---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think sometimes writers must attempt to…"
description: "\"I think sometimes writers must attempt to communicate the incommunicable, because, whether they wish it or not, they're the ones to whom it falls.\" — R..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/richard-flanagan-2253_communicate_i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-t_788609.jpg"
---

#  I think sometimes writers must attempt to communicate the…

![“I think sometimes writers must attempt to communicate the incommunicable, because, whether they wish it or not, they're the ones to whom it falls.” quote by Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/richard-flanagan-2253_communicate_i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-t_788609.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/richard-flanagan-2253_communicate_i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-t_788609.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/richard-flanagan-2253_communicate_i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-t_788609.jpg)

> “I think sometimes writers must attempt to communicate the incommunicable, because, whether they wish it or not, they're the ones to whom it falls.”

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Writers must try to express the inexpressible, because they inevitably become the vessels for such truths.

**In simple terms:** Writers convey what seems impossible to say.

Key Takeaway

Attempt to articulate the unspeakable.

Themes

writing communication truth

Mood

reflective introspective

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- literature
- speech
- artistic expression

Key Concepts

philosophy creativity

Questions to Reflect On

- What challenges arise when describing the indescribable?
- How do you balance honesty with clarity?

A Different Perspective

Some truths may remain beyond language.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Attempt Communicate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attempt-communicate-5816652/) [Communicate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communicate/) [Communicate Incommunicable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communicate-incommunicable-559822/) [Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall/) [Incommunicable Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incommunicable-wish-6061443/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Think Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-writers/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writers Attempt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers-attempt-2119290/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [That I was not dueling with the king, but trying to communicate with him, was itself an incommunicable fact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/that-i-was-not-dueling-with-the-king-but-trying-to-communicate-with/)

[Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/)

> [To the Tax Office: All is over between us. Please don't attempt to communicate with me again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashleigh-brilliant/to-the-tax-office-all-is-over-between-us-please-don-t-attempt-to/)

[Ashleigh Brilliant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashleigh-brilliant/)

> [The best writers attempt to become alternative historians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/the-best-writers-attempt-to-become-alternative-historians/)

[Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/)

> [“Writing is a pitched battle with the elusive self, a contest that resultant celebratory jubilee demonstrates the writer’s innate capacity to meld abstract ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/writing-is-a-pitched-battle-with-the-elusive-self-a-contest-that/)

[Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/)

> [“You're lucky to have within your grasp something that everyone envies. You can't act as though that didn't exist, as though it wasn't part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delphine-de-vigan/you-re-lucky-to-have-within-your-grasp-something-that-everyone-envies/)

[Delphine de Vigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delphine-de-vigan/)

> [I think writers tend to be experience junkies, and I think they also tend to want to be on the outside looking in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/i-think-writers-tend-to-be-experience-junkies-and-i-think-they-also/)

[Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/)

> [I don't think many writers like their best-known piece of work, particularly when it was written a long time ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/i-don-t-think-many-writers-like-their-best-known-piece-of-work/)

[Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/)

> [It's weird - I don't feel like I'm a better or more confident writer because I'm publishing something. I think, for most writers as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-m-gavin/it-s-weird-i-don-t-feel-like-i-m-a-better-or-more-confident-writer/)

[James M. Gavin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-m-gavin/)

> [It's something that's difficult to explain but I think all writers work this way to some extent, whether we're aware of it or not.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-j-miller/it-s-something-that-s-difficult-to-explain-but-i-think-all-writers/)

[Mary J. Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-j-miller/)

> [I think writers have become hypnotised by the number of jokes on the page at the expense of character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwood-schwartz/i-think-writers-have-become-hypnotised-by-the-number-of-jokes-on-the/)

[Sherwood Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwood-schwartz/)

> [I think some writers should wait for something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-orner/i-think-some-writers-should-wait-for-something-to-say/)

[Peter Orner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-orner/)

