--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Most bad books get that way because their…" description: "\"Most bad books get that way because their authors are engaged in trying to justify themselves. If a vain author is an alcoholic, then the most sympathe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/202/stephen-vizinczey-20251_alcoholics_most-bad-books-get-that-way-because-thei_2071328.jpg" --- # Most bad books get that way because their authors are… ![“Most bad books get that way because their authors are engaged in trying to justify themselves. If a vain author is an alcoholic, then the most sympathetically portrayed character in his book will be an alcoholic. This sort of thing is very boring for outsiders.” quote by Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/202/stephen-vizinczey-20251_alcoholics_most-bad-books-get-that-way-because-thei_2071328.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/202/stephen-vizinczey-20251_alcoholics_most-bad-books-get-that-way-because-thei_2071328.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/202/stephen-vizinczey-20251_alcoholics_most-bad-books-get-that-way-because-thei_2071328.jpg) > “Most bad books get that way because their authors are engaged in trying to justify themselves. If a vain author is an alcoholic, then the most sympathetically portrayed character in his book will be an alcoholic. This sort of thing is very boring for outsiders.” [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Authors who over‑justify their characters create boring, self‑indulgent stories that fail to engage readers. **In simple terms:** Self‑justifying writing makes books dull. Key Takeaway Avoid self‑indulgence; focus on authentic storytelling. Themes writing authenticity self‑awareness Mood critical reflective Type analytical literary When to use this quote - creative writing - book clubs - editing process Key Concepts character development authorial intent literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - What makes a character feel authentic? - How can writers balance personal motives with narrative? A Different Perspective Risk of dismissing complex characters as merely self‑serving. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alcoholics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alcoholics/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Outsiders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outsiders/) [Vain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vain/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ann-shaffer/reading-good-books-ruins-you-for-enjoying-bad-books/) [Mary Ann Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ann-shaffer/) > [Bad books on writing tell you to "WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW", a solemn and totally false adage that is the reason there exist so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-haldeman/bad-books-on-writing-tell-you-to-write-what-you-know-a-solemn-and/) [Joe Haldeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-haldeman/) > [Good books get praised, bad books get praised. Good books get ignored, bad books get ignored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/good-books-get-praised-bad-books-get-praised-good-books-get-ignored/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Never read books you aren't sure about . . . even supposing that these bad books are very well written from a literary point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-john-don-bosco/never-read-books-you-aren-t-sure-about-even-supposing-that-these-bad/) Saint John Don Bosco > [“I read a lot of bad books- books so bad that they aren't even published,which is quite a feat, when you consider what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/i-read-a-lot-of-bad-books-books-so-bad-that-they-aren-t-even/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [The books one reads in childhood, and perhaps most of all the bad and good bad books, create in one's mind a sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-books-one-reads-in-childhood-and-perhaps-most-of-all-the-bad-and-2/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Bad books engender bad habits, but bad habits engender good books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/bad-books-engender-bad-habits-but-bad-habits-engender-good-books/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [In the course of my research, I've read a lot of incredibly bad books - mostly by academics. I'm puzzled as to just why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/in-the-course-of-my-research-i-ve-read-a-lot-of-incredibly-bad-books/) [Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/) > [Even the bad books I write are satisfying. I'm my least critical reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-voigt/even-the-bad-books-i-write-are-satisfying-i-m-my-least-critical-reader/) [Cynthia Voigt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-voigt/) > [There are no bad books any more than there are ugly women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/there-are-no-bad-books-any-more-than-there-are-ugly-women/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [It is far better to be silent than merely to increase the quantity of bad books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-far-better-to-be-silent-than-merely-to-increase-the-quantity-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Many bad books have had great influence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/many-bad-books-have-had-great-influence/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [“Life is too short to waste your time with bad books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-kr-ger/life-is-too-short-to-waste-your-time-with-bad-books/) Michael Krüger > [There is a sort of theory that you should adapt bad books because they always make more successful films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hampton/there-is-a-sort-of-theory-that-you-should-adapt-bad-books-because/) [Christopher Hampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hampton/) > [As always, a lot of bad books will be published. Some good books will be published, and you have to seek them out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/as-always-a-lot-of-bad-books-will-be-published-some-good-books-will/) [Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/) ## More by Stephen Vizinczey > [Thou shalt not let a day pass without rereading something great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/thou-shalt-not-let-a-day-pass-without-rereading-something-great/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [As a rule, the most dangerous ideas are not the ones that divide people but those on which they agree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/as-a-rule-the-most-dangerous-ideas-are-not-the-ones-that-divide/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [“I had affairs with a few girls of my own age, and they taught me that no girl, however intelligent and war-hearted, can