--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No writer, I believe, should attempt a…" description: "\"No writer, I believe, should attempt a novel before he is thirty, and not then unless he has been hopelessly and helplessly involved in life. For the w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/pearl-s-buck-1024_believe_no-writer-i-believe-should-attempt-a-nov_306152.png" --- # No writer, I believe, should attempt a novel before he is… ![“No writer, I believe, should attempt a novel before he is thirty, and not then unless he has been hopelessly and helplessly involved in life. For the writer who goes out to find material for a novel, as a fishermen goes out to sea to fish, will certainly not write a good novel. Life has to be…” quote by Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/pearl-s-buck-1024_believe_no-writer-i-believe-should-attempt-a-nov_306152.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/pearl-s-buck-1024_believe_no-writer-i-believe-should-attempt-a-nov_306152.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/pearl-s-buck-1024_believe_no-writer-i-believe-should-attempt-a-nov_306152.png) > “No writer, I believe, should attempt a novel before he is thirty, and not then unless he has been hopelessly and helplessly involved in life. For the writer who goes out to find material for a novel, as a fishermen goes out to sea to fish, will certainly not write a good novel. Life has to be lived thoughtlessly, unconsciously, at full tilt and for no purpose except its own sake before it becomes, eventually, good material for a novel.” [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A writer must experience life fully, without deliberate purpose, before they can transform those raw experiences into authentic storytelling. **In simple terms:** Live fully before writing. Key Takeaway Live without agenda to write authentically. Themes experience authenticity creativity Mood contemplative inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - travel - adventure - daily life - emotional immersion Key Concepts existentialism literary theory Questions to Reflect On - What experiences have shaped your creative voice? - How do you balance living and writing? A Different Perspective Purposeful living may conflict with practical responsibilities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Fisherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fisherman/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [What I strive to do is make my characters seem like real people so that the reader experiences them as people - that's something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaume-cabre/what-i-strive-to-do-is-make-my-characters-seem-like-real-people-so/) [Jaume Cabre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaume-cabre/) > [I was heavily influenced by my first attempt at a novel. I started a fantasy novel back in high school, and... well... it really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-was-heavily-influenced-by-my-first-attempt-at-a-novel-i-started-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I may attempt a novel. I think that no matter what you write, it requires being honest with oneself, and you have to pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-chang/i-may-attempt-a-novel-i-think-that-no-matter-what-you-write-it/) [Iris Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-chang/) > [Of course we all know that's not how life works. The novel that is our life can end at any time. Sometimes even on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/of-course-we-all-know-that-s-not-how-life-works-the-novel-that-is-our/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [“From the moment I start a new novel, life’s just one endless torture. The first few chapters may go fairly well and I may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mile-zola/from-the-moment-i-start-a-new-novel-life-s-just-one-endless-torture-2/) [Émile Zola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mile-zola/) > [I would love to write a novel about my life, but how can I while I'm still creating havoc. It wouldn't been fair to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don/i-would-love-to-write-a-novel-about-my-life-but-how-can-i-while-i-m/) [Don](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don/) > [“I am also an author. Please check out my novel, A Life Worth Dreaming About.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-dettmann/i-am-also-an-author-please-check-out-my-novel-a-life-worth-dreaming/) Nicholas Dettmann > [I find that in a novel I can get more of life, perhaps not such intense life, but certainly more of life than in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-find-that-in-a-novel-i-can-get-more-of-life-perhaps-not-such/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“I've always longed to turn the last page of a romantic novel but it seems my life is destined to remain a book of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-faudet/i-ve-always-longed-to-turn-the-last-page-of-a-romantic-novel-but-it/) [Michael Faudet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-faudet/) > [From the moment I start a new novel, life's just one endless torture. The first few chapters may go fairly well and I may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mile-zola/from-the-moment-i-start-a-new-novel-life-s-just-one-endless-torture/) [Emile Zola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mile-zola/) > [“Recently there came a period when I had little to do. This was novel in a life so crammed with busy years, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-ron-hubbard/recently-there-came-a-period-when-i-had-little-to-do-this-was-novel/) [L. Ron Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-ron-hubbard/) > [“At