--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: How hard it is to make your thoughts look…" description: "\"How hard it is to make your thoughts look anything but imbecile fools when you paint them with ink on paper.\" — Olive Schreiner" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/646/olive-schreiner-10332_fool_how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-loo_1338186.png" --- # How hard it is to make your thoughts look anything but… ![“How hard it is to make your thoughts look anything but imbecile fools when you paint them with ink on paper.” quote by Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/646/olive-schreiner-10332_fool_how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-loo_1338186.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/646/olive-schreiner-10332_fool_how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-loo_1338186.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/646/olive-schreiner-10332_fool_how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-loo_1338186.png) > “How hard it is to make your thoughts look anything but imbecile fools when you paint them with ink on paper.” [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Expresses the difficulty of presenting ideas without seeming foolish when written down. **In simple terms:** Hard to avoid looking foolish when writing thoughts. Key Takeaway Embrace clarity and confidence in writing. Themes self‑expression vulnerability communication Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - writing workshops - personal journals - public speaking - creative writing Key Concepts literary self‑criticism authorial voice Questions to Reflect On - How can you ensure your writing reflects your intent? - What strategies reduce fear of judgment? A Different Perspective Even clear writing can be misinterpreted; audience perception varies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fool/) [Fools Paint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fools-paint-4511429/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Imbecile Fools](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imbecile-fools-4511430/) [Imbeciles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imbeciles/) [Ink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ink/) [Ink Paper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ink-paper-678373/) [Look Imbecile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/look-imbecile-4511431/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [Paint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint/) [Paint Ink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint-ink-4511432/) [Paper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paper/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) ## Related quotes > [“Poets must first ponder themselves and learn to see the beauty within them to allow the beauty to spill out of them in ink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-g-duarte/poets-must-first-ponder-themselves-and-learn-to-see-the-beauty-within/) [Jeffrey G. Duarte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-g-duarte/) > [Provide me with ink and paper and I will write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-campion/provide-me-with-ink-and-paper-and-i-will-write/) [Edmund Campion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-campion/) > [“I taught how to be sociable with ink on paper. I told my students that when they were writing they should be good dates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-taught-how-to-be-sociable-with-ink-on-paper-i-told-my-students-that/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“The inkstand is full of ink, and the paper lies white and unspotted, in the round of light thrown by a candle. Puffs of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-lowell/the-inkstand-is-full-of-ink-and-the-paper-lies-white-and-unspotted-in/) [Amy Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-lowell/) > [“TO MY COLLABORATOR who buys the ink and paper laughs and, in fact, does all the really difficult part of the business this book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-milne-2/to-my-collaborator-who-buys-the-ink-and-paper-laughs-and-in-fact-does/) [A.A. Milne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-milne-2/) > [...there's not enough ink and paper to say all I wanted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/there-s-not-enough-ink-and-paper-to-say-all-i-wanted/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I am probably exaggerating a little, but I owe my equilibrium to ink and paper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julien-green/i-am-probably-exaggerating-a-little-but-i-owe-my-equilibrium-to-ink/) [Julien Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julien-green/) > [Sure, go ahead, simulate life, using only ink and paper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cunningham/sure-go-ahead-simulate-life-using-only-ink-and-paper/) [Michael Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cunningham/) > [“I do my best impression of a pen and when every problem looks like a page I commit ink to paper”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-koyczan/i-do-my-best-impression-of-a-pen-and-when-every-problem-looks-like-a/) [Shane Koyczan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-koyczan/) > [Ink and paper are as cheap as sand or water, almost. No board of directors has to convene in order to decide whether we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/ink-and-paper-are-as-cheap-as-sand-or-water-almost-no-board-of/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [You are the ink to my paper, where my pen is to my pad, the moral, the very fibre, the whole existance to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/you-are-the-ink-to-my-paper-where-my-pen-is-to-my-pad-the-moral-the/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [It seems to me the book has not just aesthetic values - the charming little clothy box of the thing, the smell of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/it-seems-to-me-the-book-has-not-just-aesthetic-values-the-charming/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I prefer the pen. There is something elemental about the glide and flow of nib and ink on paper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-robertson/i-prefer-the-pen-there-is-something-elemental-about-the-glide-and/) [James Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-robertson/) > [A man starts upon a sudden, takes Pen, Ink, and Paper, and without ever having had a thought of it before, resolves within himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/a-man-starts-upon-a-sudden-takes-pen-ink-and-paper-and-without-ever/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [The mother of the imbecile is always pregnant,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincenzo-nibali/the-mother-of-the-imbecile-is-always-pregnant/) [Vincenzo Nibali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincenzo-nibali/) ## More by Olive Schreiner > [A word may become so defiled by bad use that it will take a century before it can be purifed, and brought into use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/a-word-may-become-so-defiled-by-bad-use-that-it-will-take-a-century/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [No woman who is a woman says of a human body, 'it is nothing' ... On this one point, and on this point alone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/no-woman-who-is-a-woman-says-of-a-human-body-it-is-nothing-on-this/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [genius has no limit of sex or race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/genius-has-no-limit-of-sex-or-race/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [Perhaps the old monks were right when they tried to root love out; perhaps the poets are right when they try to water