--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the best fiction, the language itself…" description: "\"In the best fiction, the language itself can become almost invisible.\" — Robert Morgan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb6/robert-morgan-9709_fiction_in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself_2949537.jpg" --- # In the best fiction, the language itself can become almost… ![“In the best fiction, the language itself can become almost invisible.” quote by Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb6/robert-morgan-9709_fiction_in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself_2949537.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb6/robert-morgan-9709_fiction_in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself_2949537.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb6/robert-morgan-9709_fiction_in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself_2949537.jpg) > “In the best fiction, the language itself can become almost invisible.” [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He notes that in great fiction, language can become seamless, serving the story without distraction. **In simple terms:** In great fiction, language can become almost invisible. Key Takeaway Value subtle, that language. Themes literature craft invisibility Mood analytical thoughtful Type critical educational When to use this quote - writing workshops - editing - reading groups Key Concepts narrative technique stylistic subtlety Questions to Reflect On - How does invisible language affect immersion? - When does language become too noticeable? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on style can obscure meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) ## Related quotes > [Symbols are the language of something invisible spoken in the visible world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrud-von-le-fort/symbols-are-the-language-of-something-invisible-spoken-in-the-visible/) [Gertrud von Le Fort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrud-von-le-fort/) > [I think that is one of the first things that I got clear in my mind when I began to play around with fiction,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/i-think-that-is-one-of-the-first-things-that-i-got-clear-in-my-mind/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [“The conventional use of words and of narrative structure is deliberately subverted in decadent fiction; language deviates from the established norms in an attempt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asti-hustvedt/the-conventional-use-of-words-and-of-narrative-structure-is/) [Asti Hustvedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asti-hustvedt/) > [“I explained that most great works of the imagination were meant to make you feel like a stranger in your own home. The best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/i-explained-that-most-great-works-of-the-imagination-were-meant-to/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [We're so much more likely to feel sympathy for an animal than another person; thus, the best fiction uses animals to define truly humane…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-re-so-much-more-likely-to-feel-sympathy-for-an-animal-than-another/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [The best fiction is far more true than any journalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/the-best-fiction-is-far-more-true-than-any-journalism/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [The best fiction stays with you and changes you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/the-best-fiction-stays-with-you-and-changes-you/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [“I explained that most great works of the imagination were meant to make you feel like a stranger in your own home. The best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/i-explained-that-most-great-works-of-the-imagination-were-meant-to-2/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Most great works of the imagination were meant to make you feel like a stranger in your own home. The best fiction always forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/most-great-works-of-the-imagination-were-meant-to-make-you-feel-like/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“The best fiction is far more true than any kind of journalism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-best-fiction-is-far-more-true-than-any-kind-of-journalism/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“What the best fiction does is make powerful affirmations of familiar truths...the trivial fiction which times filters out is that which either makes wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/what-the-best-fiction-does-is-make-powerful-affirmations-of-familiar/) [John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/) > [The best fiction is geared towards conflict. We learn most about our characters through tension, when they are put up against insurmountable obstacles. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/the-best-fiction-is-geared-towards-conflict-we-learn-most-about-our/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Biographies never feel as real as the best fiction. There is such a discontinuity between the narrative and the material it comes from, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-malcolm/biographies-never-feel-as-real-as-the-best-fiction-there-is-such-a/) [Janet Malcolm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-malcolm/) > [“The best fiction is often how we interpret our own lives and what we see as our common due. It is created usually as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-edwards/the-best-fiction-is-often-how-we-interpret-our-own-lives-and-what-we/) [Anne Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-edwards/) > [“The best fiction is true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kinky-friedman/the-best-fiction-is-true/) [Kinky Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kinky-friedman/) ## More by Robert Morgan > [I think that it's more likely that in my 60s and 70s I will be writing poetry rather than fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/i-think-that-it-s-more-likely-that-in-my-60s-and-70s-i-will-be/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [With prose you can incorporate more details, develop scenes, sustain the tension in a special way. Prose has its own speed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/with-prose-you-can-incorporate-more-details-develop-scenes-sustain/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [The great watershed of modern poetry is French, more than