--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't like characters who are either…" description: "\"I don't like characters who are either good or bad. I just don't experience that in life, so my writing hasn't evolved that way.\" — Marti Noxon" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1c/marti-noxon-5147_bad_i-don-t-like-characters-who-are-either-g_3203190.jpg" --- # I don't like characters who are either good or bad. I just… ![“I don't like characters who are either good or bad. I just don't experience that in life, so my writing hasn't evolved that way.” quote by Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1c/marti-noxon-5147_bad_i-don-t-like-characters-who-are-either-g_3203190.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1c/marti-noxon-5147_bad_i-don-t-like-characters-who-are-either-g_3203190.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1c/marti-noxon-5147_bad_i-don-t-like-characters-who-are-either-g_3203190.jpg) > “I don't like characters who are either good or bad. I just don't experience that in life, so my writing hasn't evolved that way.” [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing should reflect life's complexity, not binary moral labels. **In simple terms:** Life isn’t just good or bad. Key Takeaway Embrace nuanced characters. Themes writing morality complexity Mood thoughtful analytical Type creative philosophical When to use this quote - screenwriting - novel writing - theatre - personal essays Key Concepts character development ethical ambiguity Questions to Reflect On - How can you show moral grayness? - What risks come with ambiguous characters? A Different Perspective Audiences may prefer clear heroes and villains. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Characters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characters/) [Characters Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characters-good-1258827/) [Experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experience/) [Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Like Characters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-characters/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Hasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-hasn-735680/) ## Related quotes > [I've thought about writing, but it hasn't happened yet. 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The creative search, and the fragments… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-hyde/though-i-feared-i-would-have-no-progress-when-i-put-down-the-drink-my/) [Karl Hyde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-hyde/) > [“Writing hasn’t changed a thing; when the writer puts down the pen, no matter how lucid or brutally honest his insights may have been,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/writing-hasn-t-changed-a-thing-when-the-writer-puts-down-the-pen-no/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [I love characters who are really dedicated to a really bad plan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-love-characters-who-are-really-dedicated-to-a-really-bad-plan/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I like to find characters. Here's the bottom line: I can't play someone if I can't figure out what he cares about. Everybody cares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-fichtner/i-like-to-find-characters-here-s-the-bottom-line-i-can-t-play-someone/) [William Fichtner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-fichtner/) > [I like characters that make me feel challenged and sort of inspired.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-dano/i-like-characters-that-make-me-feel-challenged-and-sort-of-inspired/) [Paul Dano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-dano/) > [I like characters who have blind spots and are full of themselves, but there also needs to be vulnerability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephan-pastis/i-like-characters-who-have-blind-spots-and-are-full-of-themselves-but/) [Stephan Pastis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephan-pastis/) > [I like characters. I like spirited characters whether they exist in fiction or real life. 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When the characters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-zappia/the-characters-themselves-the-struggles-they-have-to-go-through-and/) [Francesca Zappia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-zappia/) > [First of all, I never think of my characters as good or evil. I play them as honestly as I can. When you're playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-haysbert/first-of-all-i-never-think-of-my-characters-as-good-or-evil-i-play/) [Dennis Haysbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-haysbert/) > [A good novelist pays attention to his characters. A good biographer pays attention to the documents before her. A good critic pays close attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/a-good-novelist-pays-attention-to-his-characters-a-good-biographer/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [For me, if the writing and - by extension - the subject matter and the characters are all good, it doesn't matter if it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-croasdell/for-me-if-the-writing-and-by-extension-the-subject-matter-and-the/) [Adam Croasdell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-croasdell/) ## More by Marti Noxon > [I love characters who are really dedicated to a really bad plan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-love-characters-who-are-really-dedicated-to-a-really-bad-plan/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [It's humiliating, being told you're not responsible enough to make your own choices in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/it-s-humiliating-being-told-you-re-not-responsible-enough-to-make/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I think many people expend a tremendous amount of energy on self-loathing and self-flagellation as well as getting caught in a vicious