--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I took classes taught by an elderly woman…" description: "\"I took classes taught by an elderly woman who wrote children's stories. She was polite about the science fiction and fantasy that I kept handing in, bu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe8/octavia-e-butler-2861_about_i-took-classes-taught-by-an-elderly-woma_2685761.jpg" --- # I took classes taught by an elderly woman who wrote… ![“I took classes taught by an elderly woman who wrote children's stories. She was polite about the science fiction and fantasy that I kept handing in, but she finally asked in exasperation, 'Can't you write anything normal?'” quote by Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe8/octavia-e-butler-2861_about_i-took-classes-taught-by-an-elderly-woma_2685761.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe8/octavia-e-butler-2861_about_i-took-classes-taught-by-an-elderly-woma_2685761.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe8/octavia-e-butler-2861_about_i-took-classes-taught-by-an-elderly-woma_2685761.jpg) > “I took classes taught by an elderly woman who wrote children's stories. She was polite about the science fiction and fantasy that I kept handing in, but she finally asked in exasperation, 'Can't you write anything normal?'” [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A mentor challenges conformity, urging the writer to break genre expectations and explore authenticity. **In simple terms:** Question norms, write authentically. Key Takeaway Embrace creative risk. Themes creativity authenticity genre mentorship growth Mood inspirational encouraging Type reflective practical When to use this quote - writing workshops - classroom feedback - personal journaling Key Concepts literary criticism self‑expression artistic freedom Questions to Reflect On - How do you define 'normal' writing? - When is genre useful? A Different Perspective Mentor may limit creative freedom. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [About](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about/) [Anything](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anything/) [Asked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asked/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Classes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/classes/) [Elderly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elderly/) [Fantasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fantasy/) [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Finally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finally/) [Handing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/handing/) [Kept](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kept/) [Normal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/normal/) [Polite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polite/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Science fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-fiction/) [She](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/she/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Polite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-polite-2617318/) [Taught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taught/) [Taught Elderly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taught-elderly-2617317/) [Took](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/took/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) [Woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/woman/) [Woman Wrote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/woman-wrote-1230389/) [Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write/) [Write Normal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-normal-584957/) [Wrote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote/) [Wrote Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote-children-496777/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) ## Related quotes > [It's all about the audience and the people who support your work and respond to it. So, anytime I hear that 'Next to Normal'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-kitt/it-s-all-about-the-audience-and-the-people-who-support-your-work-and/) [Tom Kitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-kitt/) > [I couldn't possibly write 'Next to Normal,' but God, I can weep and watch 'Next to Normal' five times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-manuel-miranda/i-couldn-t-possibly-write-next-to-normal-but-god-i-can-weep-and-watch/) [Lin-Manuel Miranda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-manuel-miranda/) > [“It always puzzled him, when he was a child, that a woman who wrote books for a living should be so bad at telling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/it-always-puzzled-him-when-he-was-a-child-that-a-woman-who-wrote/) [J.M. 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They are the people who really want to learn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/i-wrote-a-children-s-book-because-children-have-the-most-open-minds/) [Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/) > [I have written a few children's books. The first book that I wrote was for children. It was called "The Package", and it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-anderson/i-have-written-a-few-children-s-books-the-first-book-that-i-wrote-was/) [Laurie Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-anderson/) > [I wrote the children's books, and those were wonderful tributes to my life as a daughter and a mother and just a thank-you to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ainsley-earhardt/i-wrote-the-children-s-books-and-those-were-wonderful-tributes-to-my/) [Ainsley Earhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ainsley-earhardt/) ## More by Octavia E. Butler > [The lovely thing about writing is, well, two things. One, writing fiction allows us to bring an order to our lives that doesn't exist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/the-lovely-thing-about-writing-is-well-two-things-one-writing-fiction/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“It’s too easy to follow bad but attractive leaders, embrace pleasurable but destructive habits, ignore looming disaster because maybe it won’t happen after all—or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/it-s-too-easy-to-follow-bad-but-attractive-leaders-embrace/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“He rubbed his head again. 'Five years is longer than it sounds. So much longer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/he-rubbed-his-head-again-five-years-is-longer-than-it-sounds-so-much/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“Se sono tuoi, stabilisci tu le regole. A chi importa che cosa ne pensano i giocattoli? Spazza via l'intera famiglia di un giocattolo, poi…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/se-sono-tuoi-stabilisci-tu-le-regole-a-chi-importa-che-cosa-ne/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [I don't know how much of a market there is for space opera. Just because it's in the movies doesn't mean magazines are buying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/i-don-t-know-how-much-of-a-market-there-is-for-space-opera-just/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“Freedom is dangerous but it's precious, too. You can't just throw it away or let it slip away. You can't sell it for bread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/freedom-is-dangerous-but-it-s-precious-too-you-can-t-just-throw-it/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“Sometimes I wrote things because I couldn't say them, couldn't sort out my feelings about them, couldn't keep them bottled inside me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/sometimes-i-wrote-things-because-i-couldn-t-say-them-couldn-t-sort/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“In the book of Job, God says he made everything and he knows everything so no one has any right to question what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/in-the-book-of-job-god-says-he-made-everything-and-he-knows/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“But there’s no power in having strength and brains, and yet waiting for God to fix things for you or take revenge for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/but-there-s-no-power-in-having-strength-and-brains-and-yet-waiting/) [Octavia E. 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Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“It was milk that had sickened her. Animal milk! These people cooked many things with animal milk!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/it-was-milk-that-had-sickened-her-animal-milk-these-people-cooked/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [Religion is everywhere. There are no human societies without it, whether they acknowledge it as a religion or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/religion-is-everywhere-there-are-no-human-societies-without-it/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) > [“There is nothing new under the sun, but there are new suns.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-e-butler/there-is-nothing-new-under-the-sun-but-there-are-new-suns/) [Octavia E. Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) [Explore all 131 Octavia E. Butler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-e-butler/) ## More About quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I talk to my mates about our kids, being too tired and being worn out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-willoughby/i-talk-to-my-mates-about-our-kids-being-too-tired-and-being-worn-out/) [Holly Willoughby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-willoughby/) > [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [I write about presidents. 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