--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is not a place, after all. It is…" description: "\"This is not a place, after all. It is BETWEEN places. This is NOWHERE. A brief thought: I could stay here, abandon my quest, hang forever in the void, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/neil-gaiman-29_abandon_this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-betw_1338694.jpg" --- # This is not a place, after all. It is BETWEEN places. This… ![“This is not a place, after all. It is BETWEEN places. This is NOWHERE. A brief thought: I could stay here, abandon my quest, hang forever in the void, safe and cold and alone.” quote by Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/neil-gaiman-29_abandon_this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-betw_1338694.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/neil-gaiman-29_abandon_this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-betw_1338694.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/neil-gaiman-29_abandon_this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-betw_1338694.jpg) > “This is not a place, after all. It is BETWEEN places. This is NOWHERE. A brief thought: I could stay here, abandon my quest, hang forever in the void, safe and cold and alone.” [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. The narrator describes a liminal space that feels both empty and full of potential, a place between reality and imagination. **In simple terms:** A space that is neither here nor there, yet full of possibilities. Key Takeaway Embrace the uncertainty of transitional moments. Themes transition liminality existential choice Mood contemplative melancholic hopeful Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal reflection - creative writing - meditation - decision making Key Concepts philosophy psychology creativity Questions to Reflect On - What does this inbetween” feel like to you? - How can you use this space for growth? A Different Perspective Such spaces can also breed indecision or fear of commitment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon/) [Adventure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Forever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forever/) [Forever Void](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forever-void-4515219/) [Place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/place/) [Quests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quests/) [Safe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/safe/) [Stay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stay/) [Stay Abandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stay-abandon-4515218/) [Void](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/void/) ## Related quotes > [Do not lose heart, even if you must wait a bit before finding the right thing. Be prepared for disappointment also, but do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/do-not-lose-heart-even-if-you-must-wait-a-bit-before-finding-the/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [Let's work and rest happily, abandon us to the course of life; let's run out the muddy and rotten water of the daily thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samael-aun-weor/let-s-work-and-rest-happily-abandon-us-to-the-course-of-life-let-s/) [Samael Aun Weor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samael-aun-weor/) > [It is said that scattered through Despair's domain are a multitude of tiny windows, hanging in the void. Each window looks out onto a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/it-is-said-that-scattered-through-despair-s-domain-are-a-multitude-of/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [This was the void. Not blackness, not nothingness. This was what lay beneath the thinly painted scrim of reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/this-was-the-void-not-blackness-not-nothingness-this-was-what-lay/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [...to many it is not knowledge but the quest for knowledge that gives greater interest to thought-to travel hopefully is better than to arrive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-jeans/to-many-it-is-not-knowledge-but-the-quest-for-knowledge-that-gives/) [James Jeans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-jeans/) > [He had been through a good deal in the course of the Great Quest — he had seen beautiful things and horrible things —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ende/he-had-been-through-a-good-deal-in-the-course-of-the-great-quest-he/) [Michael Ende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ende/) > [“Where I'm is one of those stair climbing machines the agent has installed. You climb and climb forever and never get off the ground.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/where-i-m-is-one-of-those-stair-climbing-machines-the-agent-has/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Annabeth realized that if six of them went on these two quests, it would leave Percy alone on the ship with Coach Hedge, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/annabeth-realized-that-if-six-of-them-went-on-these-two-quests-it/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [J. Budziszewski is perhaps the clearest and most eloquent natural lawyer writing today. When reading his works I often find myself amazed by his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-j-beckwith/j-budziszewski-is-perhaps-the-clearest-and-most-eloquent-natural/) [Francis J. Beckwith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-j-beckwith/) > [We started this together, Leo. Seems only right you come along. You find us a ride, you're in." "Yes!" Leo pumped his fist. \*…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/we-started-this-together-leo-seems-only-right-you-come-along-you-find/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [For me, the spiritual quest will be a life-long work in progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/for-me-the-spiritual-quest-will-be-a-life-long-work-in-progress/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [O Mariner-soul, Thy quest is but begun, There are new worlds Forever to be won.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-larcom/o-mariner-soul-thy-quest-is-but-begun-there-are-new-worlds-forever-to/) [Lucy Larcom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-larcom/) > [Mankind is engaged in an eternal quest for that ‘something else' he hopes will bring him happiness, complete and unending.For those individual souls who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/mankind-is-engaged-in-an-eternal-quest-for-that-something-else-he/) [Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/) > [We have won an armistice on a single battlefield, not peace in our world. We may not now relax our guard nor cease our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/we-have-won-an-armistice-on-a-single-battlefield-not-peace-in-our/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [The quest for Love changes us. There is no seeker among those who search for Love who has not matured on the way. