--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can spend a day in a library and…" description: "\"You can spend a day in a library and feel: 'Great, I've done a day's work.' But it's only research, not writing.\" — Richard Flanagan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/115/richard-flanagan-2253_day_you-can-spend-a-day-in-a-library-and-fee_897617.jpg" --- # You can spend a day in a library and feel: 'Great, I've… ![“You can spend a day in a library and feel: 'Great, I've done a day's work.' But it's only research, not writing.” quote by Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/115/richard-flanagan-2253_day_you-can-spend-a-day-in-a-library-and-fee_897617.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/115/richard-flanagan-2253_day_you-can-spend-a-day-in-a-library-and-fee_897617.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/115/richard-flanagan-2253_day_you-can-spend-a-day-in-a-library-and-fee_897617.jpg) > “You can spend a day in a library and feel: 'Great, I've done a day's work.' But it's only research, not writing.” [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. He contrasts the satisfaction of completing research with the ongoing work of writing. **In simple terms:** Research feels complete; writing is ongoing. Key Takeaway Balance research and writing. Themes research writing process Mood analytical thoughtful Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - thesis writing - journal articles - novel drafting Key Concepts academic work creative writing Questions to Reflect On - How do you transition from research to writing? - What motivates you to keep writing? A Different Perspective Writing can feel endless despite research. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/day/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Find something you love, because if you love what you do, you'll never spend a day at work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-batali/find-something-you-love-because-if-you-love-what-you-do-you-ll-never/) [Mario Batali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-batali/) > [In my day the library was a wonderful place… We didn't have visual aids and didn't have various programs...it was a sanctuary… So I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/in-my-day-the-library-was-a-wonderful-place-we-didn-t-have-visual/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [I like to imagine that, on the day after my last, my library and I will crumble together, so that even when I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-manguel/i-like-to-imagine-that-on-the-day-after-my-last-my-library-and-i-will/) [Alberto Manguel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-manguel/) > [Why spend a day in the library when you can learn the same thing by working in the laboratory for a month?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-westheimer/why-spend-a-day-in-the-library-when-you-can-learn-the-same-thing-by/) Frank Westheimer > [During the day, the library is a realm of order.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-manguel/during-the-day-the-library-is-a-realm-of-order/) [Alberto Manguel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-manguel/) > [I admit that I haven't read everything in my library, but I feel smarter just walking in it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/i-admit-that-i-haven-t-read-everything-in-my-library-but-i-feel/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [I've got a vendetta to destroy the Net, to make everyone go to the library. I love the organic thing of pen and paper,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-fiennes/i-ve-got-a-vendetta-to-destroy-the-net-to-make-everyone-go-to-the/) [Joseph Fiennes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-fiennes/) > [“Usually, I set one foot in a library and I feel my own internal volume lower. A library is a physical equivalent of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deb-caletti/usually-i-set-one-foot-in-a-library-and-i-feel-my-own-internal-volume/) [Deb Caletti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deb-caletti/) > [I have been ineluctably drawn to libraries ever since I entered that sanctum sanctorum. It was a place of quietude. In a world where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-agra-deedy/i-have-been-ineluctably-drawn-to-libraries-ever-since-i-entered-that/) [Carmen Agra Deedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-agra-deedy/) > [Leaving behind the babble of the plaza, I enter the Library. 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It is something like a personal introduction to the great and good men of all past times.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bright/what-is-a-great-love-of-books-it-is-something-like-a-personal/) [John Bright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bright/) > [“The library made me feel safe, as if every question had an answer and there was nothing to be afraid of, as long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-williams/the-library-made-me-feel-safe-as-if-every-question-had-an-answer-and/) [Dee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-williams/) > [I am a bit of a Pollyanna - I spend most of my day happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-danson/i-am-a-bit-of-a-pollyanna-i-spend-most-of-my-day-happy/) [Ted Danson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-danson/) > [Life is too short to spend another day at war with yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/life-is-too-short-to-spend-another-day-at-war-with-yourself/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [I could spend a whole day at a spa. I'd get a facial, a scalp rub, massages, then eat some grapes and be good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dule-hill/i-could-spend-a-whole-day-at-a-spa-i-d-get-a-facial-a-scalp-rub/) [Dule Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dule-hill/) ## 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 Day quotes > [On Sundays, that's my pig out day and I do the pizza and the beer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-silvstedt/on-sundays-that-s-my-pig-out-day-and-i-do-the-pizza-and-the-beer/) [Victoria Silvstedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-silvstedt/) > [I don't drink much anymore, but when I traveled with Frank Sinatra, God rest his soul, I used to drink like I could do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-rickles/i-don-t-drink-much-anymore-but-when-i-traveled-with-frank-sinatra-god/) [Don Rickles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-rickles/) > [I would borrow money all day long, if the cost of borrowing is less than the expected return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-schneider/i-would-borrow-money-all-day-long-if-the-cost-of-borrowing-is-less/) [Brad Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-schneider/) > [I had developed a relationship with one of the anti-abortion sidewalk counselors who stood in front of my facility. We talked regularly through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-johnson/i-had-developed-a-relationship-with-one-of-the-anti-abortion-sidewalk/) [Abby Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-johnson/) > [I loved the game so much that even though our playing field was muddy and we had many trees on it, I used to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-clemente/i-loved-the-game-so-much-that-even-though-our-playing-field-was-muddy/) [Roberto Clemente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-clemente/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [I want to make my music and be a happy woman, a good wife, a good mom and one day hopefully have a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leann-rimes/i-want-to-make-my-music-and-be-a-happy-woman-a-good-wife-a-good-mom/) [LeAnn Rimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leann-rimes/) > [Valentine's Day: Rubbing singles' noses in their lack of a mate and the noses of couples in their lack of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-mclaughlin/valentine-s-day-rubbing-singles-noses-in-their-lack-of-a-mate-and-the/) [Emma McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-mclaughlin/) > [One day I woke up and Juventus wanted me, another Manchester United and what I know is that there were approaches made. But an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raul-jimenez/one-day-i-woke-up-and-juventus-wanted-me-another-manchester-united/) [Raul Jimenez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raul-jimenez/) > [I think naturally I've been kind of a lead-by-doing guy. Just showing up to work every day. 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