every moment I convinced myself that I was gathering material for the novel of my life - all experienced from the philosophical distance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/at-every-moment-i-convinced-myself-that-i-was-gathering-material-for/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When I'm filling notebooks I'm trying to pin down what I'm really interested in and to find those details that are so hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/when-i-m-filling-notebooks-i-m-trying-to-pin-down-what-i-m-really/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [I've only had four ideas for a novel in my life, and I've written all of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/i-ve-only-had-four-ideas-for-a-novel-in-my-life-and-i-ve-written-all/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [I've never written an autobiographical novel in my life. I've never touched upon my life. I've never written a single scene that I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-easton-ellis/i-ve-never-written-an-autobiographical-novel-in-my-life-i-ve-never/) [Bret Easton Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-easton-ellis/) ## More by Pearl S. Buck > [For war to man, like childbirth to women, is simplifying in its emotions and activities. All the real problems of life can be put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/for-war-to-man-like-childbirth-to-women-is-simplifying-in-its/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [Hunger makes a thief of any man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/hunger-makes-a-thief-of-any-man/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [War is the most devastating endemic and epidemic disease the human race has to endure, and yet too little has been done to discover…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/war-is-the-most-devastating-endemic-and-epidemic-disease-the-human/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [In our changing world nothing changes more than geography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/in-our-changing-world-nothing-changes-more-than-geography/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [No one really understood music unless he was a scientist, her father had declared, and not just a scientist, either, oh, no, only the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/no-one-really-understood-music-unless-he-was-a-scientist-her-father/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [Upon the profound discontent of the young in every country do I set my faith. I beg you, the young, to be discontented. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/upon-the-profound-discontent-of-the-young-in-every-country-do-i-set/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“Wang Lung sat smoking, thinking of the silver as it had lain upon the table. It had come out of the earth, this silver,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/wang-lung-sat-smoking-thinking-of-the-silver-as-it-had-lain-upon-the/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [The secret of joy in work is contained in one word - excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/the-secret-of-joy-in-work-is-contained-in-one-word-excellence-to-know/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [If our American way of life fails the child, it fails us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/if-our-american-way-of-life-fails-the-child-it-fails-us-all/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“Mind and body were well or ill together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/mind-and-body-were-well-or-ill-together/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“U meni postoji mjesto gdje živim posve sama; tu obnavljam svoja proljeća koja nikad ne presahnu”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/u-meni-postoji-mjesto-gdje-ivim-posve-sama-tu-obnavljam-svoja-prolje/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“Brave young American men climbed the rugged slopes of Korean mountains and fought in homesickness and desperate weariness for the sake of a people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/brave-young-american-men-climbed-the-rugged-slopes-of-korean/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [Truth is always exciting. Speak it, then; life is dull without it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/truth-is-always-exciting-speak-it-then-life-is-dull-without-it/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“All scientific effort must now be concentrated in the area of defence (sic). We have learned our lesson. We, the most civilized of people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/all-scientific-effort-must-now-be-concentrated-in-the-area-of-defence/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [to know how to read is to light a lamp in the mind, to release the soul from prison, to open a gate to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/to-know-how-to-read-is-to-light-a-lamp-in-the-mind-to-release-the/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) [Explore all 304 Pearl S. Buck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No writer, I believe, should attempt a novel before he is thirty, and not then unless he has been hopelessly and helplessly involved in life. For the writer who goes out to find material for a novel, as a fishermen goes out to sea to fish, will certainly not write a good novel. Life has to be lived thoughtlessly, unconsciously, at full tilt and for no purpose except its own sake before it becomes, eventually, good material for a novel.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Pearl S. 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