--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hi, my name is Tess Embers. A lot of…" description: "\"“Hi, my name is Tess Embers. A lot of thoughts are probably running through your mind right now. Who does this person think she is? Doesn’t she know th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81a/maya-bode-8357_psychology_hi-my-name-is-tess-embers-a-lot-of-thoug_1878268.jpg" --- # Hi, my name is Tess Embers. A lot of thoughts are probably… ![“Hi, my name is Tess Embers. A lot of thoughts are probably running through your mind right now. Who does this person think she is? Doesn’t she know that you should never begin a story with a boring phrase like,‘Hi, my name is...’? Doesn’t she know to use a hook at the beginning to draw readers in…” quote by Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81a/maya-bode-8357_psychology_hi-my-name-is-tess-embers-a-lot-of-thoug_1878268.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81a/maya-bode-8357_psychology_hi-my-name-is-tess-embers-a-lot-of-thoug_1878268.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81a/maya-bode-8357_psychology_hi-my-name-is-tess-embers-a-lot-of-thoug_1878268.jpg) > ““Hi, my name is Tess Embers. A lot of thoughts are probably running through your mind right now. Who does this person think she is? Doesn’t she know that you should never begin a story with a boring phrase like,‘Hi, my name is...’? Doesn’t she know to use a hook at the beginning to draw readers in instead of pushing them away? Well, sorry, but I’m just a teenage girl and I don’t necessarily want everyone to know everything about my life. Maybe I don’t want to hook people.”” [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) ## 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 questions conventional storytelling hooks and expresses discomfort with overexposure of personal life in narrative. **In simple terms:** She doubts the need for a catchy opening and fears sharing too much. Key Takeaway Embrace authentic voice over forced hooks. Themes authenticity self‑presentation storytelling privacy Mood reflective defensive Type advice personal When to use this quote - writing workshops - social media posts - teen memoirs - blog introductions Key Concepts narrative voice audience expectation personal boundaries Questions to Reflect On - Do you value authenticity over attention? - How much personal detail feels comfortable to share? A Different Perspective Some readers may still prefer a clear hook to engage quickly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Begin Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/begin-story-350992/) [Embers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embers/) [Hook Beginning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hook-beginning-2637711/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/readers/) [Right now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-now/) [Teenage girl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teenage-girl/) [Tess Embers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tess-embers-2637710/) ## Related quotes > [“You should know by now that I have eyes in the back of my head." -Mr. Bradshaw, Tess Embers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/you-should-know-by-now-that-i-have-eyes-in-the-back-of-my-head-mr/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“The thing is, Ms. Embers, they aren’t exactly on our side.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/the-thing-is-ms-embers-they-aren-t-exactly-on-our-side/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [You may do this, I tell you, it is permitted. Begin again the story of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/you-may-do-this-i-tell-you-it-is-permitted-begin-again-the-story-of/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [“We decided he might like to know about the people and places that belong to him now so he can begin a story all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-karon/we-decided-he-might-like-to-know-about-the-people-and-places-that/) [Jan Karon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-karon/) > [What I am telling you, before you begin my story, is this -- two things: I crave truth. And I lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tana-french/what-i-am-telling-you-before-you-begin-my-story-is-this-two-things-i/) [Tana French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tana-french/) > [And before I'd got to the end of the first paragraph, I'd come up slap bang against a fundamental problem that still troubles me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/and-before-i-d-got-to-the-end-of-the-first-paragraph-i-d-come-up-slap/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [When I begin a story at my desk, the window to my back, the path is not there. As I start to walk, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-fox/when-i-begin-a-story-at-my-desk-the-window-to-my-back-the-path-is-not/) [Paula Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-fox/) > [Once you allow yourself to identify with the people in a story, then you might begin to see yourself in that story even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/once-you-allow-yourself-to-identify-with-the-people-in-a-story-then-2/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [“I've confessed to everything and I'd like to be hanged. Now, if you please. I don't mean to be difficult, but I can't bear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franny-billingsley/i-ve-confessed-to-everything-and-i-d-like-to-be-hanged-now-if-you/) [Franny Billingsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franny-billingsley/) > [There are