--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is, of course, not only impossible for…" description: "\"“It is, of course, not only impossible for readers to know the intention of most, if not all, writers, but an author himself may think he is writing on..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd3/russell-m-goldfarb-274925_authors_it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for_1433529.jpg" --- # It is, of course, not only impossible for readers to know… ![“It is, of course, not only impossible for readers to know the intention of most, if not all, writers, but an author himself may think he is writing one thing while he is in fact writing something quite different.” quote by Russell M. Goldfarb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd3/russell-m-goldfarb-274925_authors_it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for_1433529.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd3/russell-m-goldfarb-274925_authors_it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for_1433529.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd3/russell-m-goldfarb-274925_authors_it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for_1433529.jpg) > ““It is, of course, not only impossible for readers to know the intention of most, if not all, writers, but an author himself may think he is writing one thing while he is in fact writing something quite different.”” [Russell M. Goldfarb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-goldfarb/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Authors may misinterpret their own intentions, and readers often cannot know a writer’s true purpose. **In simple terms:** Writers and readers can misunderstand intent. Key Takeaway Seek clarity and question assumptions. Themes writing intent interpretation communication authorial voice Mood thoughtful analytical curious Type Authors:1 Books:0 Intention:1 Writer:1 Writing:1 Think Writing:0 Author Think:0 Readers Know:0 Writers Author:0 Intention Writers:0 When to use this quote - editing process - literature analysis - creative workshops - academic study Key Concepts self‑reflection reader response narrative ambiguity literary theory Questions to Reflect On - Do you assume author intent? - How does ambiguity affect your reading? A Different Perspective Intent can be deliberately ambiguous for artistic effect. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Author Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/author-think-670783/) [Authors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authors/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Intention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intention/) [Intention Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intention-writers-5110290/) [Readers Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/readers-know-806976/) [Think Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-writing/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writers Author](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers-author-5110289/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I am a completely horizontal author. I can't think unless I'm lying down, either in bed or stretched on a couch and with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/i-am-a-completely-horizontal-author-i-can-t-think-unless-i-m-lying/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [I guess the main thing I definitely don't enjoy is having a job which involves selling things. You become an author because you think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-beauman/i-guess-the-main-thing-i-definitely-don-t-enjoy-is-having-a-job-which/) [Ned Beauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-beauman/) > [“Of course, you pretend to be the author. You have to. You think, I now choose to go to lunch, when that monotone beep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/of-course-you-pretend-to-be-the-author-you-have-to-you-think-i-now/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [What inspired me to become an author? I think it was the snow in New York. I looked out the window and I said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-reilly-giff/what-inspired-me-to-become-an-author-i-think-it-was-the-snow-in-new/) [Patricia Reilly Giff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-reilly-giff/) > [No author, I think, is deserving of much censure for vanity if, taking down one of his ten-year-old books, he exclaims: "Great heavens, did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ford-madox-ford/no-author-i-think-is-deserving-of-much-censure-for-vanity-if-taking/) [Ford Madox Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ford-madox-ford/) > [I am a completely horizontal author. I can't think unless I'm lying down, either in bed or stretched on a couch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-am-a-completely-horizontal-author-i-can-t-think-unless-i-m-lying-2/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [Some people connect with a story and may find between the lines something that might be useful to him or her, but that's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/some-people-connect-with-a-story-and-may-find-between-the-lines/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [“I was beginning to learn that your life is a story told about you, not one that you tell. Of course, you pretend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-was-beginning-to-learn-that-your-life-is-a-story-told-about-you-not/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [The best critics do not worry about what the author might think. That would be like a detective worrying about what a suspect might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-brown/the-best-critics-do-not-worry-about-what-the-author-might-think-that/) [Craig Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-brown/) > [Writing is a intensely personal activity. I can pen down my best thoughts when I'm alone. But when one is elevated into the stature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwin-sanghi/writing-is-a-intensely-personal-activity-i-can-pen-down-my-best/) [Ashwin Sanghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwin-sanghi/) > [“The principal aim underlying this work is to render homage where homage is due, a task which I know beforehand is impossible of accomplishment.