--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you're a mass-market writer, people…" description: "\"When you're a mass-market writer, people think that you can just decide 'this happens, this happens, this happens', whereas with literary writers it's ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f70/marian-keyes-1999_come_when-you-re-a-mass-market-writer-people_1773896.png" --- # When you're a mass-market writer, people think that you… ![“When you're a mass-market writer, people think that you can just decide 'this happens, this happens, this happens', whereas with literary writers it's coming from their soul and their core. But with me it does come from my soul and my core, and my soul and my core often go AWOL, and then I've…” quote by Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f70/marian-keyes-1999_come_when-you-re-a-mass-market-writer-people_1773896.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f70/marian-keyes-1999_come_when-you-re-a-mass-market-writer-people_1773896.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f70/marian-keyes-1999_come_when-you-re-a-mass-market-writer-people_1773896.png) > “When you're a mass-market writer, people think that you can just decide 'this happens, this happens, this happens', whereas with literary writers it's coming from their soul and their core. But with me it does come from my soul and my core, and my soul and my core often go AWOL, and then I've nothing to write.” [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker contrasts mass‑market and literary writing, noting that personal soul‑driven inspiration can be elusive, leading to writer’s block. **In simple terms:** Creative work needs deep personal connection, but that connection can disappear. Key Takeaway Cultivate steady creative habits despite inspiration lapses. Themes writing creativity authenticity Mood frustrated hopeful Type creative reflective When to use this quote - author talks - writing workshops - creative retreats Key Concepts artist’s block inner voice discipline Questions to Reflect On - How do you sustain writing when inspiration wanes? - What routines help you reconnect with your core? A Different Perspective Reliance on fleeting inspiration can stall progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Literary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literary/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I am looking for different roles as many writers are coming up with the same kind of characters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rao-ramesh/i-am-looking-for-different-roles-as-many-writers-are-coming-up-with/) [Rao Ramesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rao-ramesh/) > [“I think (if I can make a judgement about writers coming into the business), I feel everybody is in a horrific hurry these days.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/i-think-if-i-can-make-a-judgement-about-writers-coming-into-the/) [Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/) > [“...the job of the spiritual memoirist is to read the world like a book. Medieval monks believed the natural world was a scriptural text,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-j-andrew/the-job-of-the-spiritual-memoirist-is-to-read-the-world-like-a-book/) [Elizabeth J. 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Most people aren't writers, and very little harm comes to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/it-s-easy-after-all-not-to-be-a-writer-most-people-aren-t-writers-and/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [I would be more frightened as a writer if people thought my movies were like science fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-labute/i-would-be-more-frightened-as-a-writer-if-people-thought-my-movies/) [Neil LaBute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-labute/) ## More by Marian Keyes > [“As they say in New York, Get over it and, if you can't get over it, Get over talking about it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/as-they-say-in-new-york-get-over-it-and-if-you-can-t-get-over-it-get/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [I rang my mother to thank her for giving birth to me and she said, "What choice had I? You were in there, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/i-rang-my-mother-to-thank-her-for-giving-birth-to-me-and-she-said/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [“I should have learned mindfulness, and it’s too late now because it’s no good learning it when you’re already in crisis: you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/i-should-have-learned-mindfulness-and-it-s-too-late-now-because-it-s/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [“The last time I’d been unwell, suicidally depressed, whatever you want to call it, the reactions of my friends and family had fallen into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/the-last-time-i-d-been-unwell-suicidally-depressed-whatever-you-want/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [I'm not looking for pity, I'm really not, but I'm constantly uneasy and every day it is pretty much like getting up and going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/i-m-not-looking-for-pity-i-m-really-not-but-i-m-constantly-uneasy-and/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [Some think love can be measured by the amount of butterflies in their tummy. 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I don’t mean to but clearly I have not appeased the Sleep Gods with enough offerings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/i-awake-i-don-t-mean-to-but-clearly-i-have-not-appeased-the-sleep/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [It was only when the salt water of my tears ran into my cuts and made them sting that I discovered I was crying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/it-was-only-when-the-salt-water-of-my-tears-ran-into-my-cuts-and-made/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [I wished there was some kind of switch on my brain. 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If it comes back, it's yours to keep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/if-it-don-t-come-back-it-was-never-yours-if-it-comes-back-it-s-yours/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [Failed relationships can be described as so much wasted makeup. Forget the laughs, forget the fights, forget the sex, forget the jealousy. 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