--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was in college I started writing…" description: "\"When I was in college I started writing prose, because a very smart professor asked me what I like to read and I said, \"Novels,\" and she said, \"You sho..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/melissa-febos-7449_books_when-i-was-in-college-i-started-writing_1494528.png" --- # When I was in college I started writing prose, because a… ![“When I was in college I started writing prose, because a very smart professor asked me what I like to read and I said, "Novels," and she said, "You should be writing them then." Memoir never even occurred to me. I think I was afraid of nonfiction and I was afraid of navel-gazing, and of being seen.” quote by Melissa Febos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/melissa-febos-7449_books_when-i-was-in-college-i-started-writing_1494528.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/melissa-febos-7449_books_when-i-was-in-college-i-started-writing_1494528.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/melissa-febos-7449_books_when-i-was-in-college-i-started-writing_1494528.png) > “When I was in college I started writing prose, because a very smart professor asked me what I like to read and I said, "Novels," and she said, "You should be writing them then." Memoir never even occurred to me. I think I was afraid of nonfiction and I was afraid of navel-gazing, and of being seen.” [Melissa Febos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-febos/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A student’s professor encourages her to write novels, but she fears nonfiction and self‑examination, leading to a reluctance to pursue memoir. **In simple terms:** Fear of truth stops her from writing personal stories. Key Takeaway Embrace honesty in writing to grow. Themes creative identity fear Mood reflective motivational Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - academic setting - writing workshop - personal development Key Concepts self‑examination authenticity genre confidence Questions to Reflect On - What truths are you avoiding? - How could writing memoir empower you? A Different Perspective Avoiding nonfiction may limit self‑knowledge. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afraid Nonfiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afraid-nonfiction-5465330/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [College](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/college/) [Gazing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gazing/) [Memoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memoir/) [Memoir Occurred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memoir-occurred-5465331/) [Navel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/navel/) [Navel gazing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/navel-gazing/) [Nonfiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonfiction/) [Nonfiction Afraid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonfiction-afraid-5465329/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Professors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/professors/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Very smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very-smart/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Memoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-memoir-868555/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not going to let Defense Distributed go into a pro-social NGO territory. 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