--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I just let the character speak to me and…" description: "\"I just let the character speak to me and things appear.\" — Shirley Knight" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c21/shirley-knight-25674_appear_i-just-let-the-character-speak-to-me-and_1634494.jpg" --- # I just let the character speak to me and things appear. ![“I just let the character speak to me and things appear.” quote by Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c21/shirley-knight-25674_appear_i-just-let-the-character-speak-to-me-and_1634494.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c21/shirley-knight-25674_appear_i-just-let-the-character-speak-to-me-and_1634494.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c21/shirley-knight-25674_appear_i-just-let-the-character-speak-to-me-and_1634494.jpg) > “I just let the character speak to me and things appear.” [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Allowing characters to guide the creative process leads to organic storytelling. **In simple terms:** Characters guide storytelling. Key Takeaway Trust the character's voice. Themes writing character development intuition Mood introspective thoughtful Type creative advisory When to use this quote - novel writing - screenplay - improv theater Key Concepts narrative theory creative process Questions to Reflect On - When should a writer intervene? - How to balance character autonomy and plot? A Different Perspective Over-reliance may reduce authorial control. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ## Related quotes > [As much as I can give of myself I give of myself. There's no reason why not. And when I have to hide something,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-bashevis-singer/as-much-as-i-can-give-of-myself-i-give-of-myself-there-s-no-reason/) [Isaac Bashevis Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-bashevis-singer/) > [In spite of how things may appear to us, we are never trapped by where we are. The trap is always who we are](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-finley/in-spite-of-how-things-may-appear-to-us-we-are-never-trapped-by-where/) [Guy Finley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-finley/) > [Things are not what they appear to be: nor are they otherwise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/things-are-not-what-they-appear-to-be-nor-are-they-otherwise/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Any time things appear to be going better, you have overlooked something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-chisholm/any-time-things-appear-to-be-going-better-you-have-overlooked/) [Shirley Chisholm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-chisholm/) > [Things are not always as they appear to be as.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-shannon/things-are-not-always-as-they-appear-to-be-as/) [Mike Shannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-shannon/) > [I think what's really amazing is that given the scale of the web and getting the compute power we have today, we're starting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marissa-mayer/i-think-what-s-really-amazing-is-that-given-the-scale-of-the-web-and/) [Marissa Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marissa-mayer/) > [I'm pretty much of the Shakespearean school. Dialogue is character. How we speak is who we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-newman/i-m-pretty-much-of-the-shakespearean-school-dialogue-is-character-how/) [Leigh Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-newman/) > [Personality and character speak volume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-lobbins/personality-and-character-speak-volume/) [Danielle Lobbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-lobbins/) > [There is one way by which a strolling player may be ever secure of success; that is, in our theatrical way of expressing it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-goldsmith/there-is-one-way-by-which-a-strolling-player-may-be-ever-secure-of/) [Oliver Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-goldsmith/) > [When you manage to express something with a look and the music instead of saying it with words or having the character speak, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-leone/when-you-manage-to-express-something-with-a-look-and-the-music/) [Sergio Leone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-leone/) > [If you are playing a Hispanic character who has to speak in dialect or in an accent, nail that dialect or accent. When I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lela-loren/if-you-are-playing-a-hispanic-character-who-has-to-speak-in-dialect/) [Lela Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lela-loren/) > [I do have a mouth - I will say. I speak up when I see things I don't care for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-bishop/i-do-have-a-mouth-i-will-say-i-speak-up-when-i-see-things-i-don-t/) [Kelly Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-bishop/) > [“Never let your character say "how could it get any worse"…it always does.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimi-alexandre/never-let-your-character-say-how-could-it-get-any-worse-it-always-does/) Kimi Alexandre > [Let the character as it began be preserved to the last; and let it be consistent with itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/let-the-character-as-it-began-be-preserved-to-the-last-and-let-it-be/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [If you can just actually let the character be for a bit, then you get the right sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/if-you-can-just-actually-let-the-character-be-for-a-bit-then-you-get/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) ## More by Shirley Knight > [The other death for an actor is comparing yourself to other people: Forget someone else's path. Concentrate on your path. Otherwise, you get lost,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/the-other-death-for-an-actor-is-comparing-yourself-to-other-people/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [There's a great difference between being popular and being an artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/there-s-a-great-difference-between-being-popular-and-being-an-artist/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [There are things that you cannot talk to your mother and father about, there are things that you cannot talk to your children about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/there-are-things-that-you-cannot-talk-to-your-mother-and-father-about/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [My goal was not to be famous or rich but to be good at what I did. And that required going to New York…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/my-goal-was-not-to-be-famous-or-rich-but-to-be-good-at-what-i-did-and/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [I took individual photographs of Annie Liebovitz, I kept taking her picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/i-took-individual-photographs-of-annie-liebovitz-i-kept-taking-her/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [There's no place to act in Kansas. You're supressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/there-s-no-place-to-act-in-kansas-you-re-supressed/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [I moved to LA and decided to do films and television, mainly because the theater in New York is totally dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/i-moved-to-la-and-decided-to-do-films-and-television-mainly-because/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [So many directors are solely focused on their own success in Hollywood and multimillion dollar budgets and deals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/so-many-directors-are-solely-focused-on-their-own-success-in/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [Hollywood - that's where they give Academy Awards to Charlton Heston for acting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/hollywood-that-s-where-they-give-academy-awards-to-charlton-heston/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [The only people you can really share certain things with in secret are your girlfriends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/the-only-people-you-can-really-share-certain-things-with-in-secret/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [It's no accident that Tony Hopkins is a wonderful film actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/it-s-no-accident-that-tony-hopkins-is-a-wonderful-film-actor/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [My acting career helped pull me through the rough times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/my-acting-career-helped-pull-me-through-the-rough-times/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [I did the occasional odd film, like Endless Love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/i-did-the-occasional-odd-film-like-endless-love/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [I got an agent and went up for the part of my first film, Five Gates to Hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/i-got-an-agent-and-went-up-for-the-part-of-my-first-film-five-gates/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) > [Film actors reach a certain level, but they don't get beyond it unless they work in the theater.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-knight/film-actors-reach-a-certain-level-but-they-don-t-get-beyond-it-unless/) [Shirley Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) [Explore all 22 Shirley Knight quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-knight/) ## More Appear quotes > [I know of not one Republican candidate that would not appear publicly with Mitt Romney and I know many Democrats that don't even want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-sessions/i-know-of-not-one-republican-candidate-that-would-not-appear-publicly/) [Pete Sessions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-sessions/) > [“Give someone more time and they'll appear to have done more with it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/give-someone-more-time-and-they-ll-appear-to-have-done-more-with-it/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [“Appear On Your Fear, It Will Disappear”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syed-sharukh/appear-on-your-fear-it-will-disappear/) [Syed Sharukh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syed-sharukh/) > [Though the world may often appear to be more charitable than the church, it is crucial to remember that, for the church, the care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-hauerwas/though-the-world-may-often-appear-to-be-more-charitable-than-the/) [Stanley Hauerwas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-hauerwas/) > [“A might force, a consummate power lieth concealed in the world of being. 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