English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/the-great-watershed-of-modern-poetry-is-french-more-than-english/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [When you have an idea for a story, you want those characters to reach as many people as you can. I think you normally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/when-you-have-an-idea-for-a-story-you-want-those-characters-to-reach/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [What language shall I borrow To thank Thee, dearest Friend, For this, Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end? O make me Thine forever,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/what-language-shall-i-borrow-to-thank-thee-dearest-friend-for-this/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [I love to create interesting textures with language. You can do it as long as it seems like a discovery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/i-love-to-create-interesting-textures-with-language-you-can-do-it-as/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [The Black Mountain poet I like most is the early Creeley. Those early poems seem very lyrical and very traditional, with a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/the-black-mountain-poet-i-like-most-is-the-early-creeley-those-early/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [Philip Larkin has a tough honesty and sense of humor that I find irresistible, as a contemporary poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/philip-larkin-has-a-tough-honesty-and-sense-of-humor-that-i-find/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [The decision to write in prose instead of poetry is made more by the readers than by writers. 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It would make sense that the poetry would reflect some of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/our-most-famous-writers-are-faulkner-and-eudora-welty-and-flannery-o/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [Poetry, almost by definition, calls attention to its language and form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/poetry-almost-by-definition-calls-attention-to-its-language-and-form/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [Fiction is about intimacy with characters, events, places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/fiction-is-about-intimacy-with-characters-events-places/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) > [The young people have MTV and rock and roll. Why would they go to read poetry? Poetry belongs to the Stone Age. It awakens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/the-young-people-have-mtv-and-rock-and-roll-why-would-they-go-to-read/) [Robert Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) [Explore all 70 Robert Morgan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/) ## More Fiction quotes > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan > [The thing about science fiction is that it's totally wide open. But it's wide open in a conditional way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/the-thing-about-science-fiction-is-that-it-s-totally-wide-open-but-it/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) > [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/) Edward Einhorn > [Fiction is a way of exploring possibilities present but undreamt of in the living of a single life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/fiction-is-a-way-of-exploring-possibilities-present-but-undreamt-of/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [I love writing fiction and can do it anywhere - I once even missed a flight because I was so engrossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/i-love-writing-fiction-and-can-do-it-anywhere-i-once-even-missed-a/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) > [“The fiction will seek the real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coheed-and-cambria/the-fiction-will-seek-the-real/) Coheed and Cambria > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. 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I could feel his breath on my face our lips were about to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-eglinger/his-hands-on-my-waist-he-gently-pulled-me-n-embrace-i-could-feel-his/) [Nicole Eglinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-eglinger/) > [In early drafts, one of the trickiest things for me to do was to realize that the techniques and devices that make readable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/in-early-drafts-one-of-the-trickiest-things-for-me-to-do-was-to/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [I don't think it's always a sign of respect for persons (inside or outside of fiction) to pretend to be able to represent, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lerner/i-don-t-think-it-s-always-a-sign-of-respect-for-persons-inside-or/) [Ben Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lerner/) > [Metafiction says something. It has to do with taking a large fiction itself and writing within it; that kind of self-reflecting writing that emerges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coover/metafiction-says-something-it-has-to-do-with-taking-a-large-fiction/) [Robert Coover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-coover/) [Browse all 7,410 Fiction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In the best fiction, the language itself can become almost invisible.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Morgan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself-can-become-almost-invisible/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fiction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself-can-become-almost-invisible/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb6/robert-morgan-9709_fiction_in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself_2949537.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb6/robert-morgan-9709_fiction_in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself_2949537.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb6/robert-morgan-9709_fiction_in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself_2949537.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In the best fiction, the language itself can become almost invisible.” — Robert Morgan", "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 Morgan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-morgan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In the best fiction, the language...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself-can-become-almost-invisible/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-morgan/in-the-best-fiction-the-language-itself-can-become-almost-invisible/#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 } } ] } ```