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-quest-for-love-changes-us-there-is-no-seeker-among-those-who/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Neil Gaiman > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Like all sentient beings, Fat Charlie had a weirdness quotient. For some days the needle had been over in the red, occasionally banging jerkily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/like-all-sentient-beings-fat-charlie-had-a-weirdness-quotient-for/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Shadow crawled across the floor to the yellow foam-rubber pad and climbed onto it, pulling the thin blanket over himself, and closed his eyes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/shadow-crawled-across-the-floor-to-the-yellow-foam-rubber-pad-and/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [ “\[T\]hey could not help being amused every time another little human believed itself the center of its world, as each of us does.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/t-hey-could-not-help-being-amused-every-time-another-little-human/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [So many things to see, people to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/so-many-things-to-see-people-to-do/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.’ – Ben Franklin,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/three-may-keep-a-secret-if-two-of-them-are-dead-ben-franklin/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [You need more than a beginning if you're going to start a book. 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 Abandon quotes > [Humans are, as Sartre put it, 'condemned to be free'. To insist that science, or God, objectively defines moral values is to abandon our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenan-malik/humans-are-as-sartre-put-it-condemned-to-be-free-to-insist-that/) [Kenan Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenan-malik/) > [The purpose of a spirit filled life is to demonstrate the supernatural power of our living God so that the unsaved multitudes will abandon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-l-osborn/the-purpose-of-a-spirit-filled-life-is-to-demonstrate-the/) [T.L. Osborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-l-osborn/) > [However, however, if the goal is to abandon America's free enterprise economy, if the goal is to convert America into a submissive member of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/however-however-if-the-goal-is-to-abandon-america-s-free-enterprise/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [I would leave at once, but it would be cruel to abandon a lady in a foreign land with a maniac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-would-leave-at-once-but-it-would-be-cruel-to-abandon-a-lady-in-a/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [When we fall utterly, something gathers us up. But our falling must be without reservation, without expectation, without hope, though not hopeless. You cant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-housden/when-we-fall-utterly-something-gathers-us-up-but-our-falling-must-be/) [Roger Housden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-housden/) > [every subjective phenomenon is essentially connected with a single point of view, and it seems inevitable that an objective, physical theory will abandon that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-nagel/every-subjective-phenomenon-is-essentially-connected-with-a-single/) [Thomas Nagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-nagel/) > [Can you dissolve your ego? Can you abandon the idea of self and other? Can you relinquish the notions of male and female, short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/can-you-dissolve-your-ego-can-you-abandon-the-idea-of-self-and-other/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Every great thing starts with an idea, followed by a doubt and finally a resolve to abandon or pursue. Victory is a treacherous journey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dane-cook/every-great-thing-starts-with-an-idea-followed-by-a-doubt-and-finally/) [Dane Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dane-cook/) > [Those who have been once intoxicated with power, and have derived any kind of emolument from it, even though but for one year, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/those-who-have-been-once-intoxicated-with-power-and-have-derived-any/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Do not lose hope; St. Joseph also experienced moments of difficulty, but he never lost faith and was able to overcome them, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/do-not-lose-hope-st-joseph-also-experienced-moments-of-difficulty-but/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't give up because things are hard, but work harder, when you think of giving up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/don-t-give-up-because-things-are-hard-but-work-harder-when-you-think/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [Sex is not the ultimate high, but the ultimate high hangs out around sex. The ultimate high is the dance with another person, played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/sex-is-not-the-ultimate-high-but-the-ultimate-high-hangs-out-around/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [I care so deeply about this matter that I'm willing to take on the legal penalties, to sit in this prison cell, to sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-care-so-deeply-about-this-matter-that-i-m-willing-to-take-on-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [I've been to unpretty places with the roles I've played, and I'm attracted to reckless abandon. I like being taken to the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhys-ifans/i-ve-been-to-unpretty-places-with-the-roles-i-ve-played-and-i-m/) [Rhys Ifans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhys-ifans/) [Browse all 1,142 Abandon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This is not a place, after all. It is BETWEEN places. This is NOWHERE. A brief thought: I could stay here, abandon my quest, hang forever in the void, safe and cold and alone.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Neil Gaiman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-between-places-this-is-nowhere-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abandon" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-between-places-this-is-nowhere-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/neil-gaiman-29_abandon_this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-betw_1338694.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/neil-gaiman-29_abandon_this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-betw_1338694.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b87/neil-gaiman-29_abandon_this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-betw_1338694.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is not a place, after all. It is BETWEEN places. This is NOWHERE. A brief thought: I could stay here…” — Neil Gaiman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Neil Gaiman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "This is not a place, after...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-between-places-this-is-nowhere-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/this-is-not-a-place-after-all-it-is-between-places-this-is-nowhere-a/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```