--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some writers keep a tighter rein on that…" description: "\"Some writers keep a tighter rein on that than others. For short story collections I'm definitely in the loose-rein camp.\" — Roy Kesey" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/roy-kesey-30889_camps_some-writers-keep-a-tighter-rein-on-that_189136.jpg" --- # Some writers keep a tighter rein on that than others. For… ![“Some writers keep a tighter rein on that than others. For short story collections I'm definitely in the loose-rein camp.” quote by Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/roy-kesey-30889_camps_some-writers-keep-a-tighter-rein-on-that_189136.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/roy-kesey-30889_camps_some-writers-keep-a-tighter-rein-on-that_189136.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96a/roy-kesey-30889_camps_some-writers-keep-a-tighter-rein-on-that_189136.jpg) > “Some writers keep a tighter rein on that than others. For short story collections I'm definitely in the loose-rein camp.” [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He prefers a loose editorial approach for short story collections, allowing more freedom. **In simple terms:** Prefers loose editing for story collections. Key Takeaway Embrace creative freedom. Themes writing editing creativity Mood analytical thoughtful Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - short story writing - publishing process - creative workshops Key Concepts literary theory authorial voice Questions to Reflect On - How do you maintain quality with loose editing? - When is tighter control needed? A Different Perspective Too much looseness may reduce coherence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Short story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-story/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [You know, it's sort of common wisdom among New York publishers that short story collections don't make money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-harbach/you-know-it-s-sort-of-common-wisdom-among-new-york-publishers-that/) [Chad Harbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chad-harbach/) > [I'm really into short-story collections and essays; they're my jam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-robinson/i-m-really-into-short-story-collections-and-essays-they-re-my-jam/) [Phoebe Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-robinson/) > [My favorite books to give or get are short story collections. And always paperbacks because they are easy to carry as you travel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/my-favorite-books-to-give-or-get-are-short-story-collections-and/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [For a long time, since story collections look almost precisely like novels, I presumed that they were meant to be enjoyed in the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-dolnick/for-a-long-time-since-story-collections-look-almost-precisely-like/) [Ben Dolnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-dolnick/) > [I read individual stories a lot in magazines and other places, too, but I really think there's something to be said for reading story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-evenson/i-read-individual-stories-a-lot-in-magazines-and-other-places-too-but/) [Brian Evenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-evenson/) > [We know story collections end when they end, as well - the pages serving as a countdown - but nevertheless the standard story anthology…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/we-know-story-collections-end-when-they-end-as-well-the-pages-serving/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [I did think reviewers were supposed to be polite about story collections - collections are rather delicate creatures in the literary environment - but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorrie-moore/i-did-think-reviewers-were-supposed-to-be-polite-about-story/) [Lorrie Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorrie-moore/) > [Good short-story collections, like good record albums, are almost always hit-and-miss affairs - successful if they include three or four great tracks, wildly successful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/good-short-story-collections-like-good-record-albums-are-almost/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“If you surrender your free will, then someone is bound to take the reins and lead you to a place that is not of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/if-you-surrender-your-free-will-then-someone-is-bound-to-take-the/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [Human rights' are a fine thing, but how can we make ourselves sure that our rights do not expand at the expense of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/human-rights-are-a-fine-thing-but-how-can-we-make-ourselves-sure-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I'll say this one more time. I will be gentle. I will be slow. But you don't have the reins.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-w-hill/i-ll-say-this-one-more-time-i-will-be-gentle-i-will-be-slow-but-you/) [Joey W. Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-w-hill/) > [I doubt there's any government in the world that guides itself primarily by strategy or conceptual documents or worldview. Anybody who has the reins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-doubt-there-s-any-government-in-the-world-that-guides-itself/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [I want to go back to the format that radio started with rock n' roll, with country artists and rhythm and blues with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfman-jack/i-want-to-go-back-to-the-format-that-radio-started-with-rock-n-roll/) [Wolfman Jack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfman-jack/) > [Gaia's main problems are not industrialization, ozone depletion, overpopulation, or resource depletion. Gaia's main problem is the lack of mutual understanding and mutual agreement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/gaia-s-main-problems-are-not-industrialization-ozone-depletion/) [Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/) > [“Don’t blame the horse when you’ve got the reins.