---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Anyone can write a story based on the…"
description: "\"Anyone can write a story based on the kind of horror where you see a guy in car and then there's the bad guy in the back seat. It's infantile to rely o..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/024/sergio-aragones-18086_bad-guy_anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-ki_2619728.png"
---

#  Anyone can write a story based on the kind of horror where…

![“Anyone can write a story based on the kind of horror where you see a guy in car and then there's the bad guy in the back seat. It's infantile to rely on that for telling a story. That's like going to bed and thinking there's a monster under your bed. It's silly.” quote by Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/024/sergio-aragones-18086_bad-guy_anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-ki_2619728.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/024/sergio-aragones-18086_bad-guy_anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-ki_2619728.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/024/sergio-aragones-18086_bad-guy_anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-ki_2619728.png)

> “Anyone can write a story based on the kind of horror where you see a guy in car and then there's the bad guy in the back seat. It's infantile to rely on that for telling a story. That's like going to bed and thinking there's a monster under your bed. It's silly.”

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Relying on clichéd horror tropes, like a monster in the back seat, is childish and unoriginal.

**In simple terms:** Avoid overused horror clichés.

Key Takeaway

Seek fresh, original storytelling.

Themes

storytelling originality genre critique

Mood

playful critical

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- horror films
- novels
- screenplays
- comic creation

Key Concepts

literary theory creative writing

Questions to Reflect On

- What new horror ideas can you develop?
- How do you balance originality with genre expectations?

A Different Perspective

Audiences sometimes enjoy familiar tropes.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bad guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-guy/) [Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/) [Monsters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monsters/) [Silly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silly/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Telling A Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-a-story/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [If you write a story based on a real person, you're trapped by the details of the real person and his life. It gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-b-cooney/if-you-write-a-story-based-on-a-real-person-you-re-trapped-by-the/)

[Caroline B. Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-b-cooney/)

> [“When you write a story, you're telling yourself the story. When you rewrite, your main job is taking out all the things that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/when-you-write-a-story-you-re-telling-yourself-the-story-when-you/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [When you write a story, you’re telling yourself the story,” he said. “When you rewrite, your main job is taking out all the things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/when-you-write-a-story-you-re-telling-yourself-the-story-he-said-when/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [“Telling a story is like playing a fiddle. No one want's to hear it when it's done badly”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/telling-a-story-is-like-playing-a-fiddle-no-one-want-s-to-hear-it/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [At the end of the day, it's all one version of telling a story. I treated this as if it was a two million…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/at-the-end-of-the-day-it-s-all-one-version-of-telling-a-story-i/)

[Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/)

> [The most important thing to realise is that everyone is capable of telling a story. It doesn't matter where we were born or how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maeve-binchy/the-most-important-thing-to-realise-is-that-everyone-is-capable-of/)

[Maeve Binchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maeve-binchy/)

> [Being an actor is an extension of telling a story and I loved story telling as a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-burton/being-an-actor-is-an-extension-of-telling-a-story-and-i-loved-story/)

[Amanda Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-burton/)

> [Listening to someone telling a story &amp; thinking: Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, and lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/listening-to-someone-telling-a-story-thinking-lie-lie-lie-lie-lie-and/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Everybody's got a different way of telling a story - and has different stories to tell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-richards/everybody-s-got-a-different-way-of-telling-a-story-and-has-different/)

[Keith Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-richards/)

> [I really like telling stories. When I was a kid, I wanted to write songs. In quite a fundamental, gratifying, childish way, I enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bettany/i-really-like-telling-stories-when-i-was-a-kid-i-wanted-to-write/)

[Paul Bettany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-bettany/)

> [This is what I thought: for the most banal even to become an adventure, you must (and this is enough) begin to recount it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/this-is-what-i-thought-for-the-most-banal-even-to-become-an-adventure/)

[Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/)

> [When you play a violin piece, you are a storyteller, and you're telling a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-bell/when-you-play-a-violin-piece-you-are-a-storyteller-and-you-re-telling/)

[Joshua Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-bell/)

> [Consciousness begins when brains acquire the power, the simple power I must add, of telling a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/consciousness-begins-when-brains-acquire-the-power-the-simple-power-i/)

[Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/)

> [Telling a story of illness, one pulls a thread through a narrow opening flanked on one side by shame and the other by trivia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/telling-a-story-of-illness-one-pulls-a-thread-through-a-narrow/)

[Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/)

> [Story is about pulling the reader in and a plot is a more externalized mechanism of revelation. A plot is more antic, more performative,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/story-is-about-pulling-the-reader-in-and-a-plot-is-a-more/)

[Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/)