> [We aren't suggesting that mental instability or unhappiness makes one a better poet, or a poet at all; and contrary to the romantic notion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorianne-laux/we-aren-t-suggesting-that-mental-instability-or-unhappiness-makes-one/)

[Dorianne Laux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorianne-laux/)

> [I don’t think writers compete, I think they’re all doing separate things in their own style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-don-t-think-writers-compete-i-think-they-re-all-doing-separate/)

[Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/)

> [I think writers are the most narcissistic people. Well, I musn't say this, I like many of them, a great many of my friends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-think-writers-are-the-most-narcissistic-people-well-i-musn-t-say/)

[Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/)

> [I think that if writers don't speak about real life, it's because they don't know it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-houellebecq/i-think-that-if-writers-don-t-speak-about-real-life-it-s-because-they/)

[Michel Houellebecq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-houellebecq/)

## More by Richard Flanagan

> [I went to study at Oxford University in the 1980s on an imperial scholarship instituted by Cecil Rhodes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/i-went-to-study-at-oxford-university-in-the-1980s-on-an-imperial/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [Writing is not lying, nor is it theft. It is a journey and search for transparency between one’s words and one’s soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/writing-is-not-lying-nor-is-it-theft-it-is-a-journey-and-search-for/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [In reading, you sense the divine: the things that are larger and greater and more mysterious than yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/in-reading-you-sense-the-divine-the-things-that-are-larger-and/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [Within white Australia, there was a growing movement for what was known as reconciliation - a movement that peaked with millions marching in 2000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/within-white-australia-there-was-a-growing-movement-for-what-was/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [In 1995, the Paul Keating Labor government commissioned an inquiry into the forcible removal of Aboriginal children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/in-1995-the-paul-keating-labor-government-commissioned-an-inquiry/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [Murder and hate are as deeply buried in the human heart as love, perhaps more so, and in truth they're rather entwined, and if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/murder-and-hate-are-as-deeply-buried-in-the-human-heart-as-love/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [My father was the first to read in his family, and he said to me that words were the first beautiful thing he ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/my-father-was-the-first-to-read-in-his-family-and-he-said-to-me-that/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [I grew up in a world that was clannish - old Tasmanian-Irish families with big extended families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/i-grew-up-in-a-world-that-was-clannish-old-tasmanian-irish-families/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [If 30 Australians drowned in Sydney Harbour, it would be a national tragedy. But when 30 or more refugees drown off the Australian coast,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/if-30-australians-drowned-in-sydney-harbour-it-would-be-a-national/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [The enslavement, humiliation, torture, and ultimate destruction of thousands upon thousands of human beings for a project for which there was ultimately no purpose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/the-enslavement-humiliation-torture-and-ultimate-destruction-of/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [In Tasmania, an island the size of Ireland whose primeval forests astonished 19th-century Europeans, an incomprehensible ecological tragedy is being played out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/in-tasmania-an-island-the-size-of-ireland-whose-primeval-forests/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [You have to attempt to find new forms that will force you to write freshly and better and hopefully more truthfully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/you-have-to-attempt-to-find-new-forms-that-will-force-you-to-write/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [My mother hoped I'd be a plumber.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/my-mother-hoped-i-d-be-a-plumber/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [Family matters, friends matter, love matters. Those you love and who love you matter. That's what writing does - it allows you to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/family-matters-friends-matter-love-matters-those-you-love-and-who/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [A good book ... leaves you wanting to reread the book. A great book compels you to reread your own soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/a-good-book-leaves-you-wanting-to-reread-the-book-a-great-book/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

[Explore all 176 Richard Flanagan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

## More Communicate quotes

> [Verbs allow you to communicate a story in a much more converged or involuntary way for a reader. The verbs allow you to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/verbs-allow-you-to-communicate-a-story-in-a-much-more-converged-or/)

[Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/)