it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/perhaps-the-old-monks-were-right-when-they-tried-to-root-love-out/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [“Marriage for love is the beautifulest external symbol of the union of souls, marriage without it is the uncleanliest traffic that defiles the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/marriage-for-love-is-the-beautifulest-external-symbol-of-the-union-of/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [Everything has two sides - the outside that is ridiculous, and the inside that is solemn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/everything-has-two-sides-the-outside-that-is-ridiculous-and-the/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [To us, from the beginning, Nature has been but a poor plastic thing, to be toyed with this way or that, as man happens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/to-us-from-the-beginning-nature-has-been-but-a-poor-plastic-thing-to/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [They are called finishing-schools and the name tells accurately what they are. They finish everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/they-are-called-finishing-schools-and-the-name-tells-accurately-what/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [“I think,' said Lyndall, 'that he is like a thorn-tree, which grows up very quietly, without any one's caring for it, and one day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/i-think-said-lyndall-that-he-is-like-a-thorn-tree-which-grows-up-very/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [“This dirty little world full of confusion, and the blue rag, stretched overhead for a sky, is so low we could touch it with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/this-dirty-little-world-full-of-confusion-and-the-blue-rag-stretched/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [Men are like the earth and we are the moon; we turn always one side to them, and they think there is no other,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/men-are-like-the-earth-and-we-are-the-moon-we-turn-always-one-side-to/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [For those of us who have a ground of knowledge which we cannot transmit to outsiders, it is perhaps more profitable to act fearlessly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/for-those-of-us-who-have-a-ground-of-knowledge-which-we-cannot/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [“Only the sea is like a human being . . .always moving, always something deep in itself is stirring it. It never rests; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/only-the-sea-is-like-a-human-being-always-moving-always-something/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [The surest sign of fitness is success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/the-surest-sign-of-fitness-is-success/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) > [“The meanest girl who dances and dresses becomes something higher when her children look up into her face and ask her questions. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/the-meanest-girl-who-dances-and-dresses-becomes-something-higher-when/) [Olive Schreiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) [Explore all 66 Olive Schreiner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/) ## More Fool quotes > [Do I look like a fool to you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamika-leeigh/do-i-look-like-a-fool-to-you/) [Tamika-leeigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamika-leeigh/) > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“Not wise, perhaps, to be rude to the Pope's favorite son, but my viper tongue still required a fool now and then on which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-quinn/not-wise-perhaps-to-be-rude-to-the-pope-s-favorite-son-but-my-viper/) [Kate Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-quinn/) > [He's a fool that marries; but he's a greater fool that does not marry a fool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wycherley/he-s-a-fool-that-marries-but-he-s-a-greater-fool-that-does-not-marry/) [William Wycherley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wycherley/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [A fool and his money get a lot of publicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-bernstein/a-fool-and-his-money-get-a-lot-of-publicity/) [Al Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-bernstein/) > [There are different kinds of fire; there is false fire. No one knows this better than we do, but we are not such fools…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-booth/there-are-different-kinds-of-fire-there-is-false-fire-no-one-knows/) [William Booth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-booth/) > [Every man must wear out at least one pair of fools shoes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-derr-biggers/every-man-must-wear-out-at-least-one-pair-of-fools-shoes/) [Earl Derr Biggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-derr-biggers/) > [If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. No use being a damn fool about it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wc-fields/if-at-first-you-don-t-succeed-try-try-again-then-quit-no-use-being-a/) [WC Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wc-fields/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [I'd be a fool to be in this for the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benny-hinn/i-d-be-a-fool-to-be-in-this-for-the-money/) [Benny Hinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benny-hinn/) > [It is a fool of a shepherd who culls his dogs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-smith/it-is-a-fool-of-a-shepherd-who-culls-his-dogs/) [Jefferson Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-smith/) > [Prefer to be defeated in the presence of the wise than to excel among fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prefer-to-be-defeated-in-the-presence-of-the-wise-than-to-excel-among/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A mistake doesnt make you a fool, but denying it surely makes you one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/a-mistake-doesnt-make-you-a-fool-but-denying-it-surely-makes-you-one/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) [Browse all 5,535 Fool quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fool/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "How hard it is to make your thoughts look anything but imbecile fools when you paint them with ink on paper.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Olive Schreiner" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-look-anything-but-imbecile-fools/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fool" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-look-anything-but-imbecile-fools/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/646/olive-schreiner-10332_fool_how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-loo_1338186.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/646/olive-schreiner-10332_fool_how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-loo_1338186.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/646/olive-schreiner-10332_fool_how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-loo_1338186.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“How hard it is to make your thoughts look anything but imbecile fools when you paint them with ink on paper.” — Olive Schreiner", "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": "Olive Schreiner", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olive-schreiner/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "How hard it is to make...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-look-anything-but-imbecile-fools/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olive-schreiner/how-hard-it-is-to-make-your-thoughts-look-anything-but-imbecile-fools/#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 } } ] } ```