--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They were just stories, but stories…" description: "\"“They were just stories, but stories weren’t just anything. Simon”\" — Rainbow Rowell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c98/rainbow-rowell-135_storytelling_they-were-just-stories-but-stories-weren_983176.jpg" --- # They were just stories, but stories weren’t just anything… ![“They were just stories, but stories weren’t just anything. Simon” quote by Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c98/rainbow-rowell-135_storytelling_they-were-just-stories-but-stories-weren_983176.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c98/rainbow-rowell-135_storytelling_they-were-just-stories-but-stories-weren_983176.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c98/rainbow-rowell-135_storytelling_they-were-just-stories-but-stories-weren_983176.jpg) > ““They were just stories, but stories weren’t just anything. Simon”” [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories hold power beyond their surface, shaping reality. **In simple terms:** Stories are more than tales. Key Takeaway Recognize story impact. Themes storytelling meaning perception Mood thoughtful inspirational Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing - teaching - marketing - therapy Key Concepts narrative influence psychology Questions to Reflect On - What story changed you? - How to discern truth in narratives? A Different Perspective Stories can mislead. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) ## Related quotes > [“Just stories? Stories can build up an empire, or strike down a people. You can spell the most powerful spell, ease a friend’s hurt,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-s-buckell/just-stories-stories-can-build-up-an-empire-or-strike-down-a-people/) Tobias S. Buckell > [“We are not only the tellers of our stories, we are the stories themselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/we-are-not-only-the-tellers-of-our-stories-we-are-the-stories/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [I liked myths. They weren't adult stories and they weren't children stories. They were better than that. They just were. Adult stories never made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-liked-myths-they-weren-t-adult-stories-and-they-weren-t-children/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Sometimes I think that maybe we are just stories.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-lynn-anderson/sometimes-i-think-that-maybe-we-are-just-stories/) [Jodi Lynn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-lynn-anderson/) > [“so we had to tell our stories and they were stories.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/so-we-had-to-tell-our-stories-and-they-were-stories/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [I guess all my films are about resolving conflicts - and they're all love stories. If they weren't, I couldn't make them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-pollack/i-guess-all-my-films-are-about-resolving-conflicts-and-they-re-all/) [Sydney Pollack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-pollack/) > [“Yet the stories moved her. She couldn’t deny it. And they moved her in a way only \*true\* things could. It wasn’t sentiment that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/yet-the-stories-moved-her-she-couldn-t-deny-it-and-they-moved-her-in/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [“This true difference in me now: I had these experiances, these tales, more of this life. So maybe it wasn't the fairy tale. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/this-true-difference-in-me-now-i-had-these-experiances-these-tales/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“A lot of the stories were highly suspicious, in her opinion. There was the one that ended when the two good children pushed the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/a-lot-of-the-stories-were-highly-suspicious-in-her-opinion-there-was/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [So maybe it wasn't the fairy tale. But those stories weren't real anyway. Mine were.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/so-maybe-it-wasn-t-the-fairy-tale-but-those-stories-weren-t-real/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I liked myths. They weren't adult stories and they weren't children's stories. They were better than that. They just were.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-liked-myths-they-weren-t-adult-stories-and-they-weren-t-children-s/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [ \[Robert\] Aikman would write horror stories that weren't gore, they weren't slashers, and they weren't monster stories either. He called them ghost stories. The… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-darnielle/robert-aikman-would-write-horror-stories-that-weren-t-gore-they-weren/) [John Darnielle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-darnielle/) > [I happen to write a lot of stories that make Kissinger look bad. I'd rather that the stories weren't true, but they all happen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/i-happen-to-write-a-lot-of-stories-that-make-kissinger-look-bad-i-d/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [When a day passes, it is no longer there. What remains of it? Nothing more than a story. If stories weren't told or books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-bashevis-singer/when-a-day-passes-it-is-no-longer-there-what-remains-of-it-nothing-2/) [Isaac Bashevis Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-bashevis-singer/) > [“Sometimes I think that maybe we are just stories. Like we may as well just be words on a page, because we’re only what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-lynn-anderson/sometimes-i-think-that-maybe-we-are-just-stories-like-we-may-as-well/) [Jodi Lynn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-lynn-anderson/) ## More by Rainbow Rowell > [Reagan was sitting up at Cath's desk when Cath woke up. "Are you awake?" "Have you been watching me sleep?" "Yes, Bella. Are you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/reagan-was-sitting-up-at-cath-s-desk-when-cath-woke-up-are-you-awake/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Are you awake?” “Have you been watching me sleep?” “Yes, Bella. Are you awake?” “No.