cycle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-think-many-people-expend-a-tremendous-amount-of-energy-on-self/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I think women can relate to the feeling that we're internalizing too many demands, and we're trying to be good at everything, but one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-think-women-can-relate-to-the-feeling-that-we-re-internalizing-too/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I think we're in a time when people are much more interested in a show than where you find it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-think-we-re-in-a-time-when-people-are-much-more-interested-in-a/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I've never had as much success as when I say to myself, 'I get that. I know what the feelings that that character would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-ve-never-had-as-much-success-as-when-i-say-to-myself-i-get-that-i/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I think the barrier for a lot of people to actual, real, lasting love is the fantasy. The problem is that we think in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-think-the-barrier-for-a-lot-of-people-to-actual-real-lasting-love/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [For me, the interesting thing about anorexia is that you show your wound. There's no hiding it. So my anger and sense of disappointment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/for-me-the-interesting-thing-about-anorexia-is-that-you-show-your/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [There're been sort of a sea change in my work in general, in that the more personal, the universal it's become.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/there-re-been-sort-of-a-sea-change-in-my-work-in-general-in-that-the/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I think the science around mental illness is always evolving. There's always new kinds of thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-think-the-science-around-mental-illness-is-always-evolving-there-s/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [Everybody expects to have a filmic experience when they're watching television, whether they're watching network, basic cable, premium, or streaming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/everybody-expects-to-have-a-filmic-experience-when-they-re-watching/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [If you made a movie of 'Sharp Objects,' chances are that it would be a smaller film, but as a TV show, it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/if-you-made-a-movie-of-sharp-objects-chances-are-that-it-would-be-a/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I can't be interesting, controversial, and the writer I'd like to be if I need everybody to like me and think I'm doing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-can-t-be-interesting-controversial-and-the-writer-i-d-like-to-be-if/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [The truth is there's a difference between the competition shows where you're testing skills and the type of shows where you're trying to create…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/the-truth-is-there-s-a-difference-between-the-competition-shows-where/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [I'm a big believer in 'Trojan horses' - There are certain themes that are more palatable when wrapped in something fun or distracting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/i-m-a-big-believer-in-trojan-horses-there-are-certain-themes-that-are/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) [Explore all 103 Marti Noxon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) ## More Bad quotes > [If I am going to be phased out by whatever powers, then I want people to know that it is not because I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parvathy/if-i-am-going-to-be-phased-out-by-whatever-powers-then-i-want-people/) [Parvathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parvathy/) > [Sometimes I'm in a bad mood, sometimes I'm in a good mood. 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When I argue with him on the kind of music he is listening to, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeenat-aman/i-listen-to-heavy-metal-thanks-to-my-son-when-i-argue-with-him-on-the/) [Zeenat Aman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zeenat-aman/) > [I've said it before, good people are forced to do bad things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angus-cloud/i-ve-said-it-before-good-people-are-forced-to-do-bad-things/) [Angus Cloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angus-cloud/) > [“If any woman opens her legs for you, don't feel so lucky to be fed with nonsense, she has been a bitch for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/if-any-woman-opens-her-legs-for-you-don-t-feel-so-lucky-to-be-fed/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [One thing I always tell players is that there are three bad things: Nothing good happens after midnight, nothing good happens when you're around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-saban/one-thing-i-always-tell-players-is-that-there-are-three-bad-things/) [Nick Saban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-saban/) > [Everybody has bad days, but how you respond to it is a testament to whether you are a winner or a loser.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-gordon/everybody-has-bad-days-but-how-you-respond-to-it-is-a-testament-to/) [Aaron Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-gordon/) > [Obviously I'm very grateful 'Bad Guy' is doing so well - it's shocking and surprising and gratifying - but I do think it's important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finneas/obviously-i-m-very-grateful-bad-guy-is-doing-so-well-it-s-shocking/) [Finneas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finneas/) > [I felt pretty good growing up. 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