--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My father thought a novel was a broken…" description: "\"My father thought a novel was a broken short story. There's something to that. Many of my favorite novels are novellas. The authors of brief things mus..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/samantha-hunt-14215_books_my-father-thought-a-novel-was-a-broken-s_3102878.png" --- # My father thought a novel was a broken short story… ![“My father thought a novel was a broken short story. There's something to that. Many of my favorite novels are novellas. The authors of brief things must reckon with the precision of language.” quote by Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/samantha-hunt-14215_books_my-father-thought-a-novel-was-a-broken-s_3102878.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/samantha-hunt-14215_books_my-father-thought-a-novel-was-a-broken-s_3102878.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/samantha-hunt-14215_books_my-father-thought-a-novel-was-a-broken-s_3102878.png) > “My father thought a novel was a broken short story. There's something to that. Many of my favorite novels are novellas. The authors of brief things must reckon with the precision of language.” [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Novellas demand precise language, offering depth in brevity. **In simple terms:** Short novels need exact words. Key Takeaway Value concise storytelling. Themes literature precision brevity Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type analytical literary When to use this quote - reading clubs - writing workshops - editing Key Concepts narrative economy artistic focus Questions to Reflect On - Why are short forms powerful? - How does precision affect impact? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Broken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broken/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [My favorite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-favorite/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Novel Broken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel-broken-5385559/) [Novellas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novellas/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [Novels Novellas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels-novellas-5385558/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Short story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-story/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I love movies like 'The Postman Always Rings Twice' that are based on short novellas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-ramsay/i-love-movies-like-the-postman-always-rings-twice-that-are-based-on/) [Lynne Ramsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-ramsay/) > [I grew up Spanish, so I grew up watching a lot of novellas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-gonzalo/i-grew-up-spanish-so-i-grew-up-watching-a-lot-of-novellas/) [Julie Gonzalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-gonzalo/) > [“Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it." Goethe”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-alan-fahey/whatever-you-can-do-or-dream-you-can-begin-it-goethe/) [Paul Alan Fahey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-alan-fahey/) > [A creative person can suddenly realize it's not 90 minutes. They haven't got to do three acts, they haven't got to do the arc,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/a-creative-person-can-suddenly-realize-it-s-not-90-minutes-they-haven/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [“No one, none of us have rights. There is no destiny. We have responsibilities to ourselves and each other. We have responsibilities and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-fatah-steele/no-one-none-of-us-have-rights-there-is-no-destiny-we-have/) [Brian Fatah Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-fatah-steele/) > [Those around you can have their novellas, sweet, their short stories of cliché and coincidence, occasionally spiced up with tricks of the quirky, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marisha-pessl/those-around-you-can-have-their-novellas-sweet-their-short-stories-of/) [Marisha Pessl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marisha-pessl/) > [I write novellas because I don't like loose sprawling prose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-harrison/i-write-novellas-because-i-don-t-like-loose-sprawling-prose/) [Jim Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-harrison/) > [I only respond to Telemundo when it's about novellas, in regards to music or movies they have nothing to do with it; that's mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jencarlos-canela/i-only-respond-to-telemundo-when-it-s-about-novellas-in-regards-to/) [Jencarlos Canela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jencarlos-canela/) > [“I write novellas, short books, whatever. I set out to write a good story not write a dictionary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-e-hodges/i-write-novellas-short-books-whatever-i-set-out-to-write-a-good-story/) [Jason E. Hodges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-e-hodges/) > [Well, to be honest I think I'm a better short story writer than a novelist. Novels I find very hard, hours and hours, weeks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-brown/well-to-be-honest-i-think-i-m-a-better-short-story-writer-than-a/) [Eric Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-brown/) > [I sold my first short story while I was home on maternity leave, then began working on novels. Since I was reading and enjoying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tess-gerritsen/i-sold-my-first-short-story-while-i-was-home-on-maternity-leave-then/) [Tess Gerritsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tess-gerritsen/) > [But at the same time, I have