--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Short of throwing away all television…" description: "\"Short of throwing away all television sets, I really don't know what we can do about writing.\" — Phyllis A. Whitney" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/phyllis-a-whitney-34320_can-do_short-of-throwing-away-all-television-se_1270402.jpg" --- # Short of throwing away all television sets, I really don't… ![“Short of throwing away all television sets, I really don't know what we can do about writing.” quote by Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/phyllis-a-whitney-34320_can-do_short-of-throwing-away-all-television-se_1270402.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/phyllis-a-whitney-34320_can-do_short-of-throwing-away-all-television-se_1270402.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/phyllis-a-whitney-34320_can-do_short-of-throwing-away-all-television-se_1270402.jpg) > “Short of throwing away all television sets, I really don't know what we can do about writing.” [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even without eliminating TV, we lack clear solutions for improving writing practices. **In simple terms:** Writing lacks easy fixes. Key Takeaway Seek better habits, not shortcuts. Themes writing media influence creativity Mood thoughtful critical Type reflective professional When to use this quote - author workshops - digital distraction management - writing routines Key Concepts communication habit formation technology Questions to Reflect On - How can you protect creative time? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on media can dilute focus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) [Throwing away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/throwing-away/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [On film sets I can see everyone, and I really still find that so difficult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carey-mulligan/on-film-sets-i-can-see-everyone-and-i-really-still-find-that-so/) [Carey Mulligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carey-mulligan/) > [I think what happened there was just the budget would be too big to build these sets because nothing really exists here in New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-scorsese/i-think-what-happened-there-was-just-the-budget-would-be-too-big-to/) [Martin Scorsese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-scorsese/) > [Domas sets really good screens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-huerter/domas-sets-really-good-screens/) [Kevin Huerter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-huerter/) > [Understanding means throwing away your knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/understanding-means-throwing-away-your-knowledge/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are no rules in writing. There are useful principles. Throw them away when they're not useful. But always know what you're throwing away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-shetterly/there-are-no-rules-in-writing-there-are-useful-principles-throw-them/) [Will Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-shetterly/) > [“I'm not throwing you away! I'm setting you free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleatha-romig/i-m-not-throwing-you-away-i-m-setting-you-free/) [Aleatha Romig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleatha-romig/) > [The organic gardener does not think of throwing away the garbage. She knows that she needs the garbage. She is capable of transforming the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/the-organic-gardener-does-not-think-of-throwing-away-the-garbage-she/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [If you will take it into your mind to be sincere in throwing away your life for your master, you will not have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/torii-mototada/if-you-will-take-it-into-your-mind-to-be-sincere-in-throwing-away/) [Torii Mototada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/torii-mototada/) > [There seems to be a common strain of miserliness in the American people when it comes to throwing away toothpaste tubes which havea little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/there-seems-to-be-a-common-strain-of-miserliness-in-the-american/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [I find beauty almost everywhere. Now more and more I find almost everything beautiful. That is why I have great difficulty in throwing away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-huxley/i-find-beauty-almost-everywhere-now-more-and-more-i-find-almost/) [Laura Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-huxley/) > [ Sadly, \[Pablo Escobar\] ended up throwing away the one opportunity he had. I naively thought, as a son and as many other Colombians, that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-pablo-escobar/sadly-pablo-escobar-ended-up-throwing-away-the-one-opportunity-he-had/) [Juan Pablo Escobar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-pablo-escobar/) > [I have no friends and I never leave my house. You just have to make a choice to just refuse to be involved with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-fox/i-have-no-friends-and-i-never-leave-my-house-you-just-have-to-make-a/) [Megan Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-fox/) > [There was nothing wrong with the performance, apart from throwing away the game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-hoddle/there-was-nothing-wrong-with-the-performance-apart-from-throwing-away/) [Glenn Hoddle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-hoddle/) > [Most men are secretly still mad at their mothers for throwing away their comic books. They would be valuable now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-rudner/most-men-are-secretly-still-mad-at-their-mothers-for-throwing-away/) [Rita Rudner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-rudner/) > [One of my most productive days was throwing away 1,000 lines of code.