---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can't remove the autobiographical slant…"
description: "\"I can't remove the autobiographical slant from the things I write. You always bring yourself into what you're writing.\" — Natalie Merchant"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3f/natalie-merchant-15980_autobiographical_i-can-t-remove-the-autobiographical-slan_2628598.jpg"
---

#  I can't remove the autobiographical slant from the things…

![“I can't remove the autobiographical slant from the things I write. You always bring yourself into what you're writing.” quote by Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3f/natalie-merchant-15980_autobiographical_i-can-t-remove-the-autobiographical-slan_2628598.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3f/natalie-merchant-15980_autobiographical_i-can-t-remove-the-autobiographical-slan_2628598.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3f/natalie-merchant-15980_autobiographical_i-can-t-remove-the-autobiographical-slan_2628598.jpg)

> “I can't remove the autobiographical slant from the things I write. You always bring yourself into what you're writing.”

[Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Writers inevitably infuse personal experience into their work, shaping narrative voice.

**In simple terms:** Writing is personal.

Key Takeaway

Embrace your own perspective.

Themes

writing self‑reflection creativity

Mood

reflective introspective

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- journaling
- fiction
- blogging

Key Concepts

autobiography voice subjectivity

Questions to Reflect On

- How to separate self from story?
- When is personal voice beneficial?

A Different Perspective

Personal bias can limit objectivity.

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[Autobiographical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiographical/) [Autobiographical Slant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiographical-slant-2170561/) [Bring Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bring-writing-1452792/) [Remove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remove/) [Remove Autobiographical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remove-autobiographical-2170562/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

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> [“Attempting to express a person’s objective reality and subjective state of mind with the written word is an endless task because writing alters our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/attempting-to-express-a-person-s-objective-reality-and-subjective/)

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> [My books aren't autobiographical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-giffin/my-books-aren-t-autobiographical/)

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> [It's actually easier to do autobiographical stories. The story is already there. It's a matter of carving away what doesn't fit rather than building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-thompson/it-s-actually-easier-to-do-autobiographical-stories-the-story-is/)

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> [I'm always saying that my books are not autobiographical because they're not. I can't choose any one scene and say, 'Oh, this is exactly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecily-von-ziegesar/i-m-always-saying-that-my-books-are-not-autobiographical-because-they/)

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> [Because of the wonderfully positive response to 'Life's That Way,' I am considering writing some more autobiographical stuff - maybe another book. I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-beaver/because-of-the-wonderfully-positive-response-to-life-s-that-way-i-am/)

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## More by Natalie Merchant

> [By calling it a memoir, I meant is as a collection of memories. I thought it was (a more) artful (title) than documentary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/by-calling-it-a-memoir-i-meant-is-as-a-collection-of-memories-i/)

[Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/)

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> [I feel we all have the obligation, myself. I want to live in a more humane, civilized society, and I feel like the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/i-feel-we-all-have-the-obligation-myself-i-want-to-live-in-a-more/)

[Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/)

> [It's funny, I remember doing the Johnny Carson show, and, uh, I couldn't afford my rent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/it-s-funny-i-remember-doing-the-johnny-carson-show-and-uh-i-couldn-t/)

[Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/)

> [I've found out how overwhelming the media is and the way it drills things into your head, it's almost like a mind control. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/i-ve-found-out-how-overwhelming-the-media-is-and-the-way-it-drills/)

[Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/)

> [I wish I had appreciated my youth - I should have worn tighter clothing when I could have!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/i-wish-i-had-appreciated-my-youth-i-should-have-worn-tighter-clothing/)

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> [My mother was a single working mother; she started having children very young. There was a tension inside her about who she wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/my-mother-was-a-single-working-mother-she-started-having-children/)

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> [I don't think women's prisons are environments for dance routines, and I don't think mass murder is humorous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/i-don-t-think-women-s-prisons-are-environments-for-dance-routines-and/)

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[Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/)

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[Explore all 41 Natalie Merchant quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/)

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> [“I am not and autobiographical writer--one can't be without a solid and explicable self--and read all autobiographical writers with the same curiosity. What kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yiyun-li/i-am-not-and-autobiographical-writer-one-can-t-be-without-a-solid-and/)

[Yiyun Li](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yiyun-li/)

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[Cecily von Ziegesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecily-von-ziegesar/)

> [Race as a subject only comes about because of what I look like. If I say something truthfully, people say "Oh, she's so angry."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaica-kincaid/race-as-a-subject-only-comes-about-because-of-what-i-look-like-if-i/)

[Jamaica Kincaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaica-kincaid/)

> [Of necessity, the autobiographical self is not just about one individual but about all the others that an individual interacts with. Of necessity, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/of-necessity-the-autobiographical-self-is-not-just-about-one/)

[Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/)

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> [Autobiographical comics, I love them. I love them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-bechdel/autobiographical-comics-i-love-them-i-love-them/)

[Alison Bechdel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-bechdel/)

> [It's actually easier to do autobiographical stories. The story is already there. It's a matter of carving away what doesn't fit rather than building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-thompson/it-s-actually-easier-to-do-autobiographical-stories-the-story-is/)

[Craig Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-thompson/)

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[Emily Giffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-giffin/)

> [“Attempting to express a person’s objective reality and subjective state of mind with the written word is an endless task because writing alters our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/attempting-to-express-a-person-s-objective-reality-and-subjective/)

[Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/)

> [Memoir is actually the most egoless genre, even though it might seem ostensibly so much ego-driven. In order for it to succeed, you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/memoir-is-actually-the-most-egoless-genre-even-though-it-might-seem/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [I'm not an autobiographical writer, but I am a writer who deals with human emotion on all levels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-not-an-autobiographical-writer-but-i-am-a-writer-who-deals-with/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“is a little remarkable, that—though disinclined to talk overmuch of myself and my affairs at the fireside, and to my personal friends—an autobiographical impulse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/is-a-little-remarkable-that-though-disinclined-to-talk-overmuch-of/)

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> [There certainly is no secret in that there are plenty of people who don't like plenty of my movies. Each one of my films…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-reitman/there-certainly-is-no-secret-in-that-there-are-plenty-of-people-who/)

[Jason Reitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-reitman/)

> ['Normal' is not clinical, it's not autobiographical, and I don't claim to be objective. It's strictly my perceptions and thoughts about the people that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/normal-is-not-clinical-it-s-not-autobiographical-and-i-don-t-claim-to/)

[Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/)

[Browse all 202 Autobiographical quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiographical/)

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