First time Quote by Orson Scott Card
“I learned to separate the story from the writing, probably the most important thing that any storyteller has to learn-that there are a thousand right ways to tell a story, and ten million wrong ones, and you're a lot more likely to find one of the latter than the former your first time through the tale.”
About This Quote
Storytelling requires separating narrative content from its presentation; many ways exist, but errors are common.
In simple terms: Focus on story structure before style.
Master the story before polishing language.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- novel writing
- screenplays
- teaching writing
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What aspects of your story need the strongest focus?
- How do you balance structure and creativity?
Overemphasis on style can obscure core story.