> [I have learned so much from my dad. Perhaps the biggest thing I've learned from my dad is how to be prepared at all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-sekulow/i-have-learned-so-much-from-my-dad-perhaps-the-biggest-thing-i-ve/)

[Jay Sekulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-sekulow/)

> [Even people who can't communicate can fall in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaejoong/even-people-who-can-t-communicate-can-fall-in-love/)

[Jaejoong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaejoong/)

> [Our communications reflect in our countenance. Therefore, we must be careful not only what we communicate, but also how we do so. Souls can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-lionel-kendrick/our-communications-reflect-in-our-countenance-therefore-we-must-be/)

[L. Lionel Kendrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-lionel-kendrick/)

> [Always being on the move has strange consequences. I meet so many amazing people, for a night, or sometimes just a few days. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaspar-claus/always-being-on-the-move-has-strange-consequences-i-meet-so-many/)

[Gaspar Claus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaspar-claus/)

> [“Even without words, you communicate through touch, body language, and facial expression.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmel-sheridan/even-without-words-you-communicate-through-touch-body-language-and/)

[Carmel Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmel-sheridan/)

> [I could say that making clothes is my way of communicating, because I was always so shy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-gaultier/i-could-say-that-making-clothes-is-my-way-of-communicating-because-i/)

[Jean Paul Gaultier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-gaultier/)

> [I think there's confusion around what the point of social networks is. A lot of different companies characterized as social networks have different goals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-zuckerberg/i-think-there-s-confusion-around-what-the-point-of-social-networks-is/)

[Mark Zuckerberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-zuckerberg/)

> [Language just gradually came in, one or two stressed words a time. Before then, I would just scream. I couldn't talk. I couldn't get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/language-just-gradually-came-in-one-or-two-stressed-words-a-time/)

[Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/)

> [Had Elijah Muhammad tried to introduce an orthodox form of Arab-oriented Islam, I doubt if he would have attracted 500 people, but he introduced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-henrik-clarke/had-elijah-muhammad-tried-to-introduce-an-orthodox-form-of-arab/)

[John Henrik Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-henrik-clarke/)

> [Must whales and dolphins be subjected to deafening noise that will cause more than 3.5 million instances of temporary and/or permanent hearing loss? For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brosnan/must-whales-and-dolphins-be-subjected-to-deafening-noise-that-will/)

[Pierce Brosnan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brosnan/)

> [My wish for humanity is to invent a way to communicate between us and whatever comes next. And in the end that we the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sugata-mitra/my-wish-for-humanity-is-to-invent-a-way-to-communicate-between-us-and/)

[Sugata Mitra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sugata-mitra/)

> [Having people around you that are honest with you, and having a team around you that can actually track and communicate where things are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muneshine/having-people-around-you-that-are-honest-with-you-and-having-a-team/)

[Muneshine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muneshine/)

> [The most important thing for a director is being able to communicate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-hart/the-most-important-thing-for-a-director-is-being-able-to-communicate/)

[Kevin Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-hart/)

> [Sourav's greatest asset is his ability to communicate. He is a naturally very confident person. He encourages his team, is a great motivator and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-shastri/sourav-s-greatest-asset-is-his-ability-to-communicate-he-is-a/)

[Ravi Shastri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-shastri/)

[Browse all 2,325 Communicate quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communicate/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I think sometimes writers must attempt to communicate the incommunicable, because, whether they wish it or not, they're the ones to whom it falls.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Richard Flanagan"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-to-communicate-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Communicate"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-to-communicate-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/richard-flanagan-2253_communicate_i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-t_788609.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/richard-flanagan-2253_communicate_i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-t_788609.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee9/richard-flanagan-2253_communicate_i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-t_788609.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I think sometimes writers must attempt to communicate the incommunicable, because, whether they wish it or…” — Richard Flanagan",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Richard Flanagan",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I think sometimes writers must attempt...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-to-communicate-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/i-think-sometimes-writers-must-attempt-to-communicate-the/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```