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-thompson/one-of-my-most-productive-days-was-throwing-away-1-000-lines-of-code/) [Ken Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-thompson/) ## More by Phyllis A. Whitney > [But emotion cannot be buried by words, though it can be aroused by them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/but-emotion-cannot-be-buried-by-words-though-it-can-be-aroused-by-them/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [Reading has always been a major part of my life. It has broadened my world and taken me to places I would otherwise have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/reading-has-always-been-a-major-part-of-my-life-it-has-broadened-my/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [One of the wonderful things about being ALIVE is that it's never too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/one-of-the-wonderful-things-about-being-alive-is-that-it-s-never-too/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [A map is not a journey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/a-map-is-not-a-journey/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [“Good stories are not written, they are rewritten”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/good-stories-are-not-written-they-are-rewritten/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [“Problem, purpose, conflict, goal. Use them. Think about them while you are in the planning phase of your novel; keep these elements at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/problem-purpose-conflict-goal-use-them-think-about-them-while-you-are/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [Nobody wanted me. I just kept writing books and learning my craft. Most writers aren't very good in the beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/nobody-wanted-me-i-just-kept-writing-books-and-learning-my-craft-most/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [“As good as' always spells mediocrity. But when a writer's work is in competition with all those thousands of other manuscripts that pour over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/as-good-as-always-spells-mediocrity-but-when-a-writer-s-work-is-in/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [You must want to enough. Enough to take all the rejections, enough to pay the price of disappointment and discouragement while you are learning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/you-must-want-to-enough-enough-to-take-all-the-rejections-enough-to-2/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [A good book isn't written, it's rewritten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/a-good-book-isn-t-written-it-s-rewritten/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [It's hard to come up with a 'quote' about myself. Perhaps I could say that most of my writing has been concerned with understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/it-s-hard-to-come-up-with-a-quote-about-myself-perhaps-i-could-say/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) > [I talk to myself on paper about my characters - sometimes writing in first person... I keep lists of unanswered questions that I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-a-whitney/i-talk-to-myself-on-paper-about-my-characters-sometimes-writing-in/) [Phyllis A. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) [Explore all 13 Phyllis A. Whitney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-a-whitney/) ## More Can do quotes > [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/) [Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [If I had a million dollars, I just wouldn't just completely set back. I'd have to get out there and show my face to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muddy-waters/if-i-had-a-million-dollars-i-just-wouldn-t-just-completely-set-back-i/) [Muddy Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muddy-waters/) > [Anybody can be Prince Charming one day a year, with the dinner and the flowers and all that. But you know what impresses me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-howard/anybody-can-be-prince-charming-one-day-a-year-with-the-dinner-and-the/) [Ryan Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-howard/) > [And if the mind thinks with a believing attitude one can do amazing things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/and-if-the-mind-thinks-with-a-believing-attitude-one-can-do-amazing/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [The amount of things you can do with a kettlebell is unsurpassed by any other training equipment - dumbbells, resistance machines, free weights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/the-amount-of-things-you-can-do-with-a-kettlebell-is-unsurpassed-by/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > [It's nice when you've done enough movies that you can do your own anthology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lithgow/it-s-nice-when-you-ve-done-enough-movies-that-you-can-do-your-own/) [John Lithgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lithgow/) > [If people don't have their own vision, all they can do is 'sign-up' for someone else's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/if-people-don-t-have-their-own-vision-all-they-can-do-is-sign-up-for/) [Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/) > [The one thing that flies in the face of all human history and experience, is that the government can do a superior job than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cook/the-one-thing-that-flies-in-the-face-of-all-human-history-and/) [James Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cook/) > [...what I can do is offer myself, wholehearted and present, to walk with the people I love through the fear and the mess. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/what-i-can-do-is-offer-myself-wholehearted-and-present-to-walk-with/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [Whether that's speaking up in your job or asking for a promotion or saying, 'I think I can do that.' Using your voice in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-shriver/whether-that-s-speaking-up-in-your-job-or-asking-for-a-promotion-or/) [Maria Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-shriver/) > [The average ordinary citizen can do a lot of different things when it comes to the climate crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-bender/the-average-ordinary-citizen-can-do-a-lot-of-different-things-when-it/) [Lawrence Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-bender/) > [A professional is a man who can do his job when he doesn't feel like it. An amateur is a man who can't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-agate/a-professional-is-a-man-who-can-do-his-job-when-he-doesn-t-feel-like/) [James Agate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-agate/) > [The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, as it pleases him, for he can do all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/the-lord-gives-and-the-lord-takes-away-as-it-pleases-him-for-he-can/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [I'm not an educated man. I only know what I'm told, and I'm not told that much; I have no frame of reference for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/i-m-not-an-educated-man-i-only-know-what-i-m-told-and-i-m-not-told/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) Browse all 5,673 Can do quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Short of throwing away all television sets, I really don't know what we can do about writing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Phyllis A. 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