--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I started writing because there's an…" description: "\"I started writing because there's an absence of things I was familiar with or that I dreamed about. One of my senses of anger is related to this vacanc..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/555/ntozake-shange-11891_absence_i-started-writing-because-there-s-an-abs_688277.png" --- # I started writing because there's an absence of things I… ![“I started writing because there's an absence of things I was familiar with or that I dreamed about. One of my senses of anger is related to this vacancy - a yearning I had as a teenager. . .and when I get ready to write, I think I'm trying to fill that. . .” quote by Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/555/ntozake-shange-11891_absence_i-started-writing-because-there-s-an-abs_688277.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/555/ntozake-shange-11891_absence_i-started-writing-because-there-s-an-abs_688277.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/555/ntozake-shange-11891_absence_i-started-writing-because-there-s-an-abs_688277.png) > “I started writing because there's an absence of things I was familiar with or that I dreamed about. One of my senses of anger is related to this vacancy - a yearning I had as a teenager. . .and when I get ready to write, I think I'm trying to fill that. . .” [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer seeks to fill an inner void of unexpressed experiences, using writing as a means to confront and heal personal emptiness. **In simple terms:** Writing helps fill emotional gaps. Key Takeaway Use writing to explore unmet desires. Themes creativity healing selfdiscovery expression identity Mood introspective motivational Type creative therapeutic When to use this quote - journaling - creative workshops - therapy through writing Key Concepts psychological fulfillment artistic drive personal narrative Questions to Reflect On - What personal void are you trying to fill? - How can writing become a tool for self‑care? A Different Perspective Writing may not always resolve deeper issues without external support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/) [Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) [Familiar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/familiar/) [Ready](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ready/) [Related](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/related/) [Senses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/senses/) [Started Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started-writing/) [Teenager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teenager/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Vacancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vacancy/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Absence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-absence-5013542/) [Yearning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yearning/) [Yearning Teenager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yearning-teenager-5473830/) ## Related quotes > [There are a couple of strategies for writing about an absence or writing about a loss. One can create the person that was lost,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/there-are-a-couple-of-strategies-for-writing-about-an-absence-or/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [“To imagine writing as absence seems to be a simple repetition, in transcendental terms, of both the religious principle of the inalterable and yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/to-imagine-writing-as-absence-seems-to-be-a-simple-repetition-in/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [Yearning is inseparable from love, and since once doesn't have the object of love immediately, one has not fallen in the embrace of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seyyed-hossein-nasr/yearning-is-inseparable-from-love-and-since-once-doesn-t-have-the/) [Seyyed Hossein Nasr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seyyed-hossein-nasr/) > [“The first thing, of course, is to find a vacancy, a place where a teacher is wanted, and the second thing is to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-e-sanders/the-first-thing-of-course-is-to-find-a-vacancy-a-place-where-a/) [Thomas E. Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-e-sanders/) > [“The vacancy in your heart doesn't connotes that nobody is seeking for the job of servicing your feelings, but because the employee must first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/the-vacancy-in-your-heart-doesn-t-connotes-that-nobody-is-seeking-for/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Redd Towers Apartments, whose advertising slogan, 'If you lived here, you'd be home by now,' did little to fill vacancies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-beddor/redd-towers-apartments-whose-advertising-slogan-if-you-lived-here-you/) [Frank Beddor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-beddor/) > [A proud man is one who waits for a vacancy in the Trinity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-proud-man-is-one-who-waits-for-a-vacancy-in-the-trinity/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Art as an aesthetic principle was supported by thousands of years of discernment and psychic rewards, but art as a commodity was held up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/art-as-an-aesthetic-principle-was-supported-by-thousands-of-years-of/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The closer you get to Number 10 the more you see what a back-breaking job that is, the pressure is absolutely constant and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lidington/the-closer-you-get-to-number-10-the-more-you-see-what-a-back-breaking/) [David Lidington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lidington/) > [Action is transitory, a step, a blow, The motion of a muscle, this way or that, 'Tis done--And in the after-vacancy, We wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/action-is-transitory-a-step-a-blow-the-motion-of-a-muscle-this-way-or/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [It infuriated him to think that there were still people in the state who believed in a loving and merciful God. There are mystics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/it-infuriated-him-to-think-that-there-were-still-people-in-the-state/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [The infinity of this vacancy, the pervasive pain, the longing for some spirit, some lightness, some joy - that's all that is left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-manning/the-infinity-of-this-vacancy-the-pervasive-pain-the-longing-for-some/) [Martha Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-manning/) > [I felt I had to take the Celtic opportunity. You quickly learn that any managerial vacancy attracts up to 60 or 70 applicants, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-barnes/i-felt-i-had-to-take-the-celtic-opportunity-you-quickly-learn-that/) [John Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-barnes/) > [“The vacancy left by absence of worship is filled by mere killing of time and by boredom, which is directly related to inability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-pieper/the-vacancy-left-by-absence-of-worship-is-filled-by-mere-killing-of/) [Josef Pieper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-pieper/) > [“This…hole in the world, man-shaped. Me-shaped. A vacancy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasinda-wilder/this-hole-in-the-world-man-shaped-me-shaped-a-vacancy/) [Jasinda Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasinda-wilder/) ## More by Ntozake Shange > [My characters don't talk necessarily in a normal American way of talking. They talk a little