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-bolton/don-t-blame-the-horse-when-you-ve-got-the-reins/) [Martha Bolton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-bolton/) ## More by Roy Kesey > [What I like about organizing things that way is that each story gets nearly full reign over its own space, but all of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/what-i-like-about-organizing-things-that-way-is-that-each-story-gets/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [“Reynaldo says that the pacazo is nothing but an uncommonly large iguana. I prefer to believe that it is some imp of history, coincidence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/reynaldo-says-that-the-pacazo-is-nothing-but-an-uncommonly-large/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [The biggest experiment there - and I was convinced for a really long time that it was going to fail horribly - had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/the-biggest-experiment-there-and-i-was-convinced-for-a-really-long/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [Very often, or perhaps more often, and even in very good collections - even in some of the best collections ever written, I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/very-often-or-perhaps-more-often-and-even-in-very-good-collections/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [For whatever reason, thus far it's been important to me not to write that kind of collection. Which means that I've spent months playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/for-whatever-reason-thus-far-it-s-been-important-to-me-not-to-write/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [“The birds are catching fire again. I keep shouting up to them, Fly lower, fly lower! They never listen. They’re dropping all around us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/the-birds-are-catching-fire-again-i-keep-shouting-up-to-them-fly/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [If you're paying attention to human interactions - to the gap between who we are and who we think we are, or the gap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/if-you-re-paying-attention-to-human-interactions-to-the-gap-between/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [The most basic organizing principle was pretty straightforward, and is frankly pretty common: the shorter of what are by my lights the two most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/the-most-basic-organizing-principle-was-pretty-straightforward-and-is/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [I start every first draft with voice rather than theme or image or even character as such, so it isn't like I'm ever rubbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/i-start-every-first-draft-with-voice-rather-than-theme-or-image-or/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [We should absolutely be concerned with ethical questions - to exactly the same degree as everyone else. It's never my intention to sneak any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/we-should-absolutely-be-concerned-with-ethical-questions-to-exactly/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [You know how some people say that they can only read one story a day from this or that collection? If that's simply the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/you-know-how-some-people-say-that-they-can-only-read-one-story-a-day/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [Realism's anxieties are not my anxieties, but I think I've had its tools close at hand all along. It may be that I'm reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/realism-s-anxieties-are-not-my-anxieties-but-i-think-i-ve-had-its/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [When you spend so much time trying to father well, and failing, and trying again, and hopefully failing better, it's going to seep into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/when-you-spend-so-much-time-trying-to-father-well-and-failing-and/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [I didn't intentionally emplace the raw material needed for political/allegorical readings into any of the first drafts, but sooner or later I saw it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/i-didn-t-intentionally-emplace-the-raw-material-needed-for-political/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) > [“So far he’s never been bit, but there was once, deer hunt, climbing a bluff and he’d slipped, rolled down a shale slide into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-kesey/so-far-he-s-never-been-bit-but-there-was-once-deer-hunt-climbing-a/) [Roy Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) [Explore all 17 Roy Kesey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-kesey/) ## More Camps quotes > [Humanitarian goods and people must flow in both directions. 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I even went to camp…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-silverman/in-high-school-i-was-performing-forensics-you-take-a-section-of-a/) [Allison Silverman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-silverman/) > [As far as I know, the question of whether and how it could be strategically or morally justified was never the subject of open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-far-as-i-know-the-question-of-whether-and-how-it-could-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's often frustrating when you're a war reporter and you're covering these places that far away. You're frustrated by making stories that people can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-rowley/it-s-often-frustrating-when-you-re-a-war-reporter-and-you-re-covering/) [Rick Rowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-rowley/) > [A man in a cave or in a camp, a nomad, will die with no more estate than the wolf or the horse leaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-in-a-cave-or-in-a-camp-a-nomad-will-die-with-no-more-estate/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The troops were occasionally occupied in pursuing scattered bands going north or south, and on three occasions the large camp of Sitting Bull ventured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-a-miles/the-troops-were-occasionally-occupied-in-pursuing-scattered-bands/) [Nelson A. Miles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-a-miles/) > [I try to leave my work at the door when I leave the set. It's almost like summer camp. You go in hard, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-dano/i-try-to-leave-my-work-at-the-door-when-i-leave-the-set-it-s-almost/) [Paul Dano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-dano/) > [When I was seventeen, I worked as a counsellor at a co-ed sleep-away camp for eight weeks. I loved it but it could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/when-i-was-seventeen-i-worked-as-a-counsellor-at-a-co-ed-sleep-away/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [When we criticize in Iran the actions of the government, the fundamentalists say that we and the Bush Administration are in the same camp.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirin-ebadi/when-we-criticize-in-iran-the-actions-of-the-government-the/) [Shirin Ebadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirin-ebadi/) > [If writing with a goal - whether it be evangelistic, apologetic, or didactic - implies propaganda, then all recorded history is propaganda. . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/if-writing-with-a-goal-whether-it-be-evangelistic-apologetic-or/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [ \[10 Things I Hate About You\] was the most fun I ever had making a movie. 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