--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Write what you know. Write what you don't…" description: "\"Write what you know. Write what you don't know. But most of all, write what you'd rather not know.\" — Sam Lipsyte" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/sam-lipsyte-11160_funny_write-what-you-know-write-what-you-don-t_3162235.jpg" --- # Write what you know. Write what you don't know. But most… ![“Write what you know. Write what you don't know. But most of all, write what you'd rather not know.” quote by Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/sam-lipsyte-11160_funny_write-what-you-know-write-what-you-don-t_3162235.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/sam-lipsyte-11160_funny_write-what-you-know-write-what-you-don-t_3162235.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/sam-lipsyte-11160_funny_write-what-you-know-write-what-you-don-t_3162235.jpg) > “Write what you know. Write what you don't know. But most of all, write what you'd rather not know.” [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing involves confronting familiar truths, unknowns, and uncomfortable realities. **In simple terms:** Write what you know, don’t know, and avoid. Key Takeaway Embrace discomfort to deepen your writing. Themes creativity truth discomfort Mood introspective encouraging Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - author workshops - personal journals - fiction drafts Key Concepts writing craft self‑exploration courage Questions to Reflect On - What topics scare you most to write about? - How can discomfort fuel originality? A Different Perspective Avoiding discomfort can limit authenticity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I write about what I know, what I live, what I observe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-momsen/i-write-about-what-i-know-what-i-live-what-i-observe/) [Taylor Momsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-momsen/) > [“You don't write what you know you write to find out what you don't know”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hemphall/you-don-t-write-what-you-know-you-write-to-find-out-what-you-don-t/) Patricia Hemphall > [“Write what you know. Write what you can't forget. Write to give yourself courage and others hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-rosen/write-what-you-know-write-what-you-can-t-forget-write-to-give/) [Nikki Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-rosen/) > [“I do not believe that I should only write about what I know but that I should write also of the other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felisberto-hernandez/i-do-not-believe-that-i-should-only-write-about-what-i-know-but-that/) Felisberto Hernandez > [“Definitely. You cannot write about what you do not know, nor can you write for people you do not understand. You’ll need to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-le-carre/definitely-you-cannot-write-about-what-you-do-not-know-nor-can-you/) [Georgia Le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-le-carre/) > [People say to write about what you know. I'm here to tell you, no one wants to read that, cos you don't know anything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/people-say-to-write-about-what-you-know-i-m-here-to-tell-you-no-one/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [I write about what I know; and I write about things that are new to me, and that I didn't know before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-write-about-what-i-know-and-i-write-about-things-that-are-new-to-me/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“You can’t always write what you know—not exactly what you know. You can, however, write what you see.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/you-can-t-always-write-what-you-know-not-exactly-what-you-know-you/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [The best thing to do is to write about what you know, and if you write about what you know you can always pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ice-cube/the-best-thing-to-do-is-to-write-about-what-you-know-and-if-you-write/) [Ice Cube](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ice-cube/) > [We don't write what we know. We write what we wonder about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-peck/we-don-t-write-what-we-know-we-write-what-we-wonder-about/) [Richard Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-peck/) > [The best advice is not to write what you know, it's to write what you like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-best-advice-is-not-to-write-what-you-know-it-s-to-write-what-you-2/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Write what you know. Write what you want to know more about. Write what you're afraid to write about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-murphey/write-what-you-know-write-what-you-want-to-know-more-about-write-what/) [Cecil Murphey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-murphey/) > [To know whom to write for is to know how to write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/to-know-whom-to-write-for-is-to-know-how-to-write/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“To be a great Writer, Write what you know & Write what other writers wouldn't write about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maryann-gestwicki/to-be-a-great-writer-write-what-you-know-write-what-other-writers/) Maryann Gestwicki > [I don't write about what I know: I write in order to find out what I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/i-don-t-write-about-what-i-know-i-write-in-order-to-find-out-what-i/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) ## More by Sam Lipsyte > [When you work at home, fellow alums, discipline is the supreme virtue. Suicidal self-loathing lurks behind every coffee break. Activities must be expertly scheduled,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/when-you-work-at-home-fellow-alums-discipline-is-the-supreme-virtue/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [“It was early, late, lockjaw hour.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/it-was-early-late-lockjaw-hour/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [You think you know yourself, the world. You believe you've got a bead on everybody else's bullshit, but what about your own?