--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I write about life as it exists within…" description: "\"I write about life as it exists within houses and on the streets. And there's nothing, hopefully, in any of my characterizations or in any of my plotti..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/richard-grossman-30272_characterization_i-write-about-life-as-it-exists-within-h_780583.jpg" --- # I write about life as it exists within houses and on the… ![“I write about life as it exists within houses and on the streets. And there's nothing, hopefully, in any of my characterizations or in any of my plottings or in any of my valuations that doesn't ring true to life. I'm a novelist. I'm not a theoretician.” quote by Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/richard-grossman-30272_characterization_i-write-about-life-as-it-exists-within-h_780583.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/richard-grossman-30272_characterization_i-write-about-life-as-it-exists-within-h_780583.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/richard-grossman-30272_characterization_i-write-about-life-as-it-exists-within-h_780583.jpg) > “I write about life as it exists within houses and on the streets. And there's nothing, hopefully, in any of my characterizations or in any of my plottings or in any of my valuations that doesn't ring true to life. I'm a novelist. I'm not a theoretician.” [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author emphasizes grounding fiction in everyday reality, avoiding theory in favor of authentic storytelling. **In simple terms:** Write about real life, not abstract ideas. Key Takeaway Focus on lived experience. Themes authenticity realism storytelling Mood reflective introspective Type literary personal When to use this quote - daily life - urban settings - personal narratives Key Concepts novel writing character observation Questions to Reflect On - How does realism shape your characters? - What truths emerge from everyday scenes? A Different Perspective May overlook deeper philosophical insights. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Characterization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characterization/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Novelist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelist/) [Novelists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelists/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [True life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-life/) [Valuation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/valuation/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“What's this "rough life of a novelist" bullshit? You sound like an idiot. You're a writer. At least give yourself better lines.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maki-murakami/what-s-this-rough-life-of-a-novelist-bullshit-you-sound-like-an-idiot/) [Maki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maki-murakami/) > [“The trouble with life (the novelist will feel) is its amorphousness, its ridiculous fluidity. Look at it: thinly plotted, largely themeless, sentimental and ineluctably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/the-trouble-with-life-the-novelist-will-feel-is-its-amorphousness-its/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“I am certain that a novelist is someone who attributes a different reality-value to the characters and events of his story than to those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-robbe-grillet/i-am-certain-that-a-novelist-is-someone-who-attributes-a-different/) [Alain Robbe-Grillet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-robbe-grillet/) > [The pull of history has been a strong theme in my life as a novelist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-shreve/the-pull-of-history-has-been-a-strong-theme-in-my-life-as-a-novelist/) [Anita Shreve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-shreve/) > [The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-watterson/the-surest-sign-that-intelligent-life-exists-elsewhere-in-the/) [Bill Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-watterson/) > [Life exists in the universe only because the carbon atom possesses certain exceptional properties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-jeans/life-exists-in-the-universe-only-because-the-carbon-atom-possesses/) [James Jeans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-jeans/) > [Let us not take for granted that life exists more fully in what is commonly thought big than in what is commonly thought small.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/let-us-not-take-for-granted-that-life-exists-more-fully-in-what-is/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“Life exists to make us stronger than death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/life-exists-to-make-us-stronger-than-death/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [Life exists throughout the cosmos and is a consequence of matter in the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-stamets/life-exists-throughout-the-cosmos-and-is-a-consequence-of-matter-in/) [Paul Stamets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-stamets/) > [“the strangest life exists in the cracks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-ledgard/the-strangest-life-exists-in-the-cracks/) [J. M. Ledgard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-ledgard/) > [“I am eternal life that exists alone on its own. I am space full of energy vibrating with limitless possibilities that turn into physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilchi-lee/i-am-eternal-life-that-exists-alone-on-its-own-i-am-space-full-of/) [Ilchi Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilchi-lee/) > [Without deep reflection one knows from daily life that one exists for other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/without-deep-reflection-one-knows-from-daily-life-that-one-exists-for/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The surest sign that intelligent life exists somewhere else in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-siddiq-prince/the-surest-sign-that-intelligent-life-exists-somewhere-else-in-the/) [Young Siddiq Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-siddiq-prince/) > [This is suicidal... our home is the biosphere. That's a very thin layer of air, water and land where all life exists. It's fixed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/this-is-suicidal-our-home-is-the-biosphere-that-s-a-very-thin-layer/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [“Our true reality is not a limited phenomenon, existing only between birth and death. It is eternal life that exists alone, self-existent and self-sufficient,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilchi-lee/our-true-reality-is-not-a-limited-phenomenon-existing-only-between/) [Ilchi Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilchi-lee/) ## More by Richard Grossman > [I have a strong spiritual commitment, and I try to express that in my work. Salvation cannot be worked out in human terms. