--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Writing a novel was like I had some…" description: "\"Writing a novel was like I had some Play-Doh to work with and could just keep working with it - doing a million drafts and things changing radically an..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/miranda-july-1600_books_writing-a-novel-was-like-i-had-some-play_2996762.jpg" --- # Writing a novel was like I had some Play-Doh to work with… ![“Writing a novel was like I had some Play-Doh to work with and could just keep working with it - doing a million drafts and things changing radically and characters appearing and disappearing and solving mysteries: Why is this thing here? Should I just take that away? And then realizing, no, that…” quote by Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/miranda-july-1600_books_writing-a-novel-was-like-i-had-some-play_2996762.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/miranda-july-1600_books_writing-a-novel-was-like-i-had-some-play_2996762.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/808/miranda-july-1600_books_writing-a-novel-was-like-i-had-some-play_2996762.jpg) > “Writing a novel was like I had some Play-Doh to work with and could just keep working with it - doing a million drafts and things changing radically and characters appearing and disappearing and solving mysteries: Why is this thing here? Should I just take that away? And then realizing, no, that is there, in fact, because that is the key to this. I love that sort of detective work, keeping the faith alive until all the questions have been sleuthed out.” [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The creative process is iterative, messy, and full of unexpected discoveries that shape the final work. **In simple terms:** Writing is messy and full of discoveries. Key Takeaway Embrace iteration and trust the process. Themes creativity process discovery perseverance authenticity Mood curious determined hopeful Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - novel writing - screenwriting - creative workshops Key Concepts Iterative drafting character development plot twists Questions to Reflect On - How do you know when a draft is ready to move forward? - What methods help you keep the core idea alive amid changes? A Different Perspective Too much revision can stall progress if not balanced with finishing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Detective work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detective-work/) [Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Things change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-change/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“Advice to friends. Advice to fellow mothers in the same boat. "How do you do it all?" Crack a joke. Make it seem easy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-woolf/advice-to-friends-advice-to-fellow-mothers-in-the-same-boat-how-do/) Rebecca Woolf > [These really are our days, and we can prevail and overcome, even in the midst of trends that are very disturbing. If we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/these-really-are-our-days-and-we-can-prevail-and-overcome-even-in-the/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [“Everything in Life happens in its own time and at its own pace. When you understand this truth about Life, you will realize that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avis-viswanathan/everything-in-life-happens-in-its-own-time-and-at-its-own-pace-when/) AVIS Viswanathan > [A lot of artists give up because it's just too damn hard to go on making art in a culture that by and large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/a-lot-of-artists-give-up-because-it-s-just-too-damn-hard-to-go-on/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [I wanted to be a forensic scientist for a long time. It's like putting the pieces of a puzzle together. Solving mysteries seemed like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-kreuk/i-wanted-to-be-a-forensic-scientist-for-a-long-time-it-s-like-putting/) [Kristin Kreuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-kreuk/) > [Persistence is the key to solving most mysteries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-pike/persistence-is-the-key-to-solving-most-mysteries/) [Christopher Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-pike/) > [A whole lot of us believers, of all different religions, are ready to turn back the tide of madness by walking together, in both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/a-whole-lot-of-us-believers-of-all-different-religions-are-ready-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“What I needed was a big fat clue. A mysterious note laying it all out. A deity popping out of thin air and explaining…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/what-i-needed-was-a-big-fat-clue-a-mysterious-note-laying-it-all-out/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [My own dear mother was a martyr indeed, and it is not to everybody that God grants so easy a way to his great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien-2/my-own-dear-mother-was-a-martyr-indeed-and-it-is-not-to-everybody/) [J. R. R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien-2/) > [For whatever reason, I am just very attracted to mystery stories, solving mysteries. I was a huge fan of 'The Jinx.' That's such a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-daddario/for-whatever-reason-i-am-just-very-attracted-to-mystery-stories/) [Alexandra Daddario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-daddario/) > [ For Keeping the Faith, I looked at \[George \] Cukor's old films like The Philadelphia Story, stuff that's hilariously funny and really smart with… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/for-keeping-the-faith-i-looked-at-george-cukor-s-old-films-like-the/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) > [One cannot spend forever sitting and solving the mysteries of oone's history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-cannot-spend-forever-sitting-and-solving-the-mysteries-of-oone-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You'd think solving mysteries would bring you closure, that closing the loop would comfort and quiet your mind. But it never does. The truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/you-d-think-solving-mysteries-would-bring-you-closure-that-closing/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I'm very good at solving mysteries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sayani-gupta/i-m-very-good-at-solving-mysteries/) [Sayani Gupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sayani-gupta/) > [I was a lot dumber when I was writing the novel. I felt like worse of a writer because I wrote many of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-was-a-lot-dumber-when-i-was-writing-the-novel-i-felt-like-worse-of/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) ## More by Miranda July > [Would she understand that time had stopped while she was gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/would-she-understand-that-time-had-stopped-while-she-was-gone/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [I like embracing kind of normal forms but am always trying to approach them as if no one's ever done that before. As if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-like-embracing-kind-of-normal-forms-but-am-always-trying-to/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [“It wasn't good, he wasn't good, he did not have good intentions. I stood there, and he stood there. He breathed out the bitter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/it-wasn-t-good-he-wasn-t-good-he-did-not-have-good-intentions-i-stood/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [The whole thing of working in all these different mediums, it's just so that I can always be playing hooky from one of them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/the-whole-thing-of-working-in-all-these-different-mediums-it-s-just/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [The thing I am most interested in is power relations - it is so easy in a relationship like that \[of an artist and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/the-thing-i-am-most-interested-in-is-power-relations-it-is-so-easy-in/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [Are you angry? Punch a pillow. Was it satisfying? Not hardly. These days people are too angry for punching. What you might try is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/are-you-angry-punch-a-pillow-was-it-satisfying-not-hardly-these-days/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [It was a tiny sound but it woke me up because it was a human sound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/it-was-a-tiny-sound-but-it-woke-me-up-because-it-was-a-human-sound/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [I'm not a cinephile. My films don't reference films. I'm more interested in rhythm and feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-m-not-a-cinephile-my-films-don-t-reference-films-i-m-more/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [“We were anxious to begin our life as people who had no people. And it was easy to find an apartment because we had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/we-were-anxious-to-begin-our-life-as-people-who-had-no-people-and-it/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [I'm always the kind of friend or girlfriend who suggests, when there's some cataclysmic problem in the relationship, I'm like, "Well, maybe we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-m-always-the-kind-of-friend-or-girlfriend-who-suggests-when-there-s/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [I wrestle my fears with every big decision I make. Ultimately, maybe all that wrestling does is make you sick of your own thoughts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-wrestle-my-fears-with-every-big-decision-i-make-ultimately-maybe/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [When I had a baby, I was consumed with my body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/when-i-had-a-baby-i-was-consumed-with-my-body/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [I'm quite a cerebral person. Often I feel quite stuck in that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-m-quite-a-cerebral-person-often-i-feel-quite-stuck-in-that/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [Somewhat predictably, I'm much more comfortable in front of an audience - and a big audience is even better - than faced with one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/somewhat-predictably-i-m-much-more-comfortable-in-front-of-an/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [We humans are here because nothing can be perfect. There always have to be some living things that are unsatisfied, itchy, trying too hard.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/we-humans-are-here-because-nothing-can-be-perfect-there-always-have/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) [Explore all 223 Miranda July quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Writing a novel was like I had some Play-Doh to work with and could just keep working with it - doing a million drafts and things changing radically and characters appearing and disappearing and solving mysteries: Why is this thing here? Should I just take that away? And then realizing, no, that is there, in fact, because that is the key to this. 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