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/you-think-you-know-yourself-the-world-you-believe-you-ve-got-a-bead/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [“Our friendship, for example, and how quickly we passed through each other, from fascinated strangers to loyal chums to relics of each other's world.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/our-friendship-for-example-and-how-quickly-we-passed-through-each/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [I'd become one of those mistakes you sometimes find in an office, a not unpleasant but mostly unproductive presence bobbing along on the energy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/i-d-become-one-of-those-mistakes-you-sometimes-find-in-an-office-a/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [“Tomorrow she’d look up tattoo removal. They were doing big things with lasers now. When Cal was just a little more stable, she’d break…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/tomorrow-she-d-look-up-tattoo-removal-they-were-doing-big-things-with/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [“I looked for Gary in all of the Gary places, but I was too early. These places were all haunted by the future of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/i-looked-for-gary-in-all-of-the-gary-places-but-i-was-too-early-these/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [Dept. of Speculation is gorgeous, funny, a profound and profoundly moving work of art. Jenny Offill is a master of form and feeling, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/dept-of-speculation-is-gorgeous-funny-a-profound-and-profoundly/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [“The Rough Beast snorted. “You don’t get it at all, buddy. It’s not about wrestling. It’s about stories. We’re storytellers.” Caperton studied him. “Somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/the-rough-beast-snorted-you-don-t-get-it-at-all-buddy-it-s-not-about/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [“I needed to talk to Vargina, to straighten this out, but felt suddenly faint, headed for the deli across the street. Just standing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/i-needed-to-talk-to-vargina-to-straighten-this-out-but-felt-suddenly/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [“You’re growing up. All you need to remember is that nothing changes. New technology, new markets, global interconnectivity, doesn’t matter. It’s still the rulers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/you-re-growing-up-all-you-need-to-remember-is-that-nothing-changes/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [I'm a citizen of the republic of empathy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/i-m-a-citizen-of-the-republic-of-empathy/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [This country was built on the backs of dudes who drank on buses. What we do honors them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/this-country-was-built-on-the-backs-of-dudes-who-drank-on-buses-what/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [The bullshit never ends. That’s the main thing to remember. It never ends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/the-bullshit-never-ends-that-s-the-main-thing-to-remember-it-never/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) > [Stuff me in a tutu and let's screen experimental videos all day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-lipsyte/stuff-me-in-a-tutu-and-let-s-screen-experimental-videos-all-day/) [Sam Lipsyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) [Explore all 61 Sam Lipsyte quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-lipsyte/) ## More Funny quotes > [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/) [Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [It's a hard thing to describe. It's just this sense that you got something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/it-s-a-hard-thing-to-describe-it-s-just-this-sense-that-you-got/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [God reveals Himself through surprises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/god-reveals-himself-through-surprises/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Sometimes I look at my awesome twitter followers & think to myself, What the hell would I do without them :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/sometimes-i-look-at-my-awesome-twitter-followers-think-to-myself-what/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [The happy have whole days,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/the-happy-have-whole-days/) [Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/) > [Congratulations to Facebook on going public with all my private information...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/congratulations-to-facebook-on-going-public-with-all-my-private/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why are things as they are and not otherwise?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johannes-kepler/why-are-things-as-they-are-and-not-otherwise/) [Johannes Kepler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johannes-kepler/) > [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [Penis goes in , sperms cums out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/penis-goes-in-sperms-cums-out/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [If you were to send a werewolf to the moon, would he be a werewolf permanently?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-schaal/if-you-were-to-send-a-werewolf-to-the-moon-would-he-be-a-werewolf/) [Kristen Schaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-schaal/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) Pancho Barnes > [If you can connect people, you can create the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-heiferman/if-you-can-connect-people-you-can-create-the-future/) [Scott Heiferman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-heiferman/) > [Don't think OF the market. Think AS the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-fishman/don-t-think-of-the-market-think-as-the-market/) Michael Fishman [Browse all 39,858 Funny quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Write what you know. Write what you don't know. 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