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/are-you-awake-have-you-been-watching-me-sleep-yes-bella-are-you-awake/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Someone was knocking on her windshield. Georgie lifted her head off the steering wheel. It was Kendrick. She couldn’t really hear what he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/someone-was-knocking-on-her-windshield-georgie-lifted-her-head-off/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [Maybe Park had paralyzed her with his ninja magic, his Vulcan handhold, and now he was going to eat her. That would be awesome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/maybe-park-had-paralyzed-her-with-his-ninja-magic-his-vulcan-handhold/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“She wouldn't pick up a fight him just because she was bored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/she-wouldn-t-pick-up-a-fight-him-just-because-she-was-bored/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“That person thought that wearing an ugly dress on the happiest day of someone else's life was just the beginning-the line you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/that-person-thought-that-wearing-an-ugly-dress-on-the-happiest-day-of/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Is this where you tell me that I'm a scoundrel, and I say that I think you like me because I'm a scoundrel? Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/is-this-where-you-tell-me-that-i-m-a-scoundrel-and-i-say-that-i-think/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Te informo de que mi respuesta a tus próximas doce afirmaciones va a ser: «¿Cómo dices?»”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/te-informo-de-que-mi-respuesta-a-tus-pr-ximas-doce-afirmaciones-va-a/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Dude. Let it go. Good riddance to bad rubbers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/dude-let-it-go-good-riddance-to-bad-rubbers/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [He looked exactly like a rat. Like the human being version of a rat. Like the villain in a Don Bluth movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/he-looked-exactly-like-a-rat-like-the-human-being-version-of-a-rat/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Tell me more about the mountains, Georgie said, because she wasn't really sure what to ask. Because ' tell me where I went wrong'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/tell-me-more-about-the-mountains-georgie-said-because-she-wasn-t/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [God, his chin. She wanted to make an honest woman of his chin. She wanted to lock it down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/god-his-chin-she-wanted-to-make-an-honest-woman-of-his-chin-she/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Wait, I really do need your help with this." He turned his computer monitor toward her and pointed. "Is this funny? It's a Snoopy/Snoop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/wait-i-really-do-need-your-help-with-this-he-turned-his-computer/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“You need to cool down first.” “I’m cool.” “Simon. You’re never cool.” “That hurts, Penny.” “It shouldn’t. It’s one of the reasons I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/you-need-to-cool-down-first-i-m-cool-simon-you-re-never-cool-that/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“She'd get out of the shower the next morning, and it would be written in the steam on the mirror. Dance. Dress. Try a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/she-d-get-out-of-the-shower-the-next-morning-and-it-would-be-written/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) [Explore all 1,108 Rainbow Rowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) ## More Stories quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [When you listen to someone improvise, the notes that are played are only half the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-laws/when-you-listen-to-someone-improvise-the-notes-that-are-played-are/) Hubert Laws > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [She smiled, if he could see that, and waited for him to ask the real question. But he was silent. He wanted her to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-shinn/she-smiled-if-he-could-see-that-and-waited-for-him-to-ask-the-real/) [Sharon Shinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-shinn/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [It took me 20 years to buy an electric typewriter, because I was afraid it would be too sensitive. I like to bang the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/it-took-me-20-years-to-buy-an-electric-typewriter-because-i-was/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [Having small children and being an investigative reporter would seem like a difficult mix, but it worked well for me. I was often working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-abramson/having-small-children-and-being-an-investigative-reporter-would-seem/) [Jill Abramson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-abramson/) > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [It goes to show you how we in the press so often miss the big stories that are right under our noses. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-goes-to-show-you-how-we-in-the-press-so-often-miss-the-big-stories/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I think it's actually kind of sweet how there is a reciprocal effect that our stories can have on each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-manning/i-think-it-s-actually-kind-of-sweet-how-there-is-a-reciprocal-effect/) [Chelsea Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-manning/) > [I had sort of had a 21st birthday when I was 17, 18 years old living in Japan. I had all of that stuff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-wright/i-had-sort-of-had-a-21st-birthday-when-i-was-17-18-years-old-living/) [Sarah Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-wright/) > [Story is about pulling the reader in and a plot is a more externalized mechanism of revelation. A plot is more antic, more performative,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/story-is-about-pulling-the-reader-in-and-a-plot-is-a-more/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [Women know things that men will never know. We keep the best secrets. We tell the best stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/women-know-things-that-men-will-never-know-we-keep-the-best-secrets/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) [Browse all 19,094 Stories quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“They were just stories, but stories weren’t just anything. 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