all sorts of theories and ideas about what constitutes a good opening line. It's tricky thing, and tough to talk about because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/there-are-all-sorts-of-theories-and-ideas-about-what-constitutes-a/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Once you allow yourself to identify with the people in a story, then you might begin to see yourself in that story even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/once-you-allow-yourself-to-identify-with-the-people-in-a-story-then/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [You don't choose your themes; they choose you. The meaning of your stories will rise out of your deepest longings, often out of longings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-dane-bauer/you-don-t-choose-your-themes-they-choose-you-the-meaning-of-your/) [Marion Dane Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-dane-bauer/) > [“And then you realize that when you finally meet, when you finally find each other, it doesn’t matter. All the rest of it doesn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-kauffman/and-then-you-realize-that-when-you-finally-meet-when-you-finally-find/) [Donna Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-kauffman/) > [“You can begin a story in the middle and create confusion by striking out boldly, backward and forward. You can be modern, put aside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/you-can-begin-a-story-in-the-middle-and-create-confusion-by-striking/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [“An opening line should invite the reader to begin the story. It should say: Listen. Come in here. You want to know about this.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/an-opening-line-should-invite-the-reader-to-begin-the-story-it-should/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## More by Maya Bode > [“The lie detector didn’t react to anything I said, but I wouldn’t dare smile.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/the-lie-detector-didn-t-react-to-anything-i-said-but-i-wouldn-t-dare/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“I should have been honored to have been part of the best pickpocket incident of the century, but instead I was just mad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/i-should-have-been-honored-to-have-been-part-of-the-best-pickpocket/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Everything okay?” He asked, and I nodded hastily. “You sure?” “Uh-huh.” “Mr. Bradshaw wouldn’t be proud of your lying skills right now,” he pointed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/everything-okay-he-asked-and-i-nodded-hastily-you-sure-uh-huh-mr/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Honestly, I’m sorry you have no more power over me, but I’m not scared of you anymore. It’s just not worth my time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/honestly-i-m-sorry-you-have-no-more-power-over-me-but-i-m-not-scared/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Suddenly, I found myself running along the rooftop, leaping and falling. Falling until I caught the zip-line handle and then I was zooming, flying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/suddenly-i-found-myself-running-along-the-rooftop-leaping-and-falling/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“I can’t tell you the things I know,” I repeated. “Why not?” “They aren’t my secrets to tell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/i-can-t-tell-you-the-things-i-know-i-repeated-why-not-they-aren-t-my/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Why would you tell us the truth? If Christina really wasn’t here, you’d tell us she was, to stall us from finding her. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/why-would-you-tell-us-the-truth-if-christina-really-wasn-t-here-you-d/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Hi, my name is Tess.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/hi-my-name-is-tess/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“That was the problem with training to be a spy and developing your senses to the point that I had. Now, I was constantly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/that-was-the-problem-with-training-to-be-a-spy-and-developing-your/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Excuse me? I’m a girl? And what does that have to do with anything?” I narrowed my eyes. If he didn’t answer this correctly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/excuse-me-i-m-a-girl-and-what-does-that-have-to-do-with-anything-i/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“In a way, she was right. But while she talked, she stared hungrily at the Didot in my hands. They all did, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/in-a-way-she-was-right-but-while-she-talked-she-stared-hungrily-at/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“I tried to figure out what everyone was so frustrated about. I thought maybe the Didot was going to show me an image or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/i-tried-to-figure-out-what-everyone-was-so-frustrated-about-i-thought/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“The thing is, Ms. Embers, they aren’t exactly on our side.