--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I must love big novels, because that's…" description: "\"I must love big novels, because that's what I've written. It takes a while before you begin to breathe the air the characters breathe.\" — Norman Rush" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/258/norman-rush-30728_air_i-must-love-big-novels-because-that-s-wh_907372.jpg" --- # I must love big novels, because that's what I've written… ![“I must love big novels, because that's what I've written. It takes a while before you begin to breathe the air the characters breathe.” quote by Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/258/norman-rush-30728_air_i-must-love-big-novels-because-that-s-wh_907372.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/258/norman-rush-30728_air_i-must-love-big-novels-because-that-s-wh_907372.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/258/norman-rush-30728_air_i-must-love-big-novels-because-that-s-wh_907372.jpg) > “I must love big novels, because that's what I've written. It takes a while before you begin to breathe the air the characters breathe.” [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author believes that writing large novels requires immersing oneself in characters' experiences, which takes time before feeling their world. **In simple terms:** Writing big novels needs deep immersion. Key Takeaway Embrace the slow process of inhabiting characters. Themes writing immersion patience Mood reflective introspective Type literary creative When to use this quote - novel writing - creative workshops - literary analysis Key Concepts character development authorial voice Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance immersion with progress? - What techniques help you breathe life into characters? A Different Perspective Time-consuming immersion may hinder productivity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“It takes a while before you begin to breathe the air the characters breathe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/it-takes-a-while-before-you-begin-to-breathe-the-air-the-characters/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [I can't change the past, and I don't think I would. I don't expect to be understood. I like what I've written, the stories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-brodkey/i-can-t-change-the-past-and-i-don-t-think-i-would-i-don-t-expect-to/) [Harold Brodkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-brodkey/) > [So much as I enjoy big novels of epic sweep, I often find, say, if they follow several generations, by the third generation, I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/so-much-as-i-enjoy-big-novels-of-epic-sweep-i-often-find-say-if-they/) [Emma Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-donoghue/) > [I've written 17 novels, and I've found out that fiction can't keep up with real life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/i-ve-written-17-novels-and-i-ve-found-out-that-fiction-can-t-keep-up/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [Great, big, serious novels always get awards. If it's a battle between a great, big, serious novel and a funny novel, the funny novel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/great-big-serious-novels-always-get-awards-if-it-s-a-battle-between-a/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I am a big fan of Jim Jarmusch, and I do love big screen documentaries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-parr/i-am-a-big-fan-of-jim-jarmusch-and-i-do-love-big-screen-documentaries/) [Martin Parr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-parr/) > [Love is the big booming beat which covers up the noise of hate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/love-is-the-big-booming-beat-which-covers-up-the-noise-of-hate/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [LOVE..is a big word but it is easy when you not living with your parents,but soon as you move out LOVE gets harder,when their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fq/love-is-a-big-word-but-it-is-easy-when-you-not-living-with-your/) FQ > [Since the time I was a kid, I used to love big films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sajid-nadiadwala/since-the-time-i-was-a-kid-i-used-to-love-big-films/) [Sajid Nadiadwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sajid-nadiadwala/) > [I love big popcorn movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicia-vikander/i-love-big-popcorn-movies/) [Alicia Vikander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicia-vikander/) > [“(Queers love big virile organs)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-hocquenghem/queers-love-big-virile-organs/) [Guy Hocquenghem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-hocquenghem/) > [I love big fights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/islam-makhachev/i-love-big-fights/) [Islam Makhachev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/islam-makhachev/) > [I'm little, but I love big things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorrie-fair/i-m-little-but-i-love-big-things/) [Lorrie Fair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorrie-fair/) > [I love to be in front of big galleries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-to-be-in-front-of-big-galleries/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No matter how far u R gone... u'll always be in my heart.., N one day I'll meet you there in heaven… love you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-matter-how-far-u-r-gone-u-ll-always-be-in-my-heart-n-one-day-i-ll/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Norman Rush > [“Nina said, “Have regular facial expressions.” That was a command from their inventory of facetious devices they used to josh one another out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/nina-said-have-regular-facial-expressions-that-was-a-command-from/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [Literature is humanity talking to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/literature-is-humanity-talking-to-itself/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [I feel like someone after a deluge being asked to describe the way it was before the flood while I'm still plucking seaweed out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/i-feel-like-someone-after-a-deluge-being-asked-to-describe-the-way-it/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [“And the question was still there of whether their true interior selves—the subtle bodies inside—were still there and functioning despite what age and accident…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/and-the-question-was-still-there-of-whether-their-true-interior/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [“The main effort of arranging your life should be to progressively reduce the amount of time required to decently maintain yourself so that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/the-main-effort-of-arranging-your-life-should-be-to-progressively/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [...There is a school of thought, a heresy from the madhouse of heresies in the ninth century, that says God is good and is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/there-is-a-school-of-thought-a-heresy-from-the-madhouse-of-heresies/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [The characters write the plot. Their natures do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/the-characters-write-the-plot-their-natures-do/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [“There is no permanent friendship between men, among men. Something goes wrong, somebody marries the wrong person, somebody advances too fast, somebody converts, somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/there-is-no-permanent-friendship-between-men-among-men-something-goes/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [“Now everything was going to be impossible, but better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/now-everything-was-going-to-be-impossible-but-better/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [“A utopia I would join in a minute is a society which could be communist or capitalist, anything, except that no woman member of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/a-utopia-i-would-join-in-a-minute-is-a-society-which-could-be/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [I wanted to incorporate everything, understand everything, because time is cruel and nothing stays the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/i-wanted-to-incorporate-everything-understand-everything-because-time/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [It’s a rare reader who doesn’t go to the novel looking for a kind of encouragement to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/it-s-a-rare-reader-who-doesn-t-go-to-the-novel-looking-for-a-kind-of/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [“It takes a while before you begin to breathe the air the characters breathe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/it-takes-a-while-before-you-begin-to-breathe-the-air-the-characters/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [Small breasts are best for the long haul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/small-breasts-are-best-for-the-long-haul/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) > [It was a standard fantasy when you fell in love to imagine you could go back in time and find your beloved growing up,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rush/it-was-a-standard-fantasy-when-you-fell-in-love-to-imagine-you-could/) [Norman Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) [Explore all 17 Norman Rush quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rush/) ## More Air quotes > [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/) [Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. 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But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/) [Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/) > [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/) [N.D. 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