--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I cannot find any patience for those…" description: "\"I cannot find any patience for those people who believe that you start writing when you sit down at your desk and pick up your pen and finish writing w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36f/shirley-jackson-1526_believe_i-cannot-find-any-patience-for-those-peo_978102.jpg" --- # I cannot find any patience for those people who believe… ![“I cannot find any patience for those people who believe that you start writing when you sit down at your desk and pick up your pen and finish writing when you put down your pen again; a writer is always writing, seeing everything through a thin mist of words, fitting swift little descriptions to…” quote by Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36f/shirley-jackson-1526_believe_i-cannot-find-any-patience-for-those-peo_978102.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36f/shirley-jackson-1526_believe_i-cannot-find-any-patience-for-those-peo_978102.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36f/shirley-jackson-1526_believe_i-cannot-find-any-patience-for-those-peo_978102.jpg) > “I cannot find any patience for those people who believe that you start writing when you sit down at your desk and pick up your pen and finish writing when you put down your pen again; a writer is always writing, seeing everything through a thin mist of words, fitting swift little descriptions to everything he sees, always noticing. Just as I believe that a painter cannot sit down to his morning coffee without noticing what color it is, so a writer cannot see an odd little gesture without putting a verbal description to it, and ought never to let a moment go by undescribed.” [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing is a constant, attentive process, turning every observation into language. **In simple terms:** Writers should describe everything they notice. Key Takeaway Observe and record details continuously. Themes creativity mindfulness observation Mood reflective inspirational Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - journalism - creative writing - teaching - daily life Key Concepts writing process sensory detail artistic discipline Questions to Reflect On - Do you capture every moment? - How does constant observation affect mental health? A Different Perspective Over‑focus on description can hinder narrative flow. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Coffee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coffee/) [Color](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/color/) [Gestures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gestures/) [Mist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mist/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Morning coffee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning-coffee/) [Painter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painter/) [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Writing is seeing. It is paying attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/writing-is-seeing-it-is-paying-attention/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“A microphone is to a comic, what a pen is to a writer. There's power in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamelar-hickinson/a-microphone-is-to-a-comic-what-a-pen-is-to-a-writer-there-s-power-in/) Pamelar Hickinson > [“The pen to a writer is like a cigarette to a smoker; they need it to take the edge off.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellie-elmore/the-pen-to-a-writer-is-like-a-cigarette-to-a-smoker-they-need-it-to/) [Kellie Elmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellie-elmore/) > [“It isn’t the pen—it’s the writer; it isn’t the road—it’s the runner that counts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-shad-helmstetter/it-isn-t-the-pen-it-s-the-writer-it-isn-t-the-road-it-s-the-runner/) Dr. Shad Helmstetter > [The camera is to the Photographer what the pen is to the Writer: a tool to express a vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myriam-leforestier/the-camera-is-to-the-photographer-what-the-pen-is-to-the-writer-a/) Myriam Leforestier > [My father really taught me that you really develop the habit of writing and you sit down at the same time every day, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/my-father-really-taught-me-that-you-really-develop-the-habit-of/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [For so long, the model for writing has been, you sit in a room alone for a number of days or weeks or months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sloan/for-so-long-the-model-for-writing-has-been-you-sit-in-a-room-alone/) [Robin Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sloan/) > [“There is nothing to writing, all you have to do is, sit on the computer and bleed your thoughts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santosh-kalwar/there-is-nothing-to-writing-all-you-have-to-do-is-sit-on-the-computer/) [Santosh Kalwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santosh-kalwar/) > [There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/there-is-nothing-to-writing-all-you-do-is-sit-down-at-a-typewriter/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“There's nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/there-s-nothing-to-writing-all-you-do-is-sit-down-at-a-typewriter-and/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“I told him I wanted to major in creative writing and sit around in yoga pants and do nothing but write books eat ice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/i-told-him-i-wanted-to-major-in-creative-writing-and-sit-around-in/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) > [My publishers find me really challenging, as a lot of the time, I don't even know what I'm going to be writing about