--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The average detective story is probably…" description: "\"The average detective story is probably no worse than the average novel, but you never see the average novel. It doesn't get published. The average -- ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f37/raymond-chandler-629_above-average_the-average-detective-story-is-probably_642760.jpg" --- # The average detective story is probably no worse than the… ![“The average detective story is probably no worse than the average novel, but you never see the average novel. It doesn't get published. The average -- or only slightly above average -- detective story does… Whereas the good novel is not at all the same kind of book as the bad novel. It is about…” quote by Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f37/raymond-chandler-629_above-average_the-average-detective-story-is-probably_642760.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f37/raymond-chandler-629_above-average_the-average-detective-story-is-probably_642760.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f37/raymond-chandler-629_above-average_the-average-detective-story-is-probably_642760.jpg) > “The average detective story is probably no worse than the average novel, but you never see the average novel. It doesn't get published. The average -- or only slightly above average -- detective story does… Whereas the good novel is not at all the same kind of book as the bad novel. It is about entirely different things. But the good detective story and the bad detective story are about exactly the same things, and they are about them in very much the same way.” [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Detective stories and novels differ in quality, but good and bad detective stories share themes and style. **In simple terms:** Detective stories vary, but good and bad share traits. Key Takeaway Recognize quality over genre. Themes literature genre quality comparison craft Mood analytical critical Type literary analytical When to use this quote - reading clubs - writing workshops - literary criticism Key Concepts narrative structure character archetypes plot mechanics Questions to Reflect On - How does genre influence your reading expectations? - What makes a detective story "good"? A Different Perspective Genre labels can oversimplify nuanced works. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Detective stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detective-stories/) [Detectives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detectives/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) ## Related quotes > [“The average novel invariably reads like a detective's report. It is drab and tedious because it is never objective.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natsume-s-seki/the-average-novel-invariably-reads-like-a-detective-s-report-it-is/) [Natsume Soseki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natsume-s-seki/) > [The perfect detective story cannot be written. The type of mind which can evolve the perfect problem is not the type of mind that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-perfect-detective-story-cannot-be-written-the-type-of-mind-which/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [The conventional wisdom is that authors get only one chance in this world. If your first novel doesn't sell, publishers and bookstores lose interest,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-giles/the-conventional-wisdom-is-that-authors-get-only-one-chance-in-this/) [Jeff Giles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-giles/) > [I sort of hate the novel when it doesn't push, restlessly, against the tradition and the traditional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-sort-of-hate-the-novel-when-it-doesn-t-push-restlessly-against-the/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [“Someone who hasn't read a novel doesn't really know what it's about, William.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/someone-who-hasn-t-read-a-novel-doesn-t-really-know-what-it-s-about/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [Film is a medium of clear lines and broad strikes - which can be fantastic - but compared to the subtleties and nuances of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/film-is-a-medium-of-clear-lines-and-broad-strikes-which-can-be/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“Whatever happens in a romance novel doesn't always have to stay in one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-alexis/whatever-happens-in-a-romance-novel-doesn-t-always-have-to-stay-in-one/) Renee Alexis > [Find me a first novel that doesn't have parallels with the author's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-dahl/find-me-a-first-novel-that-doesn-t-have-parallels-with-the-author-s/) [Sophie Dahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-dahl/) > [It's true that immigrant novels have to do with people going from one country to another, but there isn't a single novel that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-hijuelos/it-s-true-that-immigrant-novels-have-to-do-with-people-going-from-one/) [Oscar Hijuelos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-hijuelos/) > [Has all the trappings of a mystery novel, doesn't it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-cornwell/has-all-the-trappings-of-a-mystery-novel-doesn-t-it/) [Patricia Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-cornwell/) > [If one book's done this well, you want to write another one that does just as well. There's that horror of the second novel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/if-one-book-s-done-this-well-you-want-to-write-another-one-that-does/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [A good novel doesn't just transcend the boundaries of its target market - it knows nothing about target markets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianna-baggott/a-good-novel-doesn-t-just-transcend-the-boundaries-of-its-target/) [Julianna Baggott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianna-baggott/) > [The novel doesn't come into existence until certain methods of reproducing fiction come along.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-fiedler/the-novel-doesn-t-come-into-existence-until-certain-methods-of/) [Leslie Fiedler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-fiedler/) > [What the detective story is about is not murder but the restoration of order.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-d-james/what-the-detective-story-is-about-is-not-murder-but-the-restoration/) [P. D. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-d-james/) > [It is ridiculous to set a detective story in New York City. New York City is itself a detective story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/it-is-ridiculous-to-set-a-detective-story-in-new-york-city-new-york/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) ## More by Raymond Chandler > [Television's perfect. You turn a few knobs, a few of those mechanical adjustments at which the higher apes are so proficient, and lean back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/television-s-perfect-you-turn-a-few-knobs-a-few-of-those-mechanical/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [There is no trap so deadly as the trap you set for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/there-is-no-trap-so-deadly-as-the-trap-you-set-for-yourself/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Common sense is the guy who tells you that you ought to have had your brakes relined last week before you smashed a front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/common-sense-is-the-guy-who-tells-you-that-you-ought-to-have-had-your/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [ “Hammett was the ace performer... He is said to have lacked heart; yet the story he himself thought the most of \[The Glass