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/the-principal-aim-underlying-this-work-is-to-render-homage-where/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [WWII is something contemporary readers already know a lot about. If our schools are doing their jobs, they know about the invasion of Normandy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/wwii-is-something-contemporary-readers-already-know-a-lot-about-if/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [How can I expect readers to know who I am if I do not tell them about my family, my friends, the relationships in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabih-alameddine/how-can-i-expect-readers-to-know-who-i-am-if-i-do-not-tell-them-about/) [Rabih Alameddine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabih-alameddine/) > [Fiction supplies the only philosophy that may readers know; it establishes their ethical, social, and material standards; it confirms them in their prejudices or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-brande/fiction-supplies-the-only-philosophy-that-may-readers-know-it/) [Dorothea Brande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-brande/) > [readable text and authority so that readers know how to spend - no matter how much information there is, I have the same number…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gelernter/readable-text-and-authority-so-that-readers-know-how-to-spend-no/) [David Gelernter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gelernter/) ## More Authors quotes > [The talk shows in the States want celebrities, not authors. In France, it is different; writers are called upon to comment on everything. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-talk-shows-in-the-states-want-celebrities-not-authors-in-france/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [“Today if anything is trying to hold you back, give no attention to it. Get your hopes up, get your faith up, look up,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/today-if-anything-is-trying-to-hold-you-back-give-no-attention-to-it/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [“By their very nature, idiots do not have the intellectual capacity to identify genius. All that idiots are mentally equipped to recognize are other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dermot-davis/by-their-very-nature-idiots-do-not-have-the-intellectual-capacity-to/) [Dermot Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dermot-davis/) > [“Authors go on writing books, and so we go on reading them. It is a sad state of affairs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-aston/authors-go-on-writing-books-and-so-we-go-on-reading-them-it-is-a-sad/) [Elizabeth Aston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-aston/) > [“Intercourse is one thing, Intimacy is everything. Be encouraged”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-e-wagner/intercourse-is-one-thing-intimacy-is-everything-be-encouraged/) [Kerry E. Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-e-wagner/) > [Most of the more celebrated names among African-American authors, poets, and artists are known to the world because of their association with specific cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aberjhani/most-of-the-more-celebrated-names-among-african-american-authors/) [Aberjhani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aberjhani/) > [“Do you read them? Faulkner, Hemingway, Fitzgerald?" "Only if I have to. I try to avoid old dead white men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/do-you-read-them-faulkner-hemingway-fitzgerald-only-if-i-have-to-i/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“Grayson: Fiction is just a lie anyway. Brianna: But it's not - it's a different kind of truth - it would be your truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/grayson-fiction-is-just-a-lie-anyway-brianna-but-it-s-not-it-s-a/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“How long has it been since you and me? Hugs and kisses. Blankets and snuggles. Our sparks smoldering without a fireplace. Losing time is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/2019-fidelis-o-mkparu/how-long-has-it-been-since-you-and-me-hugs-and-kisses-blankets-and/) [2019 Fidelis O Mkparu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/2019-fidelis-o-mkparu/) > [“Authors: The only people you thank for leaving you emotionally devastated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/love-the-stacks-bookstore/authors-the-only-people-you-thank-for-leaving-you-emotionally/) [Love The Stacks Bookstore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/love-the-stacks-bookstore/) > [“Authors, reviews are not for you. They are not for you. Authors, reviews are not for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacia-kane/authors-reviews-are-not-for-you-they-are-not-for-you-authors-reviews/) [Stacia Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacia-kane/) > [“I like to read as much as I can from every genre. That way, I can express my love for all writers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-selinsky/i-like-to-read-as-much-as-i-can-from-every-genre-that-way-i-can/) [Jen Selinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-selinsky/) > [“He's a liar for a living, all authors are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karina-halle/he-s-a-liar-for-a-living-all-authors-are/) [Karina Halle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karina-halle/) > [“A writer writes regardless... even though... notwithstanding... despite... at any rate... anyhow... nevertheless... in the face of... undeterred by... heedless of... and because. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/a-writer-writes-regardless-even-though-notwithstanding-despite-at-any/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [“Crazy people love their Kindles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dermot-davis/crazy-people-love-their-kindles/) [Dermot Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dermot-davis/) [Browse all 529 Authors quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authors/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is, of course, not only impossible for readers to know the intention of most, if not all, writers, but an author himself may think he is writing one thing while he is in fact writing something quite different.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Russell M. Goldfarb" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-goldfarb/it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for-readers-to-know-the-intention/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Authors" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-goldfarb/it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for-readers-to-know-the-intention/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd3/russell-m-goldfarb-274925_authors_it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for_1433529.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd3/russell-m-goldfarb-274925_authors_it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for_1433529.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd3/russell-m-goldfarb-274925_authors_it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for_1433529.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is, of course, not only impossible for readers to know the intention of most, if not all, writers, but an…” — Russell M. Goldfarb", "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": "Russell M. Goldfarb", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-goldfarb/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It is, of course, not only...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-goldfarb/it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for-readers-to-know-the-intention/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-goldfarb/it-is-of-course-not-only-impossible-for-readers-to-know-the-intention/#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 } } ] } ```