different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/my-characters-don-t-talk-necessarily-in-a-normal-american-way-of/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [It still amazes and fascinates me that women of color have kept my work alive for these many generations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/it-still-amazes-and-fascinates-me-that-women-of-color-have-kept-my/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [I write for young girls of color, for girls who don't even exist yet, so that there is something there for them when they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/i-write-for-young-girls-of-color-for-girls-who-don-t-even-exist-yet/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [My family moved around a lot, so I don't have any friends that I had all my life, but I did have annual trips…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/my-family-moved-around-a-lot-so-i-don-t-have-any-friends-that-i-had/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [Creation is everything you do. Make something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/creation-is-everything-you-do-make-something/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [Where there is a woman there is magic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/where-there-is-a-woman-there-is-magic/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [i usedta live in the world really be in the world free & sweet talkin good mornin & thank-you & nice day uh huh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/i-usedta-live-in-the-world-really-be-in-the-world-free-sweet-talkin/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [The slaves who were ourselves had known terror intimately, confused sunrise with pain, & accepted indifference as kindness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/the-slaves-who-were-ourselves-had-known-terror-intimately-confused/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [White people use their literature to maintain culture. That's why you find references to Milton and Spencer and Shakespeare and Dostoyevsky in contemporary novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/white-people-use-their-literature-to-maintain-culture-that-s-why-you/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [Multiculturalism isn't about culture, it's about power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/multiculturalism-isn-t-about-culture-it-s-about-power/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [Art gives us the opportunity to have clarity as well as hope that we might be able to survive a situation, or hope that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/art-gives-us-the-opportunity-to-have-clarity-as-well-as-hope-that-we/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [I think art is a healing force, and if we give in to the joy that can be found in art, then we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/i-think-art-is-a-healing-force-and-if-we-give-in-to-the-joy-that-can/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [Being alive and being a woman is all I got, but being colored is a metaphysical dilemma I haven't conquered yet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/being-alive-and-being-a-woman-is-all-i-got-but-being-colored-is-a/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [When I die, I will no be guilty of having left a generation of girls behind thinking that anyone can tend to their emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/when-i-die-i-will-no-be-guilty-of-having-left-a-generation-of-girls/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) > [I had - there were three strokes, and I lost my ability to read and write and speak, and it really put me by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ntozake-shange/i-had-there-were-three-strokes-and-i-lost-my-ability-to-read-and/) [Ntozake Shange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) [Explore all 57 Ntozake Shange quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ntozake-shange/) ## More Absence quotes > [Distance sometimes endears friendship, and absence sweeteneth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howell/distance-sometimes-endears-friendship-and-absence-sweeteneth-it/) [James Howell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howell/) > [The work, the work, the work. This is what the business is all about. This is the fun, the glory, the pleasure. It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-dusenberry/the-work-the-work-the-work-this-is-what-the-business-is-all-about/) [Phil Dusenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-dusenberry/) > [Total depravity means the entire absence of holiness, not the highest intensity of sin. A totally depraved man is not as bad as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/total-depravity-means-the-entire-absence-of-holiness-not-the-highest/) [William Greenough Thayer Shedd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/) > [Local and state governments have outrun the federal government. The EPA has served notice that it will enact a rule requiring CO2 reductions by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/local-and-state-governments-have-outrun-the-federal-government-the/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [There, in the center of that silence was not eternity but the death of time and a loneliness so profound the word itself had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-center-of-that-silence-was-not-eternity-but-the-death-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/of-all-the-bewildering-things-about-a-new-country-the-absence-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Young men have strong passions and tend to gratify them indiscriminately. Of the bodily desires, it is the sexual by which they are most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/young-men-have-strong-passions-and-tend-to-gratify-them/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [It is suggested that in domestic violence at least the presence or absence of a firearm, or of any other type of weapon, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-greenwood/it-is-suggested-that-in-domestic-violence-at-least-the-presence-or/) [Colin Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-greenwood/) > [The absence of God in most spheres of life is perceived to be normal, and even Christians feel it as normal - which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/the-absence-of-god-in-most-spheres-of-life-is-perceived-to-be-normal/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [Every person needs to take one day away. A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future. Jobs, family, employers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/every-person-needs-to-take-one-day-away-a-day-in-which-one/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [“I was thinking how most people don't make you feel much of anything at all. Don't make you feel like time spent with them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-lotter/i-was-thinking-how-most-people-don-t-make-you-feel-much-of-anything/) [Jane Lotter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-lotter/) > [Cooperation isn't the absence of conflict but a means of managing conflict.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/cooperation-isn-t-the-absence-of-conflict-but-a-means-of-managing/) [Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/) > [Many are observing Ferguson and witnessing the anger, demonstrations, looting and vandalism and calling for quiet. But quiet isn't enough. 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Ambedkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-r-ambedkar/) [Browse all 2,057 Absence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I started writing because there's an absence of things I was familiar with or that I dreamed about. 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