--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Your job as a writer is to find…" description: "\"Your job as a writer is to find storylines, narrative structures, and characters to show the things that you believe rather than saying them or telling..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/philipp-meyer-4254_believe_your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylin_5630.png" --- # Your job as a writer is to find storylines, narrative… ![“Your job as a writer is to find storylines, narrative structures, and characters to show the things that you believe rather than saying them or telling them.” quote by Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/philipp-meyer-4254_believe_your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylin_5630.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/philipp-meyer-4254_believe_your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylin_5630.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/philipp-meyer-4254_believe_your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylin_5630.png) > “Your job as a writer is to find storylines, narrative structures, and characters to show the things that you believe rather than saying them or telling them.” [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing should illustrate beliefs through plot and character rather than exposition. **In simple terms:** Show, don’t tell. Key Takeaway Use narrative to embody ideas. Themes storytelling show-don't-tell character development structure implicit messaging Mood inspired thoughtful Type advice instruction When to use this quote - novel writing - screenwriting - advertising copy - educational content Key Concepts narrative design theme integration visual storytelling Practical Applications - Create immersive stories - Design character arcs that reflect values Questions to Reflect On - How does a plot reveal a belief better than a statement? - What character traits best embody abstract ideas? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Characters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characters/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrative/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Fiction is supposed to be immersive and supposed to be entertaining and narrative, so structures have to be buried a little bit. 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It has made it possible to look at much larger structures with much smaller crystals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-petsko/synchrotron-light-has-revolutionized-the-field-of-protein/) [Gregory Petsko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-petsko/) > [Emphasis was usually put on the horizontal acceleration factor, for the simple reason that ordinary structures have a built-in safety factor for the vertical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francis-richter/emphasis-was-usually-put-on-the-horizontal-acceleration-factor-for/) [Charles Francis Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francis-richter/) > [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) ## More by Philipp Meyer > [After I finished college, I got a job on Wall Street as a derivatives trader, but after a couple years of it, I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/after-i-finished-college-i-got-a-job-on-wall-street-as-a-derivatives/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [“but I rarely did anything I didn't feel like doing, and maybe this was the main difference between the whites and the Comanches, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/but-i-rarely-did-anything-i-didn-t-feel-like-doing-and-maybe-this-was/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [When novels deal in abstractions, they generally go off the rails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/when-novels-deal-in-abstractions-they-generally-go-off-the-rails/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [“resacas have all gone dry. 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With…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/i-just-assume-that-i-ll-fail-at-something-for-several-years-that-i-ll/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [“They all want to be rich, same as we do, but they do not admit to themselves that you only get rich by taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/they-all-want-to-be-rich-same-as-we-do-but-they-do-not-admit-to/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [“The strong took from the weak, only the weak believed otherwise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/the-strong-took-from-the-weak-only-the-weak-believed-otherwise/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [“Of course you wanted your children to have it better than you had. 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A time when the wealthy were exemplars. When you held yourself to a higher…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/there-had-been-a-time-when-this-was-not-unusual-a-time-when-the/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [You ought to be able to grow up in a place and not have to get the hell out of it when you turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/you-ought-to-be-able-to-grow-up-in-a-place-and-not-have-to-get-the/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) > [The entire history of humanity is marked by a single inexorable movement - from animal instinct toward rational thought, from inborn behavior toward acquired…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/the-entire-history-of-humanity-is-marked-by-a-single-inexorable/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) [Explore all 113 Philipp Meyer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. 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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": "Your job as a writer is to find storylines, narrative structures, and characters to show the things that you believe rather than saying them or telling them.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Philipp Meyer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylines-narrative-structures-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylines-narrative-structures-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/philipp-meyer-4254_believe_your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylin_5630.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/philipp-meyer-4254_believe_your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylin_5630.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/philipp-meyer-4254_believe_your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylin_5630.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Your job as a writer is to find storylines, narrative structures, and characters to show the things that you…” — Philipp Meyer", "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": "Philipp Meyer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Your job as a writer is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylines-narrative-structures-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/your-job-as-a-writer-is-to-find-storylines-narrative-structures-and/#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 } } ] } ```