--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Just how difficult it is to write…" description: "\"Just how difficult it is to write biography can be reckoned by anybody who sits down and considers just how many people know the real truth about his o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/29a/rebecca-west-1248_difficult_just-how-difficult-it-is-to-write-biogra_3122075.jpg" --- # Just how difficult it is to write biography can be… ![“Just how difficult it is to write biography can be reckoned by anybody who sits down and considers just how many people know the real truth about his or her love affairs.” quote by Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/29a/rebecca-west-1248_difficult_just-how-difficult-it-is-to-write-biogra_3122075.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/29a/rebecca-west-1248_difficult_just-how-difficult-it-is-to-write-biogra_3122075.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/29a/rebecca-west-1248_difficult_just-how-difficult-it-is-to-write-biogra_3122075.jpg) > “Just how difficult it is to write biography can be reckoned by anybody who sits down and considers just how many people know the real truth about his or her love affairs.” [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing a biography is difficult because many people conceal the truth about their personal relationships, making accurate portrayal challenging. **In simple terms:** Biographies are hard due to hidden personal truths. Key Takeaway Seek truth beyond public narratives. Themes truth privacy biography relationships Mood thoughtful critical Type analytical ethical When to use this quote - family histories - political memoirs - celebrity profiles - historical research Key Concepts Journalism ethical inquiry memory Questions to Reflect On - What ethical lines should biographers respect? - How can one verify intimate details responsibly? A Different Perspective Privacy concerns can limit access to reliable information. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Real truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-truth/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I discovered in writing the biography of Bill Clinton that it is actually easier to write a biography of someone who is dead. 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I love to write. I could write for weeks and weeks, maybe say nothing but just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-lafleur/i-would-like-to-write-my-biography-sometime-i-love-to-write-i-could/) [Guy Lafleur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-lafleur/) > [Some writers just write about their own lives. Well, I don't want to do that. I want to have a really boring life. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-c-boyle/some-writers-just-write-about-their-own-lives-well-i-don-t-want-to-do/) [T.C. Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-c-boyle/) > [I have no desire to write my own biography, as long as I have strength and means to do better work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-babbage/i-have-no-desire-to-write-my-own-biography-as-long-as-i-have-strength/) [Charles Babbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-babbage/) > [If after I die, people want to write my biography, there is nothing simpler. 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I wrote a national hymn, an anthem, which I don't want to present to that country.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giorgio-moroder/when-i-m-dead-somebody-can-write-my-biography-i-wrote-a-national-hymn/) [Giorgio Moroder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giorgio-moroder/) > [It's a feature of our age that if you write a work of fiction, everyone assumes that the people and events in it are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-a-feature-of-our-age-that-if-you-write-a-work-of-fiction/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I think I want to write a biography, something with broad appeal, but I haven't figured out about whom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rhodes/i-think-i-want-to-write-a-biography-something-with-broad-appeal-but-i/) [Richard Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rhodes/) > [I've never felt as nervous as I did before a track meet - literally, stomach going crazy - 'cause it was just so difficult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-bird/i-ve-never-felt-as-nervous-as-i-did-before-a-track-meet-literally/) [Sue Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-bird/) ## More by Rebecca West > [I see the main problem of my life, and indeed anybody's life, as the balancing of competitive freedoms ... a sense of mutual obligations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/i-see-the-main-problem-of-my-life-and-indeed-anybody-s-life-as-the/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [“There is, of course, no reason for the existence of the male sex except that sometimes one needs help with moving the piano.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/there-is-of-course-no-reason-for-the-existence-of-the-male-sex-except/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [“At the top of a hill our automobile stuck in a snowdrift. Peasants ran out of a cottage near by, shouting with laughter because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/at-the-top-of-a-hill-our-automobile-stuck-in-a-snowdrift-peasants-ran/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [We all drew on the comfort which is given out by the major works of Mozart, which is as real and material as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/we-all-drew-on-the-comfort-which-is-given-out-by-the-major-works-of/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Christianity must be regarded not as a final revelation but as a phase of revelation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/christianity-must-be-regarded-not-as-a-final-revelation-but-as-a/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Art and propaganda have this much connection, that if a propaganda makes art impossible, it is clearly damned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/art-and-propaganda-have-this-much-connection-that-if-a-propaganda/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [The American struggle for the vote was much more difficult than the English for the simple reason that it was much more easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/the-american-struggle-for-the-vote-was-much-more-difficult-than-the/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [ Like all bad drivers, he \[Henry Andrews\] thought he was the best driver in the world... ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/like-all-bad-drivers-he-henry-andrews-thought-he-was-the-best-driver/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [The childhood of the individual and the race is full of fears, and panic-stricken attempts to avert what is feared by placating the gods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/the-childhood-of-the-individual-and-the-race-is-full-of-fears-and/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Humanity is never more sphinxlike than when it is expressing itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/humanity-is-never-more-sphinxlike-than-when-it-is-expressing-itself/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [ \[On Jane Austen:\] To believe her limited in range because she was harmonious in method is as sensible as to imagine that when the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/on-jane-austen-to-believe-her-limited-in-range-because-she-was/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [a good oyster cannot please the palate as acutely as a bad one can revolt it, and a good oyster cannot make him who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/a-good-oyster-cannot-please-the-palate-as-acutely-as-a-bad-one-can/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [If there is a God, I don't think He would demand that anyone bow down or stand up to Him. I often have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/if-there-is-a-god-i-don-t-think-he-would-demand-that-anyone-bow-down/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Any authentic work of art must start an argument between the artist and his audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/any-authentic-work-of-art-must-start-an-argument-between-the-artist/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [... there has never been a period in history when there have been necessary killings which has not been instantly followed by a period…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/there-has-never-been-a-period-in-history-when-there-have-been/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) [Explore all 264 Rebecca West quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) ## More Difficult quotes > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. 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You've got to believe that the work you're doing is ultimately more useful to the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-sivers/it-s-only-a-little-difficult-to-say-no-you-ve-got-to-believe-that-the/) [Derek Sivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-sivers/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [It's difficult for people to come to the understanding that only a small minority of the people ever really get the word about life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/it-s-difficult-for-people-to-come-to-the-understanding-that-only-a/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [I want to make myself and the crowd happy by way of something different, and that makes things difficult. 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