--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Let's say I've directed that [writing]…" description: "\"Let's say I've directed that [writing] energy into writing my latest book but suddenly, I really want to write about an onion. I don't say to myself, \"..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d8/natalie-goldberg-1741_book_let-s-say-i-ve-directed-that-writing-ene_1176445.png" --- # Let's say I've directed that \[writing\] energy into writing… ![“Let's say I've directed that [writing] energy into writing my latest book but suddenly, I really want to write about an onion. I don't say to myself, "No, you have stay on the subject," because I know that the longer I stay on the subject the more boring I get. So, if my mind wants to write about…” quote by Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d8/natalie-goldberg-1741_book_let-s-say-i-ve-directed-that-writing-ene_1176445.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d8/natalie-goldberg-1741_book_let-s-say-i-ve-directed-that-writing-ene_1176445.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d8/natalie-goldberg-1741_book_let-s-say-i-ve-directed-that-writing-ene_1176445.png) > “Let's say I've directed that \[writing\] energy into writing my latest book but suddenly, I really want to write about an onion. I don't say to myself, "No, you have stay on the subject," because I know that the longer I stay on the subject the more boring I get. So, if my mind wants to write about an onion, it might be a deeper way to go into what I'm working on, even though it might seem irrelevant. This is how I've learned to follow my mind.” [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Allowing spontaneous ideas, even seemingly unrelated ones, can deepen creative work and prevent stagnation. **In simple terms:** Follow unexpected thoughts to enrich your craft. Key Takeaway Embrace curiosity and flexibility. Themes creativity flexibility exploration Mood inquisitive optimistic Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - brainstorming sessions - creative blocks - writing practice Key Concepts writing mindfulness innovation Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance focus with spontaneity? - When did an unexpected idea improve your work? A Different Perspective Risk of losing focus on main goal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Generally, I find that when you're writing and having fun with the writing, that energy and dynamism is going to come out in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-alarcon/generally-i-find-that-when-you-re-writing-and-having-fun-with-the/) [Daniel Alarcon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-alarcon/) > [Writing objects to the lie that life is small. Writing is a cell of energy. Writing defines itself. 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Literature flows to the particular, the mundane, the greasiness of paper, the taste of warm beer, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/books-should-confuse-literature-abhors-the-typical-literature-flows/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Don't follow the mind. Don't follow the body. Follow the Conscience. That is the main principle of this text. So we should follow our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/don-t-follow-the-mind-don-t-follow-the-body-follow-the-conscience/) [Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/) > [FOLLOW YOU MIND, YOUR HEART IS AS STUPID AS SHIT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/follow-you-mind-your-heart-is-as-stupid-as-shit/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If any part of your uncertainty, is a conflict between your heart and your mind - follow your mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/if-any-part-of-your-uncertainty-is-a-conflict-between-your-heart-and/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [When your mind tells you not to give a broken relationship a second chance , you better follow your mind because your mind knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-louise/when-your-mind-tells-you-not-to-give-a-broken-relationship-a-second/) [Donna Louise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-louise/) > [Some people will follow their minds without listening to their hearts, and others will follow their hearts without listening to their minds. 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It must follow, then, that the Mind has a body of its own, even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-fitzgerald/the-body-then-has-a-mind-of-its-own-it-must-follow-then-that-the-mind/) [Penelope Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-fitzgerald/) > [Warm heart will always follow you when your mind always think positive :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu/warm-heart-will-always-follow-you-when-your-mind-always-think-positive/) [Ritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu/) > [You can only follow what's on your mind. In fact, a song is something you write because you can't sleep unless you write it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-strummer/you-can-only-follow-what-s-on-your-mind-in-fact-a-song-is-something/) [Joe Strummer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-strummer/) > [Sometimes life puts you in situations where you do know if you should follow your mind or your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanda-kaushik/sometimes-life-puts-you-in-situations-where-you-do-know-if-you-should/) [Chanda Kaushik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanda-kaushik/) ## More by Natalie Goldberg > [“We heard about people who go back to their roots. That is good, but don't get stuck in the root. There is the branch,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/we-heard-about-people-who-go-back-to-their-roots-that-is-good-but-don/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [Over and over, we have to go back to the beginning. We should not be ashamed of this. It is good. 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I have been astonished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/in-the-past-few-years-i-ve-assigned-books-to-be-read-before-a-student/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [“When you draw and pay attention to what is, it's a form of being present. This inspires the mind, makes it happy, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/when-you-draw-and-pay-attention-to-what-is-it-s-a-form-of-being/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [Poetry is a dumb Buddha who thinks a donkey is as important as a diamond.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/poetry-is-a-dumb-buddha-who-thinks-a-donkey-is-as-important-as-a/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [I told all kinds of stories about going to Japan, about playing ball with my father... I wanted to record my life in case…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/i-told-all-kinds-of-stories-about-going-to-japan-about-playing-ball/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [“No matter what a person does to cover up and conceal themselves, when we write and lose control, I can spot a person from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/no-matter-what-a-person-does-to-cover-up-and-conceal-themselves-when/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [To stay close and intimate with experience is to stay close to the mind; the nitty gritty mind of the way things really are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/to-stay-close-and-intimate-with-experience-is-to-stay-close-to-the/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [I read Eve Ensler and thought it was fabulous. 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Sometimes your creative energy is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/if-you-feel-bored-or-uncomfortable-as-you-re-writing-ask-yourself/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) [Explore all 212 Natalie Goldberg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) ## More Book 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/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. 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