--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some writing courses will advise you to…" description: "\"Some writing courses will advise you to write what you know. I've always thought this is very odd advice ... because it means, for example, that I shou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/050/michael-scott-1216_advice_some-writing-courses-will-advise-you-to_27000.png" --- # Some writing courses will advise you to write what you… ![“Some writing courses will advise you to write what you know. I've always thought this is very odd advice ... because it means, for example, that I should not be writing about Nicholas Flamel, because I didn't live in France in the 15th Century, I was not an alchemyst, am not immortal (despite the…” quote by Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/050/michael-scott-1216_advice_some-writing-courses-will-advise-you-to_27000.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/050/michael-scott-1216_advice_some-writing-courses-will-advise-you-to_27000.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/050/michael-scott-1216_advice_some-writing-courses-will-advise-you-to_27000.png) > “Some writing courses will advise you to write what you know. I've always thought this is very odd advice ... because it means, for example, that I should not be writing about Nicholas Flamel, because I didn't live in France in the 15th Century, I was not an alchemyst, am not immortal (despite the rumours) and do not know magic.” [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The advice to write only from personal experience limits imagination; the author argues that creativity can draw on imagined or historical subjects beyond one's lived reality. **In simple terms:** Creative freedom over personal experience Key Takeaway Imagination transcends lived experience Themes creativity imagination writing advice historical fiction self-expression Mood playful defiant thoughtful Type advice critique observation When to use this quote - writing workshops - novel planning - fantasy worldbuilding - historical novels - personal essays Key Concepts authorial voice genre flexibility knowledge vs. imagination Practical Applications - Encouraging writers to explore speculative topics - Broadening curriculum for creative writing Questions to Reflect On - How does limiting topics to personal experience affect originality? - What strategies can writers use to authentically portray unfamiliar settings? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advice/) [Advise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advise/) [Advise Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advise-write-414884/) [Century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/century/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Despite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despite/) [Example](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/example/) [Example Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/example-writing-414885/) [France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/france/) [Immortal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immortal/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Odd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odd/) [Rumours](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rumours/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Write Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-know/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Nicholas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-nicholas-414886/) ## Related quotes > [For example, when I was writing Leviathan, which was written both in New York and in Vermont - I think there were two summers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/for-example-when-i-was-writing-leviathan-which-was-written-both-in/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [“Girls is a fine example of someone writing what she knows and the painful limitations of doing so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/girls-is-a-fine-example-of-someone-writing-what-she-knows-and-the/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [Write what you know. 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In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/it-has-been-suggested-by-some-people-in-this-country-that-i-and-my/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [For a writer, they say write what you know. As a performer, you find it in yourself, in your heart. You relate to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uma-thurman/for-a-writer-they-say-write-what-you-know-as-a-performer-you-find-it/) [Uma Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uma-thurman/) > [I'm trying to write something in which you know that it's all about sex but you never see any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hare/i-m-trying-to-write-something-in-which-you-know-that-it-s-all-about/) [David Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hare/) > [“The old nut goes, 'Write what you know,' but often a writer is clearer about what he doesn't know and must learn about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-bell/the-old-nut-goes-write-what-you-know-but-often-a-writer-is-clearer/) [Susan Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-bell/) > [“When I write to please everybody, it falls flat. When I write what I know, fearlessly, It won't please everybody, but it doesn't fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-p-chavez/when-i-write-to-please-everybody-it-falls-flat-when-i-write-what-i/) [Ronald P. Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-p-chavez/) > [You can only really write about what you know about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-singleton/you-can-only-really-write-about-what-you-know-about/) [John Singleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-singleton/) > [Nowadays it seems as though people sit down to write what they know is going to be a trilogy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/nowadays-it-seems-as-though-people-sit-down-to-write-what-they-know/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [I write about what I know, what I live, what I observe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-momsen/i-write-about-what-i-know-what-i-live-what-i-observe/) [Taylor Momsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-momsen/) > [Write about what you know, that's what I say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-widdicombe/write-about-what-you-know-that-s-what-i-say/) [Josh Widdicombe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-widdicombe/) > [It’s not just the adage ‘write what you know,’ it’s about gathering up all of the knowledge and experience you’ve collected up to now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-kay/it-s-not-just-the-adage-write-what-you-know-it-s-about-gathering-up/) [Sarah Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-kay/) > [“As someone else once said, "Write what you know". Well I know very little, so I write, and illustrate, Nonsense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-h-tubb/as-someone-else-once-said-write-what-you-know-well-i-know-very-little/) [Paul H Tubb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-h-tubb/) ## More by Michael Scott > [Which would you be?