--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have never written a book that was not…" description: "\"I have never written a book that was not born out of a question I needed to answer for myself.\" — May Sarton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17b/may-sarton-897_answers_i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not_1672680.jpg" --- # I have never written a book that was not born out of a… ![“I have never written a book that was not born out of a question I needed to answer for myself.” quote by May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17b/may-sarton-897_answers_i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not_1672680.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17b/may-sarton-897_answers_i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not_1672680.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17b/may-sarton-897_answers_i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not_1672680.jpg) > “I have never written a book that was not born out of a question I needed to answer for myself.” [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing emerges from personal curiosity, turning questions into narratives that answer oneself. **In simple terms:** Books start from personal questions. Key Takeaway Write to answer your questions. Themes writing curiosity self‑inquiry Mood introspective creative Type personal inspirational When to use this quote - creative process - self‑reflection - education Key Concepts literature philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What question drives your current work? - How does writing clarify your thoughts? A Different Perspective Not all questions have clear answers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Answers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answers/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-born-876214/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born/) [Born Question](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born-question-876213/) [Needed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needed/) [Question Needed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/question-needed-876215/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written/) [Written Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written-book/) ## Related quotes > [“Jesus never asked a question because HE needed to know the answer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bozung/jesus-never-asked-a-question-because-he-needed-to-know-the-answer/) [Christopher Bozung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bozung/) > [“If I used to ask myself, over a coffin: “What good did it do the occupant to be born?,” I now put the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-cioran/if-i-used-to-ask-myself-over-a-coffin-what-good-did-it-do-the/) [Emil Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-cioran/) > [“All are born to question life. All are born to answer this.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-antony/all-are-born-to-question-life-all-are-born-to-answer-this/) [Jose Antony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-antony/) > [“Aren’t autobiographies born in a question we ask ourselves: how did I get to this point? Don’t we look back over the path and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-weisel/aren-t-autobiographies-born-in-a-question-we-ask-ourselves-how-did-i/) [Frederick Weisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-weisel/) > [“In 1960, Joy wrote of her experiences raising Elsa in the bestselling book Born Free which was adapted into an Academy award-winning film. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-adamson/in-1960-joy-wrote-of-her-experiences-raising-elsa-in-the-bestselling/) [Joy Adamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-adamson/) > [“This book was born as I was hungry. Let m eexplain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/this-book-was-born-as-i-was-hungry-let-m-eexplain/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [Wesley Stace has always been the only genuinely gifted fiction writer who also happens to be a rock star, but Wonderkid is the book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/wesley-stace-has-always-been-the-only-genuinely-gifted-fiction-writer/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [I think my great book is Born to Sing: An Interpretation and World Survey of Bird Song.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-hartshorne/i-think-my-great-book-is-born-to-sing-an-interpretation-and-world/) [Charles Hartshorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-hartshorne/) > [Never to read another book that was born and baptized (with ink) at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/never-to-read-another-book-that-was-born-and-baptized-with-ink-at-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“A book is a living, breathing thing. It spends the first chapters of its life curled up in the mind, symbiotic with its creator…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-murdoch/a-book-is-a-living-breathing-thing-it-spends-the-first-chapters-of/) [Emily Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-murdoch/) > [“This book was born as I was hungry. Let me explain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/this-book-was-born-as-i-was-hungry-let-me-explain/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [“In his book, Born to Be Good, Keltner even says that if he had to choose his mate by asking a single question at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/in-his-book-born-to-be-good-keltner-even-says-that-if-he-had-to/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [Before I wrote The Power of Now, I had a vision that I had already written the book and that it was affecting the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/before-i-wrote-the-power-of-now-i-had-a-vision-that-i-had-already/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [I began writing books after speaking for several years and I realize that when you have a written book people think that you're smarter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/i-began-writing-books-after-speaking-for-several-years-and-i-realize/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [One man is as good as another until he has written a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-jowett/one-man-is-as-good-as-another-until-he-has-written-a-book/) [Benjamin Jowett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-jowett/) ## More by May Sarton > [“I felt pain like an assault, The old pain again When the world thrusts itself inside, When we have to take in the outside,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-felt-pain-like-an-assault-the-old-pain-again-when-the-world-thrusts/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Most people have to talk so they won't hear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/most-people-have-to-talk-so-they-won-t-hear/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [People who cannot feel punish those who do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/people-who-cannot-feel-punish-those-who-do/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely alone in a strange city (at times I wondered if I had lost the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/this-suspension-of-one-s-own-reality-this-being-entirely-alone-in-a/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [One must think like a hero to behave like a merely decent human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/one-must-think-like-a-hero-to-behave-like-a-merely-decent-human-being/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Real joy is becoming exceedingly rare among artists of any kind. And I have an idea that those who can and do communicate it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/real-joy-is-becoming-exceedingly-rare-among-artists-of-any-kind-and-i/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [For to be desperate is to discover strength. / We die of comfort and by conflict live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/for-to-be-desperate-is-to-discover-strength-we-die-of-comfort-and-by/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [“I see you with that shell Held to your sensitive abstracted ear, Hunting the ocean’s rumor till you hear it well, Until you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-see-you-with-that-shell-held-to-your-sensitive-abstracted-ear/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [There is a wilder solitude in winter When every sense is pricked alive and keen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/there-is-a-wilder-solitude-in-winter-when-every-sense-is-pricked/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [I long for the bulbs to arrive, for the early autumn chores are melancholy, but the planting of bulbs is the work of hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-long-for-the-bulbs-to-arrive-for-the-early-autumn-chores-are/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Why is it that people who cannot show feeling presume that that is a strength and not a weakness?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/why-is-it-that-people-who-cannot-show-feeling-presume-that-that-is-a/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Innocence is not pure so much as pleased, Always expectant, bright-eyed, self-enclosed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/innocence-is-not-pure-so-much-as-pleased-always-expectant-bright-eyed/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [I have written every poem, every novel, for the same purpose-to find out what I think, to know where I stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-have-written-every-poem-every-novel-for-the-same-purpose-to-find/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [For art is order, but it is born out of the chaos of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/for-art-is-order-but-it-is-born-out-of-the-chaos-of-life/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [all great people are humble because great people have great work and are humbled by the largeness of their dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/all-great-people-are-humble-because-great-people-have-great-work-and/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) [Explore all 336 May Sarton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## More Answers quotes > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I have long felt that the way to keep children out of trouble is to keep them interested in things. Lecturing to children is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/i-have-long-felt-that-the-way-to-keep-children-out-of-trouble-is-to/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [“As long as you keep searching,the answers will come.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-kynock/as-long-as-you-keep-searching-the-answers-will-come/) [Mitch Kynock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-kynock/) > [The answer to deep anxiety is the deep adoration of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/the-answer-to-deep-anxiety-is-the-deep-adoration-of-god/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [There is a comfort in rituals, and rituals provide a framework for stability when you are trying to find answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-norville/there-is-a-comfort-in-rituals-and-rituals-provide-a-framework-for/) [Deborah Norville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-norville/) > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [Instead of asking a girl how she feels, try looking through her recently listened to songs. The lyrics are the answer to all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/instead-of-asking-a-girl-how-she-feels-try-looking-through-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For someone to ask 'Who did you play for' and to be able to answer a single name 'Liverpool' that would be brilliant...I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-carragher/for-someone-to-ask-who-did-you-play-for-and-to-be-able-to-answer-a/) [Jamie Carragher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-carragher/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [Enjoying life isn't about finding the answers, but living the questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-margolis/enjoying-life-isn-t-about-finding-the-answers-but-living-the-questions/) [Sue Margolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-margolis/) [Browse all 7,843 Answers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have never written a book that was not born out of a question I needed to answer for myself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "May Sarton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not-born-out-of-a-question-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Answers" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not-born-out-of-a-question-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17b/may-sarton-897_answers_i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not_1672680.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17b/may-sarton-897_answers_i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not_1672680.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17b/may-sarton-897_answers_i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not_1672680.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have never written a book that was not born out of a question I needed to answer for myself.” — May Sarton", "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": "May Sarton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I have never written a book...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not-born-out-of-a-question-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-have-never-written-a-book-that-was-not-born-out-of-a-question-i/#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 } } ] } ```