until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-jewell/my-publishers-find-me-really-challenging-as-a-lot-of-the-time-i-don-t/) [Lisa Jewell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-jewell/) > [“You get no writing done at all if you sit at a table with a view. You'd spent the whole time watching the birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-stewart/you-get-no-writing-done-at-all-if-you-sit-at-a-table-with-a-view-you/) [Mary Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-stewart/) > [If I'm not writing about myself, then I sit down with people I really dig writing with and throw 'em out and see if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kacey-musgraves/if-i-m-not-writing-about-myself-then-i-sit-down-with-people-i-really/) [Kacey Musgraves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kacey-musgraves/) > [I write in longhand. I am accustomed to that proximity, that feel of writing. Then I sit down and type.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/i-write-in-longhand-i-am-accustomed-to-that-proximity-that-feel-of/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) ## More by Shirley Jackson > [I can't help it when people are frightened," says Merricat. "I always want to frighten them more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/i-can-t-help-it-when-people-are-frightened-says-merricat-i-always/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“She could not remember ever being truly happy in her adult life; her years with her mother had been built up devotedly around small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/she-could-not-remember-ever-being-truly-happy-in-her-adult-life-her/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“Upstairs Margaret said abruptly, 'I suppose it starts to happen first in the suburbs,' and when Brad said, 'What starts to happen?' she said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/upstairs-margaret-said-abruptly-i-suppose-it-starts-to-happen-first/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“The beautiful clarity of all marked outlines occurred to her--there would be a deep satisfaction in strengthening fences, for instance, going along on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/the-beautiful-clarity-of-all-marked-outlines-occurred-to-her-there/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“And we held each other in the dark hall and laughed, with the tears running down our cheeks and echoes of our laughter going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/and-we-held-each-other-in-the-dark-hall-and-laughed-with-the-tears/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“Why do people want to talk to each other? I mean, what are the things people always want to find out about other people?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/why-do-people-want-to-talk-to-each-other-i-mean-what-are-the-things/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [Within, walls continued upright, bricks met neatly, floors were firm, and doors were sensibly shut; silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/within-walls-continued-upright-bricks-met-neatly-floors-were-firm-and/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“It was as though the people needed the ugliness of the village, and fed on it. The houses and the stores seemed to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/it-was-as-though-the-people-needed-the-ugliness-of-the-village-and/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“Eleanor—“I plan to stay up and read for a while.” “Are you still reading Pamela?” Eleanor asked the doctor. “Volume two. I have three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/eleanor-i-plan-to-stay-up-and-read-for-a-while-are-you-still-reading/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“Is everyone really crazy but me?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/is-everyone-really-crazy-but-me/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [February, when the days of winter seem endless and no amount of wistful recollecting can bring back any air of summer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/february-when-the-days-of-winter-seem-endless-and-no-amount-of/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“it’s quite a hazard, quite a hazard indeed, people knocking you down. Still, it’s a genuine pleasure to find one as willing as you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/it-s-quite-a-hazard-quite-a-hazard-indeed-people-knocking-you-down/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [On the moon we have everything. Lettuce, and pumpkin pie and Amanita phalloides. We have cat-furred plants and horses dancing with their wings. All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/on-the-moon-we-have-everything-lettuce-and-pumpkin-pie-and-amanita/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [She walked quickly around her one-room apartment. After more than four years in this one home she knew all its possibilities, how it could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/she-walked-quickly-around-her-one-room-apartment-after-more-than-four/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [I very much dislike writing about myself or my work, and when pressed for autobiographical material can only give a bare chronological outline which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/i-very-much-dislike-writing-about-myself-or-my-work-and-when-pressed/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) [Explore all 224 Shirley Jackson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I cannot find any patience for those people who believe that you start writing when you sit down at your desk and pick up your pen and finish writing when you put down your pen again; a writer is always writing, seeing everything through a thin mist of words, fitting swift little descriptions to everything he sees, always noticing. 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