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/which-would-you-be/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [“Here it comes," Niten said. The whites of his eyes,his teeth and his tongue had turned blue. "Ready," Prometheus said. Nicholas Flamel touched the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/here-it-comes-niten-said-the-whites-of-his-eyes-his-teeth-and-his/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [I love inside jokes. I hope to be a part of one some day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/i-love-inside-jokes-i-hope-to-be-a-part-of-one-some-day/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [“- John is a dangerous fanatic. - And you are not ? - asked Dagon. - I'm just dangerous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/john-is-a-dangerous-fanatic-and-you-are-not-asked-dagon-i-m-just/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [Our covering ministry is Challenge for Christ ministries, and Travel the Road was solely our mission arm, designed to expose people to what missions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/our-covering-ministry-is-challenge-for-christ-ministries-and-travel/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [The problem with contemporary art is that no one bothers to do the research necessary to give people what they want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/the-problem-with-contemporary-art-is-that-no-one-bothers-to-do-the/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [I have always been interested in mythology and history. The more I read, the more I realized that there have always been people at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/i-have-always-been-interested-in-mythology-and-history-the-more-i/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [“The line between confidence and arrogance is very fine, and the line between arrogance and stupidity even finer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/the-line-between-confidence-and-arrogance-is-very-fine-and-the-line/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [Here, you can walk into a bookstore and pick up a Bible or Christian literature and learn. Over there, they are lucky if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/here-you-can-walk-into-a-bookstore-and-pick-up-a-bible-or-christian/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [“The small Japanese immortal sat cross-legged, his two swords resting flat on the ground before him. He folded his hands in his lap, closed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/the-small-japanese-immortal-sat-cross-legged-his-two-swords-resting/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [TMI? Too Much Information. It”s just easier to say 'TMI'. I used to say 'don't go there', but that's lame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/tmi-too-much-information-it-s-just-easier-to-say-tmi-i-used-to-say/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [“It was some time ago—in the twelfth century, as you humani measure time—a man from the land of the Scots. I do not remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/it-was-some-time-ago-in-the-twelfth-century-as-you-humani-measure/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [“If you tell people everything you take away their opportunity to learn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/if-you-tell-people-everything-you-take-away-their-opportunity-to-learn/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [it is only when no one remembers that you are truly lost. That is the true death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/it-is-only-when-no-one-remembers-that-you-are-truly-lost-that-is-the/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [What is the greatest mistake a parent can make?' she asked. 'To believe that your children will be just like you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/what-is-the-greatest-mistake-a-parent-can-make-she-asked-to-believe/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) [Explore all 267 Michael Scott quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) ## More Advice quotes > [The sensible person is always serious about sensible advice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/the-sensible-person-is-always-serious-about-sensible-advice/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [I ask for tips, for advice. What I have also learnt is that I need to do things that are good for me. 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I think that you really ought to listen to the critics, because sometimes they're telling you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-worst-advice-don-t-listen-to-the-critics-i-think-that-you-really/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [When I was in my twenties and just so sexually prolific, the first time I went to Machu Picchu, this guy, a spiritual teacher,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-harrelson/when-i-was-in-my-twenties-and-just-so-sexually-prolific-the-first/) [Woody Harrelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-harrelson/) > [The best way to succeed in this world is to act on the advice you give to others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/the-best-way-to-succeed-in-this-world-is-to-act-on-the-advice-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [Time is priceless. You have it, but you don't own it. You spend it, but you can't keep it. And once it's gone, there's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/time-is-priceless-you-have-it-but-you-don-t-own-it-you-spend-it-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You don't need to take a persons advice to make him feel good, just ask him for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/you-don-t-need-to-take-a-persons-advice-to-make-him-feel-good-just/) [Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/) > [Some of the things that we hold onto the most, are the things that we need to let go of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryaj-ablando-catayas/some-of-the-things-that-we-hold-onto-the-most-are-the-things-that-we/) [Ryaj Ablando Catayas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryaj-ablando-catayas/) > [“If your clothes are enough to drive would-be friends away, they're not the kind of friends you want." Typical mother advice. 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