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/the-thing-is-ms-embers-they-aren-t-exactly-on-our-side/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Was it risky? Yep. Was it rude? Oh, yeah. Was it stupid? Most likely. But I’d said it anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/was-it-risky-yep-was-it-rude-oh-yeah-was-it-stupid-most-likely-but-i/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) > [“Of course not, dear,” Mr. Bradshaw said, tapping her nose lightly, and she giggled. “It’s never the end -- in fact, in my not-so-humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-bode/of-course-not-dear-mr-bradshaw-said-tapping-her-nose-lightly-and-she/) [Maya Bode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) [Explore all 81 Maya Bode quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-bode/) ## More Embers quotes > [“The past is to be learned from but not lived in. We look back to claim the embers from glowing experiences but not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-past-is-to-be-learned-from-but-not-lived-in-we-look-back-to-claim/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [No wonder of it: sheer plod makes plough down sillion Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear, Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermilion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-manley-hopkins/no-wonder-of-it-sheer-plod-makes-plough-down-sillion-shine-and-blue/) [Gerard Manley Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-manley-hopkins/) > [Will closed his eyes. He could not hear Jem go, not anymore; he did not want to know the moment when he left and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/will-closed-his-eyes-he-could-not-hear-jem-go-not-anymore-he-did-not/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [It's there. The white rose among the dried flowers in the vase. Shriveled and fragile, but holding on to that unnatural perfection cultivated in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-there-the-white-rose-among-the-dried-flowers-in-the-vase/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Mars tugs at the human imagination like no other planet. With a force mightier than gravity, it attracts the eye to its shimmering red…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-noble-wilford/mars-tugs-at-the-human-imagination-like-no-other-planet-with-a-force/) [John Noble Wilford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-noble-wilford/) > [“Flames beaten by the Ocean's Rage; Shrouded in Molten Haze; Blithely sheathed in Splendor. An Angel rises from the Embers. Calming Waters brew Courage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-rentmeester/flames-beaten-by-the-ocean-s-rage-shrouded-in-molten-haze-blithely/) [Renee Rentmeester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-rentmeester/) > [He set fire to some potatoes, then cooked some undelivered post in the embers." - Dad "Did he now? What a strange fellow. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/he-set-fire-to-some-potatoes-then-cooked-some-undelivered-post-in-the/) [Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/) > [Ods me I marle what pleasure or felicity they have in taking their roguish tobacco. It is good for nothing but to choke a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/ods-me-i-marle-what-pleasure-or-felicity-they-have-in-taking-their/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [And when I told my sons I might be in City of Ember, they said, 'Oh! You're gonna be the mayor?' And I hadn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-murray/and-when-i-told-my-sons-i-might-be-in-city-of-ember-they-said-oh-you/) [Bill Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-murray/) > [Good-night! good-night! as we so oft have said Beneath this roof at midnight, in the days That are no more, and shall no more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/good-night-good-night-as-we-so-oft-have-said-beneath-this-roof-at/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Reunions are always fraught with awkward tensions - the necessity to account for oneself; the attempt to find, through memories, an ember of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-shreve/reunions-are-always-fraught-with-awkward-tensions-the-necessity-to/) [Anita Shreve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-shreve/) > [Nothing is really lost or can be lost, No birth, identity, form--no object of the world, Nor life, nor force, nor any visible thing...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nothing-is-really-lost-or-can-be-lost-no-birth-identity-form-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Yea, though the breath of disappointment should chill the sanguine heart, Speedily gloweth it again, warmed by the live embers of hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/yea-though-the-breath-of-disappointment-should-chill-the-sanguine/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [I'd rather be a flash than a slowly burning ember.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-d-rather-be-a-flash-than-a-slowly-burning-ember/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) > [The burning embers within me burst into flame / My body becomes a fire-lit torch. / Ho someone! Send for the mid-wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amrita-pritam/the-burning-embers-within-me-burst-into-flame-my-body-becomes-a-fire/) [Amrita Pritam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amrita-pritam/) [Browse all 115 Embers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Hi, my name is Tess Embers. A lot of thoughts are probably running through your mind right now. Who does this person think she is? Doesn’t she know that you should never begin a story with a boring phrase like,‘Hi, my name is...’? Doesn’t she know to use a hook at the beginning to draw readers in instead of pushing them away? Well, sorry, but I’m just a teenage girl and I don’t necessarily want everyone to know everything about my life. 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