## More by Sergio Aragones

> [If I see that something is wrong, I don't care who says it. Whether it's a Republican or Democrat, the left or the right.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/if-i-see-that-something-is-wrong-i-don-t-care-who-says-it-whether-it/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [Once you've established where you are, you go to the character and elaborate on expressions and action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/once-you-ve-established-where-you-are-you-go-to-the-character-and/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [Eventually I would like to touch all the genres. I would like to do some detective stories, and I want to do a Western.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/eventually-i-would-like-to-touch-all-the-genres-i-would-like-to-do/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [Fortunately, cartooning is not a job. It's something like eating or sleeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/fortunately-cartooning-is-not-a-job-it-s-something-like-eating-or/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [My work is so unorthodox that from one panel to the next, the drawings are completely different... totally opposed to the way of working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/my-work-is-so-unorthodox-that-from-one-panel-to-the-next-the-drawings/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [When you're drawing comics, you get very involved in how the story is going to develop and you spend more time daydreaming on that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/when-you-re-drawing-comics-you-get-very-involved-in-how-the-story-is/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [The Boogeyman is your conscience. The Boogeyman is the result of your own bad behavior. I love this Boogeyman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/the-boogeyman-is-your-conscience-the-boogeyman-is-the-result-of-your/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [Comics is a great medium to get a lot of stories out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/comics-is-a-great-medium-to-get-a-lot-of-stories-out/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [If a cat had a halo, it would probably wear it around it's tail. It makes a statement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/if-a-cat-had-a-halo-it-would-probably-wear-it-around-it-s-tail-it/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [The sad events that occur in my life are the sad events that happen to everybody, with losing friends and family, but that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/the-sad-events-that-occur-in-my-life-are-the-sad-events-that-happen/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [Sometimes, you start with the drawing and then the gag comes to you in the middle of it. That is when you start working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/sometimes-you-start-with-the-drawing-and-then-the-gag-comes-to-you-in/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [The reason I love comics more than anything else is that the longest story will be just a few pages. With a novel, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/the-reason-i-love-comics-more-than-anything-else-is-that-the-longest/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [My father was very political. But he told me, "Be very careful when you get into politics, because there's no black and white. There's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/my-father-was-very-political-but-he-told-me-be-very-careful-when-you/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [I live in a very small town and now that I've closed down my studio, I'm working at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/i-live-in-a-very-small-town-and-now-that-i-ve-closed-down-my-studio-i/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [My best sources are my travels and my collection of National Geographic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/my-best-sources-are-my-travels-and-my-collection-of-national/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

[Explore all 35 Sergio Aragones quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

## More Bad guy quotes

> [“This is what is called "honor among thieves," for the really dangerous people are those who do not recognize that they are thieves— the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/this-is-what-is-called-honor-among-thieves-for-the-really-dangerous/)

[Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/)

> [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/)

[Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/)

> [Obviously I'm very grateful 'Bad Guy' is doing so well - it's shocking and surprising and gratifying - but I do think it's important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finneas/obviously-i-m-very-grateful-bad-guy-is-doing-so-well-it-s-shocking/)

[Finneas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finneas/)

> [“Here you can shoot the bad guys,' a mercenary says in Baghdad. 'In America we give them corporate bonuses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-robotham/here-you-can-shoot-the-bad-guys-a-mercenary-says-in-baghdad-in/)

[Michael Robotham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-robotham/)

> [To us, being the bad guys is cool, because we always root for the bad guys in the movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-hanneman/to-us-being-the-bad-guys-is-cool-because-we-always-root-for-the-bad/)

[Jeff Hanneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-hanneman/)

> [In 'Gran Torino,' Eastwood moves towards the climax of the movie not by staging a shoot-out, but by putting his weapons to one side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-korda/in-gran-torino-eastwood-moves-towards-the-climax-of-the-movie-not-by/)

[Michael Korda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-korda/)

> [In order to have your best good guy, you have to be that bad guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/in-order-to-have-your-best-good-guy-you-have-to-be-that-bad-guy/)

[Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/)

> [After I did 'Brooklyn,' I did about five or six violent films in one way or another, and not always with me being the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emory-cohen/after-i-did-brooklyn-i-did-about-five-or-six-violent-films-in-one-way/)

[Emory Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emory-cohen/)

> [The first act is the easiest to plot. The second act is always the hardest to plot. Generally a good, you know, sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-cannell/the-first-act-is-the-easiest-to-plot-the-second-act-is-always-the/)

[Stephen J. Cannell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-cannell/)

> [“We fall into the fallacy of believing we can litigate the complicated story before us into a black-and-white binary of good guys and bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-lowery/we-fall-into-the-fallacy-of-believing-we-can-litigate-the-complicated/)

[Wesley Lowery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-lowery/)

> [“If there was a bad guy we could appeal to the people because, like it or not, we, the huddled masses, want our public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-carter/if-there-was-a-bad-guy-we-could-appeal-to-the-people-because-like-it/)

[Bill Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-carter/)

> [But the thing about bad guys is that they have the biggest bosomed blond, they have great clothes and cars, and get great death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-roberts/but-the-thing-about-bad-guys-is-that-they-have-the-biggest-bosomed/)

[Eric Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-roberts/)

> [I don't know what it is that I do, but when I play a really bad guy, I'm able to bring some level of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-ferrer/i-don-t-know-what-it-is-that-i-do-but-when-i-play-a-really-bad-guy-i/)

[Miguel Ferrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-ferrer/)

> [In my career, I've been lucky to do the bad guys that are more interesting, where the audience wants to spend more time with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-stormare/in-my-career-i-ve-been-lucky-to-do-the-bad-guys-that-are-more/)

[Peter Stormare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-stormare/)

> [Playing a bad guy is always more fun than playing the good guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-robbie/playing-a-bad-guy-is-always-more-fun-than-playing-the-good-guy/)

[Margot Robbie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-robbie/)

[Browse all 1,228 Bad guy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-guy/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Anyone can write a story based on the kind of horror where you see a guy in car and then there's the bad guy in the back seat. It's infantile to rely on that for telling a story. That's like going to bed and thinking there's a monster under your bed. It's silly.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Sergio Aragones"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-kind-of-horror-where-you-see-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bad guy"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-kind-of-horror-where-you-see-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/024/sergio-aragones-18086_bad-guy_anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-ki_2619728.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/024/sergio-aragones-18086_bad-guy_anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-ki_2619728.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/024/sergio-aragones-18086_bad-guy_anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-ki_2619728.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Anyone can write a story based on the kind of horror where you see a guy in car and then there's the bad guy…” — Sergio Aragones",
                "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": "Sergio Aragones",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Anyone can write a story based...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-kind-of-horror-where-you-see-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/anyone-can-write-a-story-based-on-the-kind-of-horror-where-you-see-a/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
