--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are characters in some short…" description: "\"There are characters in some short stories who exist as people, and there are other characters in different short stories who exist as purely literary ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/027/neil-gaiman-29_being-real_there-are-characters-in-some-short-stori_2995329.jpg" --- # There are characters in some short stories who exist as… ![“There are characters in some short stories who exist as people, and there are other characters in different short stories who exist as purely literary constructs. You know, the young man in "Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Secret House of the Night of Dread Desire" - I probably got…” quote by Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/027/neil-gaiman-29_being-real_there-are-characters-in-some-short-stori_2995329.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/027/neil-gaiman-29_being-real_there-are-characters-in-some-short-stori_2995329.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/027/neil-gaiman-29_being-real_there-are-characters-in-some-short-stori_2995329.jpg) > “There are characters in some short stories who exist as people, and there are other characters in different short stories who exist as purely literary constructs. You know, the young man in "Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Secret House of the Night of Dread Desire" - I probably got that right - is a literary construct, and enjoys being a literary construct. He has no life off stage, whereas the young men in "How to Talk to Girls at Parties" were as near to being real human beings as I could possibly get them.” [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Some story characters are mere constructs, others feel real; distinction affects narrative impact **In simple terms:** Characters vary from constructs to lifelike Key Takeaway Recognize depth of character creation Themes literature fiction metafiction Mood thoughtful analytical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - literary analysis Key Concepts Narrative theory character development Questions to Reflect On - How do constructs influence reader connection? - When does a construct become relatable? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on construct may limit empathy ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Being real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-real/) [Brides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brides/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Dread](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dread/) [Enjoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enjoy/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Forbidden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forbidden/) [Girl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/girl/) [House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/house/) [Literary Construct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literary-construct-4728876/) [Literary Constructs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literary-constructs-4728875/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Purely Literary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purely-literary-4728877/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Short stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-stories/) [Short story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-story/) [Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave/) [Stories Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-exist-236308/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Young man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-man/) [Young men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-men/) ## Related quotes > [That literary-popular distinction is, in my view, vastly overstated. At the far poles there are clearly books that are purely commercial and purely literary,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-cronin/that-literary-popular-distinction-is-in-my-view-vastly-overstated-at/) [Justin Cronin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-cronin/) > [I don't necessarily think stories have functions any more than diamonds have functions, or the sky has a function... Stories exist. They keep us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-don-t-necessarily-think-stories-have-functions-any-more-than/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I like stories that exist both in the naturalistic world and in our imaginative lives, films are so immersive in that sense, we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-mckean/i-like-stories-that-exist-both-in-the-naturalistic-world-and-in-our/) [Dave McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-mckean/) > [I believe these stories exist because we sometimes need to create unreal monsters and bogies to stand in for all the things we fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-believe-these-stories-exist-because-we-sometimes-need-to-create/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Stories are living and dynamic. Stories exist to be exchanged. They are the currency of Human Growth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-houston/stories-are-living-and-dynamic-stories-exist-to-be-exchanged-they-are/) [Jean Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-houston/) > [“Do ghosts exist? We do not know. Perhaps we can never really know. But yes, ghost stories do exist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minakshi-chaudhry/do-ghosts-exist-we-do-not-know-perhaps-we-can-never-really-know-but/) [Minakshi Chaudhry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minakshi-chaudhry/) > [“A story unwritten is without beginning or end. But in its potential lies another story; and in the heartbeat before pen meets page, both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/a-story-unwritten-is-without-beginning-or-end-but-in-its-potential/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [But that's what we all are-just stories. We only exist by how people remember us, by the stories we make of our lives. Without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/but-that-s-what-we-all-are-just-stories-we-only-exist-by-how-people/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [I love stories that exist in this amped-up, personal world - sort of like 'Pee-wee's Big Holiday,' actually. That world really only exists inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-beatriz/i-love-stories-that-exist-in-this-amped-up-personal-world-sort-of/) [Stephanie