--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I said that the greatest female writers…" description: "\"“I said that the greatest female writers, with almost no exceptions, have been childless. A fact. And I have said that women generally, by virtue of th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8d/robert-galbraith-3411_books_i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers_696469.jpg" --- # I said that the greatest female writers, with almost no… ![“I said that the greatest female writers, with almost no exceptions, have been childless. A fact. And I have said that women generally, by virtue of their desire to mother, are incapable of the necessarily single-minded focus anyone must bring to the creation of literature, true literature. I don’t…” quote by Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8d/robert-galbraith-3411_books_i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers_696469.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8d/robert-galbraith-3411_books_i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers_696469.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8d/robert-galbraith-3411_books_i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers_696469.jpg) > ““I said that the greatest female writers, with almost no exceptions, have been childless. A fact. And I have said that women generally, by virtue of their desire to mother, are incapable of the necessarily single-minded focus anyone must bring to the creation of literature, true literature. I don’t retract a word. That is a fact.”” [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker claims that motherhood distracts women from achieving the singular focus needed for great literature, asserting childlessness as a common trait among top female authors. **In simple terms:** Motherhood supposedly hinders literary focus, so great women writers are often childless. Key Takeaway Consider how personal responsibilities affect creative work. Themes gender creativity parenthood literature Mood critical reflective Type analytical controversial When to use this quote - academic writing - novel drafting - career planning - balancing family and art - literary criticism Key Concepts focus distraction gender bias Questions to Reflect On - Do personal duties always limit artistic focus? - How can institutions support creative work for parents? A Different Perspective The claim overlooks many successful mother authors and ignores societal constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Female writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/female-writers/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“I was there to get a Ph.D. in English literature. That's not true. I was there to read a lot of books and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marisa-de-los-santos/i-was-there-to-get-a-ph-d-in-english-literature-that-s-not-true-i-was/) [Marisa de los Santos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marisa-de-los-santos/) > [In a way, literature is true than life,' he said to himself. 'On paper, you say exactly and completely what you feel. How easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-a-way-literature-is-true-than-life-he-said-to-himself-on-paper-you/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Caribbean literature only has to be true to itself. It doesn't need colonialism or imperialism. It's always been vibrant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-james/caribbean-literature-only-has-to-be-true-to-itself-it-doesn-t-need/) [Marlon James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-james/) > [I think fantasy literature is the one true literature of hope and imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/i-think-fantasy-literature-is-the-one-true-literature-of-hope-and/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [I'm a big believer that sci-fi lives in literature, that the true sci-fi population is out there reading a gazillion authors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-hammer/i-m-a-big-believer-that-sci-fi-lives-in-literature-that-the-true-sci/) [Bonnie Hammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-hammer/) > [It's in literature that true life can be found. It's under the mask of fiction that you can tell the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gao-xingjian/it-s-in-literature-that-true-life-can-be-found-it-s-under-the-mask-of/) [Gao Xingjian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gao-xingjian/) > [“She said that her grandmother was skeptical of many things in this world and of none more than men. She said that in every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/she-said-that-her-grandmother-was-skeptical-of-many-things-in-this/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [After all," as a pretty girl once said to me, "women are a sex by themselves, so to speak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-beerbohm/after-all-as-a-pretty-girl-once-said-to-me-women-are-a-sex-by/) [Max Beerbohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-beerbohm/) > [“...A great night, yes sir, exclaimed one of them licking his chops and another confirmed, Those seven were worth fourteen, it's true that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/a-great-night-yes-sir-exclaimed-one-of-them-licking-his-chops-and/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [I was a fan of Ronda. I still am a fan of Ronda. You know, what she's done for women's sports. Like I said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-morgan/i-was-a-fan-of-ronda-i-still-am-a-fan-of-ronda-you-know-what-she-s/) [Liv Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-morgan/) > [In the 1980s, I was working to reform the schools in Arkansas. Donald Trump was borrowing $14 million from his father to start his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/in-the-1980s-i-was-working-to-reform-the-schools-in-arkansas-donald/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [“Why are you dressed as a man?" Neeva said. "Why do you act like..." She paused. "Why do you act like... like one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-stevens/why-are-you-dressed-as-a-man-neeva-said-why-do-you-act-like-she/) [Taylor Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-stevens/) > [Who said women don't have Balls? They just don't hide it in their pants, they display them proudly on their chest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/who-said-women-don-t-have-balls-they-just-don-t-hide-it-in-their/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [“The men were smashing windows and aiming their weapons through them. The driver had opened the door and was shouting for the women and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-zlotchew/the-men-were-smashing-windows-and-aiming-their-weapons-through-them/) [Clark Zlotchew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-zlotchew/) > [“You’ve been talking about me in therapy?”