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-have-a-strong-spiritual-commitment-and-i-try-to-express-that-in-my/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [The problem with American democracy is the American corporation, which is a slave holder construct, pure and simple. It's totally invasive, and people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/the-problem-with-american-democracy-is-the-american-corporation-which/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [When you're reading my book, you're not in a four dimensional continuum, you're in my continuum, the Grossman continuum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/when-you-re-reading-my-book-you-re-not-in-a-four-dimensional/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I've been in the art world for many years. But the sad fact is that most writers are visually prepubescent. Generally speaking, the literary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-ve-been-in-the-art-world-for-many-years-but-the-sad-fact-is-that/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I love grand scale. One of the things that everybody mentions is that my novels are beautiful objects in the sense that the elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-love-grand-scale-one-of-the-things-that-everybody-mentions-is-that/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I'm truly an outsider in the poetry world. When I started writing, I was trying to move my poems away from modernist lines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-m-truly-an-outsider-in-the-poetry-world-when-i-started-writing-i/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [My books are not about different components that fit together like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle, it's about creating the space around the components,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/my-books-are-not-about-different-components-that-fit-together-like/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I'm a staunch civil libertarian; I really believe that the individual is more important than any societal value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-m-a-staunch-civil-libertarian-i-really-believe-that-the-individual/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I think of myself as a jazz player, and my music as a natural extension of the jazz tradition. What I'm doing is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-think-of-myself-as-a-jazz-player-and-my-music-as-a-natural/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I think that life is incredibly violent and that individual people are incredibly violent on one level or another. I don't try to change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-think-that-life-is-incredibly-violent-and-that-individual-people/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [Salvation is an individual relationship with God. I've always considered myself to be a devotional poet, and I consider myself to be a devotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/salvation-is-an-individual-relationship-with-god-i-ve-always/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [If there is anything unique about my writing it is the way that I combine poetry and prose, not just on the level of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/if-there-is-anything-unique-about-my-writing-it-is-the-way-that-i/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I don't think that brutality and idealism are mutually exclusive. It's a common denominator in my work - rabid idealism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-don-t-think-that-brutality-and-idealism-are-mutually-exclusive-it-s/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I'm a centrist. There is a lot going on socially that I don't like, but I feel that in a democracy you work from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-m-a-centrist-there-is-a-lot-going-on-socially-that-i-don-t-like-but/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) > [I think not in two or three dimensional terms but in five dimensional terms when I consider a novel. There's height, width, and depth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grossman/i-think-not-in-two-or-three-dimensional-terms-but-in-five-dimensional/) [Richard Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) [Explore all 17 Richard Grossman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grossman/) ## More Characterization quotes > [ Steve \[King\] has been incredibly supportive. He's also really good about getting back to me when I have questions about plot or characterization. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-furth/steve-king-has-been-incredibly-supportive-he-s-also-really-good-about/) [Robin Furth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-furth/) > [Sometimes after a compliment about my characterization skills, I'm asked if I model my characters on real people. Emphatically, no. And sort of, yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-weeks/sometimes-after-a-compliment-about-my-characterization-skills-i-m/) [Brent Weeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-weeks/) > [You can use the fun of the genre, but I also really wanted to come at it from the point of view of some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-hodges/you-can-use-the-fun-of-the-genre-but-i-also-really-wanted-to-come-at/) [Adrian Hodges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-hodges/) > [Characterization is not divorced from plot, not a coat of paint you slap on after the structure of events is already built. Rather characterization…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-kress/characterization-is-not-divorced-from-plot-not-a-coat-of-paint-you/) [Nancy Kress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-kress/) > [“I do not know the man I should avoid So soon as that spare Cassius. He reads much, He is a great observer, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-do-not-know-the-man-i-should-avoid-so-soon-as-that-spare-cassius-he/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Characterization requires self-knowledge, insight into human nature . . . it is more than impersonation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-surmelian/characterization-requires-self-knowledge-insight-into-human-nature-it/) Leon Surmelian > [I think with any characterization there's a point where you empathize, no matter how much of a deviance his or her actions may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/i-think-with-any-characterization-there-s-a-point-where-you-empathize/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [Now, learning how to make a movie is something you can figure out in about an afternoon. The physics of it, the marks, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/now-learning-how-to-make-a-movie-is-something-you-can-figure-out-in/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [Characterization requires a constant back-and-forth between the exterior events of the story and the inner life of the character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-corbett/characterization-requires-a-constant-back-and-forth-between-the/) [David Corbett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-corbett/) > [There are technical tricks that may help you create more effective characters. My approach to characterization is not at all technical. I can't really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/there-are-technical-tricks-that-may-help-you-create-more-effective/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [I think my wife would take objection to any characterization of me as perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-blair-henry/i-think-my-wife-would-take-objection-to-any-characterization-of-me-as/) [Peter Blair Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-blair-henry/) > [Because the world of this film begins and ends in the imagination of Tim Burton, you're not seeing a movie that's been shot on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-hathaway/because-the-world-of-this-film-begins-and-ends-in-the-imagination-of/) [Anne Hathaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-hathaway/) > [“the characterization of actions allegedly prior to any narrative form being imposed upon them will always turn out to be the presentation of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-macintyre/the-characterization-of-actions-allegedly-prior-to-any-narrative-form/) [Alasdair MacIntyre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-macintyre/) > [He defined me first, as parents do. Those early characterizations can become the shimmering self-image we embrace or the limited, stifling perception we rail…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-corrigan/he-defined-me-first-as-parents-do-those-early-characterizations-can/) [Kelly Corrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-corrigan/) > [I get letters from adults saying that they love the books because they are more in-depth with characterization than the comics. The luxury of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-yee/i-get-letters-from-adults-saying-that-they-love-the-books-because/) [Lisa Yee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-yee/) [Browse all 117 Characterization quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characterization/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I write about life as it exists within houses and on the streets. 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