trouble keeping things out of books, which is why I don't write short stories because they turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-coe/but-at-the-same-time-i-have-trouble-keeping-things-out-of-books-which/) [Jonathan Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-coe/) > [Novels are my favorite to write and read. I do like writing personal essays, too. I'm not really a short story writer, nor do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-shapiro/novels-are-my-favorite-to-write-and-read-i-do-like-writing-personal/) [Dani Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-shapiro/) > [I have some other novels I want to write. I have a lot of short stories - I love the short story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin-2/i-have-some-other-novels-i-want-to-write-i-have-a-lot-of-short/) [George R. R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin-2/) > [Novels are more difficult simply because they are longer and require more juggling, but short stories are closer to perfection, if you can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/novels-are-more-difficult-simply-because-they-are-longer-and-require/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) ## More by Samantha Hunt > [“Two people who live their lives alone in rooms doing strange, gentle things can sometimes be together in the middle of a dangerous storm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/two-people-who-live-their-lives-alone-in-rooms-doing-strange-gentle/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [“When a country goes to war, men can no longer operate free and open laboratories. The Government would like to know what you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/when-a-country-goes-to-war-men-can-no-longer-operate-free-and-open/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [“No. I'm not from outer space or the future. And this is not magic, just science, pure engineering. Magic, religion, the occult --all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/no-i-m-not-from-outer-space-or-the-future-and-this-is-not-magic-just/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [“I am not from Venus. . . . I am from a small town on the Serbo-Croation border.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/i-am-not-from-venus-i-am-from-a-small-town-on-the-serbo-croation/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [As a writer I feel more like a filter than a performer. I absorb and observe and then I name scatterings of stars into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/as-a-writer-i-feel-more-like-a-filter-than-a-performer-i-absorb-and/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [I like the night. I like a slight terror to remind me how precious life is. Like I was sleeping with my smallest child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/i-like-the-night-i-like-a-slight-terror-to-remind-me-how-precious/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [I am very bad at remembering the books I've read and so recently I had a wonderful experience. I decided I wanted to teach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/i-am-very-bad-at-remembering-the-books-i-ve-read-and-so-recently-i/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [One night as I girl I spied my grandma and one of her sisters outside, holding hands and singing, "Sprites of the night are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/one-night-as-i-girl-i-spied-my-grandma-and-one-of-her-sisters-outside/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [Wait," I say. "I think you're mistaken. Saying there is no dream is the same as saying everything is a dream. Isn't it? Everyone's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/wait-i-say-i-think-you-re-mistaken-saying-there-is-no-dream-is-the/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [“Unlock the door?' he asks. This family is an experiment, the biggest I've ever been part of, an experiment called: How do you let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/unlock-the-door-he-asks-this-family-is-an-experiment-the-biggest-i-ve/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [I'll just tell you what I remember because memory is as close as I've gotten to building my own time machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/i-ll-just-tell-you-what-i-remember-because-memory-is-as-close-as-i-ve/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [I am surprisingly optimistic, though lately that's been hard to maintain. Art and slow, small, close gestures help remind me of my optimism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/i-am-surprisingly-optimistic-though-lately-that-s-been-hard-to/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [In writing I found a way to make silence and to be silent. The short story has a lot more silence than the novel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/in-writing-i-found-a-way-to-make-silence-and-to-be-silent-the-short/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [“He gave me an inside of ice so I'd never love you. But it didn't work. You are so close. You are the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/he-gave-me-an-inside-of-ice-so-i-d-never-love-you-but-it-didn-t-work/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [One last important influence I'll mention is Flannery O'Connor. In high school I shoplifted her Complete Stories. Having read "Good Country People" for class,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/one-last-important-influence-i-ll-mention-is-flannery-o-connor-in/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) [Explore all 47 Samantha Hunt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) ## 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. 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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. 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