--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is very little that is accidental…" description: "\"There is very little that is accidental in my work. I believe in serendipity for developments of plot, but the actual writing is arrived at by very har..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/robert-cormier-6436_backache_there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental_2748016.png" --- # There is very little that is accidental in my work. I… ![“There is very little that is accidental in my work. I believe in serendipity for developments of plot, but the actual writing is arrived at by very hard work. The joy of writing doesn't mean that you don't get the backaches and headaches and the days when it's not coming.” quote by Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/robert-cormier-6436_backache_there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental_2748016.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/robert-cormier-6436_backache_there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental_2748016.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/robert-cormier-6436_backache_there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental_2748016.png) > “There is very little that is accidental in my work. I believe in serendipity for developments of plot, but the actual writing is arrived at by very hard work. The joy of writing doesn't mean that you don't get the backaches and headaches and the days when it's not coming.” [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing combines chance discoveries with disciplined effort; joy coexists with struggle and setbacks. **In simple terms:** Writing needs both luck and hard work. Key Takeaway Balance serendipity and effort. Themes creativity discipline writing Mood reflective inspirational Type literary practical When to use this quote - author workshops - creative writing classes - personal projects Key Concepts serendipity craftsmanship Questions to Reflect On - How do you cultivate discipline in creative work? - When can you embrace unexpected ideas? A Different Perspective May underplay the role of talent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actual Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actual-writing-317808/) [Backache](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/backache/) [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Development](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/development/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Hard work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-work/) [Headache](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/headache/) [I believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-believe/) [I believe in](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-believe-in/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) [Joy Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy-writing-642884/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Plot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plot/) [Serendipity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serendipity/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Arrived](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-arrived-3078330/) [Writing Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-doesn/) ## Related quotes > [As much as there is joy in writing, there's always the little bit of terror to keep you on edge, on your toes. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/as-much-as-there-is-joy-in-writing-there-s-always-the-little-bit-of/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“87 % of youngsters have backache, and rest of 13 % have no computer..!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himmilicious/87-of-youngsters-have-backache-and-rest-of-13-have-no-computer/) [Himmilicious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/himmilicious/) > [Well, it so happens that I have had a spinal curvature since I was about thirteen and every once in a while that has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/well-it-so-happens-that-i-have-had-a-spinal-curvature-since-i-was/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I never have anything go wrong. Never have a backache. Never have a headache. Never have anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-murdock/i-never-have-anything-go-wrong-never-have-a-backache-never-have-a/) [David H. Murdock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-murdock/) > [Sometimes I think illness sits inside every woman, waiting for the right moment to bloom. I have known so many sick women all my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/sometimes-i-think-illness-sits-inside-every-woman-waiting-for-the/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [Love is a lot like a backache. It doesn't show up on x-rays, but you know it's there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-a-lot-like-a-backache-it-doesn-t-show-up-on-x-rays-but-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I've helped people get rid of headaches by placing my hand on their forehead, and backaches by placing my hand on their back. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-long/i-ve-helped-people-get-rid-of-headaches-by-placing-my-hand-on-their/) [Shelley Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-long/) > [Rolling my trousers down to expose the upper part of my buttocks and having a knife pressed up and down my spine by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-dimbleby/rolling-my-trousers-down-to-expose-the-upper-part-of-my-buttocks-and/) [Jonathan Dimbleby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-dimbleby/) > [The Alexander Technique helped a long-standing back problem and to get a good night's sleep after many years of tossing and turning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-newman/the-alexander-technique-helped-a-long-standing-back-problem-and-to/) [Paul Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-newman/) > [I very often used to get backaches due to the fact that I was wrong. Whenever you are wrong you have to fight or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/i-very-often-used-to-get-backaches-due-to-the-fact-that-i-was-wrong/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [Once you play with these scenes and you're outlining it, again and again, and telling each other the narrative, and telling it to people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brit-marling/once-you-play-with-these-scenes-and-you-re-outlining-it-again-and/) [Brit Marling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brit-marling/) > [The actual writing is what you live for. The rest is something you have to get through in order to arrive at the point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-actual-writing-is-what-you-live-for-the-rest-is-something-you/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The actual writing would be easy. All he had to do was to transfer to paper the interminable restless monologue that had been running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-actual-writing-would-be-easy-all-he-had-to-do-was-to-transfer-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [The actual writing time is a lot shorter than the thinking time. I don't do too many notes. I keep it mostly in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/the-actual-writing-time-is-a-lot-shorter-than-the-thinking-time-i-don/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) ## More by Robert Cormier > [“Eric Poole began with cats. Or, to be more exact, kittens.