--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I love telling stories, whether I'm the…" description: "\"I love telling stories, whether I'm the human instrument that helps tell that story, or I'm the man behind the curtain.\" — Ray McKinnon" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fe/ray-mckinnon-38193_behind_i-love-telling-stories-whether-i-m-the-h_930666.jpg" --- # I love telling stories, whether I'm the human instrument… ![“I love telling stories, whether I'm the human instrument that helps tell that story, or I'm the man behind the curtain.” quote by Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fe/ray-mckinnon-38193_behind_i-love-telling-stories-whether-i-m-the-h_930666.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fe/ray-mckinnon-38193_behind_i-love-telling-stories-whether-i-m-the-h_930666.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fe/ray-mckinnon-38193_behind_i-love-telling-stories-whether-i-m-the-h_930666.jpg) > “I love telling stories, whether I'm the human instrument that helps tell that story, or I'm the man behind the curtain.” [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. I enjoy storytelling, either as the visible narrator or the unseen creator behind the scenes. **In simple terms:** I love telling stories, on stage or behind the curtain. Key Takeaway Embrace both visible and hidden roles. Themes creativity storytelling identity Mood playful introspective Type artistic motivational When to use this quote - theatre - film production - public speaking Key Concepts authorship performance collaboration Questions to Reflect On - Do you prefer being seen or unseen? - How does each role shape the story? A Different Perspective Focusing only on one role may limit impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Instrument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instrument/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) [Telling stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-stories/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“The next time you feel yourself giving in to the sometimes overwhelming urge to panic about the fate of literature in the digital age,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-hammond/the-next-time-you-feel-yourself-giving-in-to-the-sometimes/) Adam Hammond > [The interesting thing about improvisation is you're making something up in front of the audience. Now music helps you out a little bit because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-steinberg/the-interesting-thing-about-improvisation-is-you-re-making-something/) [David Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-steinberg/) > [My favorite stories are human, so I'm always looking for...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-hawke/my-favorite-stories-are-human-so-i-m-always-looking-for/) [Ethan Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-hawke/) > [With years of experience doing whatever it takes to get to the bottom of each story, I am looking forward to covering the stories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldo-rivera/with-years-of-experience-doing-whatever-it-takes-to-get-to-the-bottom/) [Geraldo Rivera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldo-rivera/) > [“If fear and hatred made beasts of us, then it was our stories that made us human.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-chua/if-fear-and-hatred-made-beasts-of-us-then-it-was-our-stories-that/) [Joyce Chua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-chua/) > [Details make stories human, and the more human a story can be, the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/details-make-stories-human-and-the-more-human-a-story-can-be-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [I dream of a world where people from different backgrounds are praying and working for the flourishment of communities different from them, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eboo-patel/i-dream-of-a-world-where-people-from-different-backgrounds-are/) [Eboo Patel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eboo-patel/) > [I have some great stories. But I am also very human, and I suffered an awful lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-trudeau/i-have-some-great-stories-but-i-am-also-very-human-and-i-suffered-an/) [Margaret Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-trudeau/) > [I felt like challenging myself and challenging my readers with something darker and heavier. I don't know how to explain it, because I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-felt-like-challenging-myself-and-challenging-my-readers-with/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Short stories can be rather stark and bare unless you put in the right details. Details make stories human, and the more human a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-pritchett/short-stories-can-be-rather-stark-and-bare-unless-you-put-in-the/) [V. S. 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Fairy tales romanticize the rule of kings and queens over “common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riane-eisler/many-cultural-stories-worldwide-present-the-domination-system-as-the/) [Riane Eisler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riane-eisler/) > [“Language is our identity tool and by using experience, observation, and imagination, we each discover the words that give voice to our lives. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/language-is-our-identity-tool-and-by-using-experience-observation-and/) [Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/) > [I'm interested in stories about human beings. I don't care where or when they are set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-m-interested-in-stories-about-human-beings-i-don-t-care-where-or/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) ## More by Ray McKinnon > [If you're ever making a television show, don't cast smart actors because they are just a pain in the ass. The moment you start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/if-you-re-ever-making-a-television-show-don-t-cast-smart-actors/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > [Truth may be stranger than fiction on a plot and narrative basis, but fiction can investigate tone in a way that things based on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/truth-may-be-stranger-than-fiction-on-a-plot-and-narrative-basis-but/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > ['Deadwood' was just a wonderful opportunity for me. Outside of my own things that I've written, I hadn't had the opportunity to play a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/deadwood-was-just-a-wonderful-opportunity-for-me-outside-of-my-own/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > [From my experience and observing a lot of other people that often times that only happens - a transformational experience or shedding of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/from-my-experience-and-observing-a-lot-of-other-people-that-often/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > ['Rectify' is un-busy. 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As an actor, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/with-writing-fiction-i-m-either-not-courageous-enough-or-just-not/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > [All the collaborators of storytelling, in film and television, have to be partly self-centered because they need to do their work the best they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/all-the-collaborators-of-storytelling-in-film-and-television-have-to/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > [There's not a conspiracy to prevent really good writing from being found You have to have the humility to fail over and over and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/there-s-not-a-conspiracy-to-prevent-really-good-writing-from-being/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > [I think I'm a better collaborator, in seeing the bigger picture and trying to just help that, and not be so self-centered in whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/i-think-i-m-a-better-collaborator-in-seeing-the-bigger-picture-and/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) > [You can't please everyone. You've got to please yourself, I guess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mckinnon/you-can-t-please-everyone-you-ve-got-to-please-yourself-i-guess/) [Ray McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) [Explore all 12 Ray McKinnon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mckinnon/) ## More Behind quotes > [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [I wonder: when a Jehovah's Witness dies and goes to Heaven, does God hide behind the door and pretend He's not home?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-celio/i-wonder-when-a-jehovah-s-witness-dies-and-goes-to-heaven-does-god/) [Brian Celio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-celio/) > [I'm not the type of player that's going to run in behind or go past three and score.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-crouch/i-m-not-the-type-of-player-that-s-going-to-run-in-behind-or-go-past/) [Peter Crouch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-crouch/) > [I hadn't been to drama school. I hadn't been to university and acted there. I had no qualifications behind me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jason/i-hadn-t-been-to-drama-school-i-hadn-t-been-to-university-and-acted/) [David Jason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jason/) > [For girls who want to get their waistline down a little bit and don't have any weights in the house, they can actually use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pepa/for-girls-who-want-to-get-their-waistline-down-a-little-bit-and-don-t/) [Pepa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pepa/) > [My sister-in-law works for a group that supports orphanages in Cairo. She and her colleagues take care of children left behind by circumstances beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/my-sister-in-law-works-for-a-group-that-supports-orphanages-in-cairo/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) > [I'm not on any social media; I don't even know what things are. 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