettle,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/a-japanese-woman-we-d-met-in-paris-came-to-the-apartment-yesterday/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“Miss Loretta had that new man, Mr. Boxer, take over Cassius' post in the north field. She had him and some other men snatch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gideon-rathbone/miss-loretta-had-that-new-man-mr-boxer-take-over-cassius-post-in-the/) [Gideon Rathbone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gideon-rathbone/) ## 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? 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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. 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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 Feeling quotes > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My feeling has always been that 'Good Eats' would have never happened had it been left to a committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/my-feeling-has-always-been-that-good-eats-would-have-never-happened/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) > [“THE ESSENCE OF YOUR DESIRE IS A FEELING”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/the-essence-of-your-desire-is-a-feeling/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [Tryna hide this pain with these pain killers, she said the storms only will last a little while but shit it got me feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myself/tryna-hide-this-pain-with-these-pain-killers-she-said-the-storms-only/) Myself > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [Hate not knowing when things are going to happen feeling different every single day. It is called LIFE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-valdovinos/hate-not-knowing-when-things-are-going-to-happen-feeling-different/) Stephanie Valdovinos > [The best feeling comes when you realise, that you are perfectly happy without the things, once you thought you needed the most…!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-best-feeling-comes-when-you-realise-that-you-are-perfectly-happy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I love transforming myself constantly because it gives me that 'new' feeling that I'm very much addicted to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-mondo/i-love-transforming-myself-constantly-because-it-gives-me-that-new/) [Brad Mondo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-mondo/) > [I have to feel the audience. I enjoy that feeling of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gahan/i-have-to-feel-the-audience-i-enjoy-that-feeling-of-community/) [Dave Gahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gahan/) > [There has always been a feeling with people that they love my singing but not always the choice of material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/there-has-always-been-a-feeling-with-people-that-they-love-my-singing/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [It definitely helps to have the acting experience going into singing, because when you're singing, you have to portray the emotion you were feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-newman/it-definitely-helps-to-have-the-acting-experience-going-into-singing/) Ryan Newman > [What I do miss that I don't get anymore? 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He was feeling his way through it more than I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-thewlis/i-don-t-think-alfonso-was-a-big-expert-on-potter-either-he-was/) [David Thewlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-thewlis/) > [The most difficult part for me is feeling connected to the people that I love but always being on the go to different places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-franti/the-most-difficult-part-for-me-is-feeling-connected-to-the-people/) [Michael Franti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-franti/) Browse all 8,809 Feeling quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“While he writes, I feel as if he is drawing me; or not drawing me, drawing on me--drawing on my skin--not with the pencil he is using, but with an old-fashioned goose pen, and not with the quill end but with the feather end. As if hundreds of butterflies have settled all over my face, and are softly opening and closing their wings. But underneath that is another feeling, a feeling of being wide-eyed awake and watchful. It's like being wakened suddenly in the middle of the night, by a hand over your face, and you sit up with your heart going fast, and no one is there. And underneath that is another feeling still, a feeling like being torn open; not like a body of flesh, it is not painful as such, but like a peach; and not even torn open, but ripe and splitting open of its own accord. 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