Key\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/hammett-was-the-ace-performer-he-is-said-to-have-lacked-heart-yet-the/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [She jerked away from me like a startled fawn might, if I had a startled fawn and it jerked away from me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/she-jerked-away-from-me-like-a-startled-fawn-might-if-i-had-a/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [A good story cannot be devised; it has to be distilled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/a-good-story-cannot-be-devised-it-has-to-be-distilled/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Dashiell Hammett took murder out of theVenetian vase and dropped it into the alley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/dashiell-hammett-took-murder-out-of-thevenetian-vase-and-dropped-it/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [ “He \[James Cain\] is every kind of writer I detest...a Proust in greasy overalls, a dirty little boy with a piece of chalk and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/he-james-cain-is-every-kind-of-writer-i-detest-a-proust-in-greasy/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [It was a blonde. A blonde to make a bishop kick a hole in a stained-glass window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/it-was-a-blonde-a-blonde-to-make-a-bishop-kick-a-hole-in-a-stained/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“I had been stalking the bluebottle fly for five minutes, waiting for him to sit down. He didn't want to sit down. He just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/i-had-been-stalking-the-bluebottle-fly-for-five-minutes-waiting-for/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“A three-piece Mexican band was making the kind of music a Mexican band always makes. Whatever they play, it all sounds the same. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/a-three-piece-mexican-band-was-making-the-kind-of-music-a-mexican/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Mostly I just kill time," he said, "and it dies hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/mostly-i-just-kill-time-he-said-and-it-dies-hard/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The book was not new. Dates were stamped on the front endpaper, in and out dates. A rent book. A lending library of elaborate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-book-was-not-new-dates-were-stamped-on-the-front-endpaper-in-and/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Without magic, there is no art. Without art, there is no idealism. Without idealism, there is no integrity. Without integrity, there is nothing but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/without-magic-there-is-no-art-without-art-there-is-no-idealism/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The homicide skipper that year was a Captain Gregorius, a type of copper that is getting rarer but by no means extinct, the kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-homicide-skipper-that-year-was-a-captain-gregorius-a-type-of/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) [Explore all 430 Raymond Chandler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) ## More Above average quotes > [Hay fever suffers tend to be above average in intelligence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-tobias/hay-fever-suffers-tend-to-be-above-average-in-intelligence/) [Andrew Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-tobias/) > [Holidays are in no sense an alternative to the congestion and bustle of the cities and work. Quite the contrary. People look to escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/holidays-are-in-no-sense-an-alternative-to-the-congestion-and-bustle/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) > [I asked many friends if Australian anti-intellectualism was still a living force and they all told me it was. If you are above average…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mikes/i-asked-many-friends-if-australian-anti-intellectualism-was-still-a/) [George Mikes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mikes/) > [I didn't have a very starry school career, I was medium to above average, nothing special.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-didn-t-have-a-very-starry-school-career-i-was-medium-to-above/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [While the other guy's sleeping? I'm working. While the other guy's eatin'? I'm working.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-smith/while-the-other-guy-s-sleeping-i-m-working-while-the-other-guy-s/) [Will Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-smith/) > [The average estimate themselves by what they do, the above average by what they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-average-estimate-themselves-by-what-they-do-the-above-average-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If a man's got talent and guts to buck society, he's obviously above average. You want to hold on to him. You straighten him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-bester/if-a-man-s-got-talent-and-guts-to-buck-society-he-s-obviously-above/) [Alfred Bester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-bester/) > [Most of us form estimates of our intelligence, wisdom, and moral fiber that are considerably higher than an objective estimate would warrant; no doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-plantinga/most-of-us-form-estimates-of-our-intelligence-wisdom-and-moral-fiber/) [Alvin Plantinga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-plantinga/) > [Everybody thinks their website is above average.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-cutts/everybody-thinks-their-website-is-above-average/) [Matt Cutts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-cutts/) > [I've never really viewed myself as particularly talented. I've viewed myself as slightly above average in talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-smith/i-ve-never-really-viewed-myself-as-particularly-talented-i-ve-viewed/) [Will Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-smith/) > [I loved nuns when I was growing up. I thought they were beautiful. For several years I wanted to be a nun. I saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/i-loved-nuns-when-i-was-growing-up-i-thought-they-were-beautiful-for/) [Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/) > [You know, my boy, he said, it's impossible to love men such as they are. And yet we must. So try to do good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-know-my-boy-he-said-it-s-impossible-to-love-men-such-as-they-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It just seems logical that sticking to investing in only a small number of companies that you understand well, rather than moving down the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-greenblatt/it-just-seems-logical-that-sticking-to-investing-in-only-a-small/) [Joel Greenblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-greenblatt/) > [Above average intelligence has always run in my family. Ambition, however, has always walked with a limp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-macnelly/above-average-intelligence-has-always-run-in-my-family-ambition/) Jeff MacNelly > [I don't know what the average income of Muslim-Americans is, but Muslim-American immigrants of recent vintage, I bet they have a very above-average representation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/i-don-t-know-what-the-average-income-of-muslim-americans-is-but/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) Browse all 41 Above average quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The average detective story is probably no worse than the average novel, but you never see the average novel. It doesn't get published. The average -- or only slightly above average -- detective story does… Whereas the good novel is not at all the same kind of book as the bad novel. It is about entirely different things. 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