“In therapy, in my sleep, in AA, in chat rooms, to strangers,” I said. “Women like you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lister/you-ve-been-talking-about-me-in-therapy-in-therapy-in-my-sleep-in-aa/) [Michael Lister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lister/) ## More by Robert Galbraith > [“Instinct was clawing at him like an importuning dog.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/instinct-was-clawing-at-him-like-an-importuning-dog/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“Hard to remember these days that there was a time you had to wait for the ink and paper reviews to see your work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/hard-to-remember-these-days-that-there-was-a-time-you-had-to-wait-for/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“it was weird. Would you believe it if some supermodel called you up and told you she was your sister?’ Strike thought of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/it-was-weird-would-you-believe-it-if-some-supermodel-called-you-up/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“Strike was used to playing archaeologist among the ruins of people’s traumatised memories;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/strike-was-used-to-playing-archaeologist-among-the-ruins-of-people-s/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“The model? Whoa.' But Spanner's interest in human beings, even when dead or famous, was still secondary to his fondness for rare comics, technological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/the-model-whoa-but-spanner-s-interest-in-human-beings-even-when-dead/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“The whole world's writing novels, but nobody's reading them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/the-whole-world-s-writing-novels-but-nobody-s-reading-them/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“Looking like a rake with two plastic tangerines tied to it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/looking-like-a-rake-with-two-plastic-tangerines-tied-to-it/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“so he sat smoking on the sofa with the lower trouser leg hanging empty towards the floor, lost in thought.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/so-he-sat-smoking-on-the-sofa-with-the-lower-trouser-leg-hanging/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“People liked to talk; there were very few exceptions, the question was how you made them do it. Some were amenable to alcohol; others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/people-liked-to-talk-there-were-very-few-exceptions-the-question-was/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“Can I ask who you are, sir?" "Yeah, I expect so," said Strike, walking past him and ringing the doorbell. Anstis's dinner invitation notwithstanding,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/can-i-ask-who-you-are-sir-yeah-i-expect-so-said-strike-walking-past/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“With the invention of the internet, any subliterate cretin can be Michiko Kakutani.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/with-the-invention-of-the-internet-any-subliterate-cretin-can-be/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“She is a woman of an excellent assurance, and an extraordinary happy wit, and tongue. Ben Jonson, Epicoene, or The Silent Woman”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/she-is-a-woman-of-an-excellent-assurance-and-an-extraordinary-happy/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“Forever encased in the amber of a writer's prose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/forever-encased-in-the-amber-of-a-writer-s-prose/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“...writers are a savage breed, Mr. Strike. If you want life-long friendship and selfless camaraderie, join the army and learn to kill. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/writers-are-a-savage-breed-mr-strike-if-you-want-life-long-friendship/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) > [“mythomania, her need to provoke, to taunt, to test.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/mythomania-her-need-to-provoke-to-taunt-to-test/) [Robert Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) [Explore all 130 Robert Galbraith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I said that the greatest female writers, with almost no exceptions, have been childless. A fact. And I have said that women generally, by virtue of their desire to mother, are incapable of the necessarily single-minded focus anyone must bring to the creation of literature, true literature. I don’t retract a word. That is a fact.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Galbraith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers-with-almost-no-exceptions/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers-with-almost-no-exceptions/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8d/robert-galbraith-3411_books_i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers_696469.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8d/robert-galbraith-3411_books_i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers_696469.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8d/robert-galbraith-3411_books_i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers_696469.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I said that the greatest female writers, with almost no exceptions, have been childless. A fact. And I have…” — Robert Galbraith", "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 Galbraith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-galbraith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I said that the greatest female...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers-with-almost-no-exceptions/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-galbraith/i-said-that-the-greatest-female-writers-with-almost-no-exceptions/#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 } } ] } ```