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/eric-poole-began-with-cats-or-to-be-more-exact-kittens/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [...pain reaches a certain point and does not get worse but remains in all its intensity and you can survive it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/pain-reaches-a-certain-point-and-does-not-get-worse-but-remains-in/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [It came to me that hell would not be fire and smoke after all but arctic, everything white and frigid. Hell would be not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/it-came-to-me-that-hell-would-not-be-fire-and-smoke-after-all-but/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I don't like to think in terms of writing ten or twelve pages a day. Usually I'm writing a scene, and it's always with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-don-t-like-to-think-in-terms-of-writing-ten-or-twelve-pages-a-day/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“Mr. Sinclair once asked the class to make a list of the ten most beautiful words in the English language, and the only word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/mr-sinclair-once-asked-the-class-to-make-a-list-of-the-ten-most/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [The earliest influence on me was the movies of the thirties when I was growing up. Those were stories. If you look at them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/the-earliest-influence-on-me-was-the-movies-of-the-thirties-when-i/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“He was afraid that his body would come loose, all his bones spilling out like a building collapsing, like a picket fence clattering apart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/he-was-afraid-that-his-body-would-come-loose-all-his-bones-spilling/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I have always had a sense that we are all pretty much alone in life, particularly in adolescence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-have-always-had-a-sense-that-we-are-all-pretty-much-alone-in-life/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I don't mean to be insolent. I'm truthful. I tell the truth and the truth sometimes hurts. For instance, you have bad breath, Lieutenant.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-don-t-mean-to-be-insolent-i-m-truthful-i-tell-the-truth-and-the/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [The beautiful part of writing is that you don't have to get it right the first time, unlike, say, a brain surgeon. You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/the-beautiful-part-of-writing-is-that-you-don-t-have-to-get-it-right/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [That's what Archie did - built a house nobody could anticipate a need for, except himself, a house that was invisible to everyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/that-s-what-archie-did-built-a-house-nobody-could-anticipate-a-need/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“They tell you to do your own thing but they don't mean it. They don't want you to do your thing, not unless it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/they-tell-you-to-do-your-own-thing-but-they-don-t-mean-it-they-don-t/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I've had aunts and uncles who not only haven't read my books but could hardly believe that I was a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-ve-had-aunts-and-uncles-who-not-only-haven-t-read-my-books-but/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [You bring up your children to be self-reliant and independent and they double-cross you and become self-reliant and independent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/you-bring-up-your-children-to-be-self-reliant-and-independent-and/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“We just might make a quarterback out of you yet, you skinny little son of a bitch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/we-just-might-make-a-quarterback-out-of-you-yet-you-skinny-little-son/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) [Explore all 99 Robert Cormier quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) ## More Backache quotes > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I very often used to get backaches due to the fact that I was wrong. Whenever you are wrong you have to fight or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/i-very-often-used-to-get-backaches-due-to-the-fact-that-i-was-wrong/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [The Alexander Technique helped a long-standing back problem and to get a good night's sleep after many years of tossing and turning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-newman/the-alexander-technique-helped-a-long-standing-back-problem-and-to/) [Paul Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-newman/) > [Rolling my trousers down to expose the upper part of my buttocks and having a knife pressed up and down my spine by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-dimbleby/rolling-my-trousers-down-to-expose-the-upper-part-of-my-buttocks-and/) [Jonathan Dimbleby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-dimbleby/) > [Love is a lot like a backache. It doesn't show up on x-rays, but you know it's there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-a-lot-like-a-backache-it-doesn-t-show-up-on-x-rays-but-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes I think illness sits inside every woman, waiting for the right moment to bloom. I have known so many sick women all my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/sometimes-i-think-illness-sits-inside-every-woman-waiting-for-the/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [I never have anything go wrong. Never have a backache. Never have a headache. Never have anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-murdock/i-never-have-anything-go-wrong-never-have-a-backache-never-have-a/) [David H. Murdock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-murdock/) > [Well, it so happens that I have had a spinal curvature since I was about thirteen and every once in a while that has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/well-it-so-happens-that-i-have-had-a-spinal-curvature-since-i-was/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“87 % of youngsters have backache, and rest of 13 % have no computer..!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himmilicious/87-of-youngsters-have-backache-and-rest-of-13-have-no-computer/) [Himmilicious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/himmilicious/) > [I've helped people get rid of headaches by placing my hand on their forehead, and backaches by placing my hand on their back. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-long/i-ve-helped-people-get-rid-of-headaches-by-placing-my-hand-on-their/) [Shelley Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-long/) [Browse all 11 Backache quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/backache/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is very little that is accidental in my work. I believe in serendipity for developments of plot, but the actual writing is arrived at by very hard work. The joy of writing doesn't mean that you don't get the backaches and headaches and the days when it's not coming.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Cormier" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental-in-my-work-i-believe-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Backache" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental-in-my-work-i-believe-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/robert-cormier-6436_backache_there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental_2748016.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/robert-cormier-6436_backache_there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental_2748016.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/robert-cormier-6436_backache_there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental_2748016.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is very little that is accidental in my work. I believe in serendipity for developments of plot, but…” — Robert Cormier", "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": "Robert Cormier", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There is very little that is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental-in-my-work-i-believe-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/there-is-very-little-that-is-accidental-in-my-work-i-believe-in/#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 } } ] } ```