Beatriz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-beatriz/) > [“People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it’s the other way around. Stories exist independently of their players. If you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/people-think-that-stories-are-shaped-by-people-in-fact-it-s-the-other/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Those around you can have their novellas, sweet, their short stories of cliché and coincidence, occasionally spiced up with tricks of the quirky, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marisha-pessl/those-around-you-can-have-their-novellas-sweet-their-short-stories-of/) [Marisha Pessl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marisha-pessl/) > [Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/short-stories-are-tiny-windows-into-other-worlds-and-other-minds-and-2/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams. They are journeys you can make to the far side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/short-stories-are-tiny-windows-into-other-worlds-and-other-minds-and/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [Literature transforms and intensifies ordinary language, deviates systematically from everyday speech. If you approach me at a bus stop and murmur Thou still unravished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/literature-transforms-and-intensifies-ordinary-language-deviates/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > ["Summer Sisters" is probably my least autobiographical book. The whole idea started with rowing down the pond. And I heard an explosion. I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-blume/summer-sisters-is-probably-my-least-autobiographical-book-the-whole/) [Judy Blume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-blume/) ## More by Neil Gaiman > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. 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If all you have is a beginning, then once you've written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-need-more-than-a-beginning-if-you-re-going-to-start-a-book-if-all/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [You can tell the date of an old science fiction novel by every word on the page. Nothing dates harder and faster and more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-can-tell-the-date-of-an-old-science-fiction-novel-by-every-word/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“The quickest way is sometimes the longest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-quickest-way-is-sometimes-the-longest/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“They were spells, spelled with words to make worlds, waiting for me, in the pages of books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/they-were-spells-spelled-with-words-to-make-worlds-waiting-for-me-in/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [Finish what you're writing. Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/finish-what-you-re-writing-whatever-you-have-to-do-to-finish-it/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [What do stars do? They shine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/what-do-stars-do-they-shine/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“What," asked Mr Croup, "do you want?" "What," asked the Marquis de Carabas, a little more rhetorically, "does anyone want?" "Dead things," suggested Mr…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/what-asked-mr-croup-do-you-want-what-asked-the-marquis-de-carabas-a/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [You get on with your own life. Lettie gave it to you. You just have to grow up and try and be worth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-get-on-with-your-own-life-lettie-gave-it-to-you-you-just-have-to/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Eyes will not see you. Minds will not hold you. Where you are is nothing and nobody”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/eyes-will-not-see-you-minds-will-not-hold-you-where-you-are-is/) [neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) [Explore all 2,526 Neil Gaiman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) ## More Being real quotes > [Don't be in such a hurry to condemn a person because she doesn't do what you do, or think as you think or as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcom-x/don-t-be-in-such-a-hurry-to-condemn-a-person-because-she-doesn-t-do/) [Malcom X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcom-x/) > [Well, I don't want to be king, I want to be real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/well-i-don-t-want-to-be-king-i-want-to-be-real/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [Going through unknown people's profiles and judging them by their pictures is totally normal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pradeep-chandra/going-through-unknown-people-s-profiles-and-judging-them-by-their/) [Pradeep Chandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pradeep-chandra/) > [When you are important to another person, they will always find a way to make time for you - no excuses, no lies, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-are-important-to-another-person-they-will-always-find-a-way/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you speak the truth watch the fuck niggas start hating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-speak-the-truth-watch-the-fuck-niggas-start-hating/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think about everyone in my life that was harsh with me or who gave me tough love and told me things that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlamagne-tha-god/i-think-about-everyone-in-my-life-that-was-harsh-with-me-or-who-gave/) [Charlamagne Tha God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlamagne-tha-god/) > [Laugh at every mistakes and realize that no one is perfect. We are human. All of us are imperfect, so there's no point judging…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/laugh-at-every-mistakes-and-realize-that-no-one-is-perfect-we-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Give yourself a chance to live because nobody will live it for you when you die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/give-yourself-a-chance-to-live-because-nobody-will-live-it-for-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You've noticed a change huh ? She doesn't text you as often . She never calls you anymore . 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