possibly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/i-had-affairs-with-a-few-girls-of-my-own-age-and-they-taught-me-that/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [The truth is that our race survived ignorance; it is our scientific genius that will do us in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/the-truth-is-that-our-race-survived-ignorance-it-is-our-scientific/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [To state a lie firmly, categorically and with great authority, undeterred by the fact that all concerned know it to be a lie, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/to-state-a-lie-firmly-categorically-and-with-great-authority/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [You tell me your favorite novelists and I'll tell you whom you vote for, or whether you vote at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/you-tell-me-your-favorite-novelists-and-i-ll-tell-you-whom-you-vote/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [“I suppose it's more unnerving to be a boy than a girl,' she conceded.'It's the boys who have to make fools of themselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/i-suppose-it-s-more-unnerving-to-be-a-boy-than-a-girl-she-conceded-it/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [Strange as it may seem, no amount of learning can cure stupidity, and formal education positively fortifies it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/strange-as-it-may-seem-no-amount-of-learning-can-cure-stupidity-and/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [Art experts are unfailingly opposed to Art for the simple reason that they are interested in Art - but Art is not interested in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/art-experts-are-unfailingly-opposed-to-art-for-the-simple-reason-that/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [Whenever you hear the word "inevitable", watch out! An enemy of humanity has identified himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/whenever-you-hear-the-word-inevitable-watch-out-an-enemy-of-humanity/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [Is it possible that I am not alone in believing that in the dispute between Galileo and the Church, the Church was right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/is-it-possible-that-i-am-not-alone-in-believing-that-in-the-dispute/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [Great writers are not those who tell us we shouldn’t play with fire, but those who make our fingers burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/great-writers-are-not-those-who-tell-us-we-shouldn-t-play-with-fire/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [To be great is to assume great concerns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/to-be-great-is-to-assume-great-concerns/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [We now have a whole culture based on the assumption that people know nothing and so anything can be said to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/we-now-have-a-whole-culture-based-on-the-assumption-that-people-know/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) > [“I made a resolution I would throw myself into the Danube if I didn't ask you to make love with me today.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vizinczey/i-made-a-resolution-i-would-throw-myself-into-the-danube-if-i-didn-t/) [Stephen Vizinczey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) [Explore all 31 Stephen Vizinczey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vizinczey/) ## More Alcoholics quotes > [Sometimes they were together so often that it felt as though they really were a couple; sometimes weeks and months would go by before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-they-were-together-so-often-that-it-felt-as-though-they/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I'm not an alcoholic, I am freedom fighter against the teetotal taliban.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-murray/i-m-not-an-alcoholic-i-am-freedom-fighter-against-the-teetotal-taliban/) [Al Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-murray/) > [If you decide on having an alcoholic at your party, make sure it's a large gathering. This way, until the alcoholic begins removing their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/if-you-decide-on-having-an-alcoholic-at-your-party-make-sure-it-s-a/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [I started drinking when I was like 15, and by the time I was 19 everybody knew I was an alcoholic. So I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-esparza/i-started-drinking-when-i-was-like-15-and-by-the-time-i-was-19/) [Felipe Esparza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-esparza/) > [There are plenty of alcoholics who can be magnificent when drunk: it does not make them any less alcoholic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingrid-bengis/there-are-plenty-of-alcoholics-who-can-be-magnificent-when-drunk-it/) [Ingrid Bengis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ingrid-bengis/) > [The idea that the creative endeavor and mind-altering substances are entwined is one of the great pop-intellectual myths of our time. ... Substance abusing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-idea-that-the-creative-endeavor-and-mind-altering-substances-are/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [It is most absurdly said, in popular language, of any man, that he is disguised in liquor; for, on the contrary, most men are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-de-quincey/it-is-most-absurdly-said-in-popular-language-of-any-man-that-he-is/) [Thomas de Quincey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-de-quincey/) > [“Your alcoholics may include some of your brightest stars. The problem is to identify them, protected as they always are by their secretaries and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ogilvy/your-alcoholics-may-include-some-of-your-brightest-stars-the-problem/) [David Ogilvy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ogilvy/) > [I haven't had an alcoholic drink in 22 years, but when I did drink I'd go for either Canadian whisky or Budweiser. Sometimes both.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-cooper/i-haven-t-had-an-alcoholic-drink-in-22-years-but-when-i-did-drink-i-d/) [Alice Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-cooper/) > [I got thrown out of Alcoholics because when the other clients saw me they thought they were having the DT's](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-dutton/i-got-thrown-out-of-alcoholics-because-when-the-other-clients-saw-me/) Dave Dutton > [I placed myself in amongst the animal kingdom so that I would be able to confront myself actually. It did not start out as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-treadwell/i-placed-myself-in-amongst-the-animal-kingdom-so-that-i-would-be-able/) [Timothy Treadwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-treadwell/) > [I don't like the word 'alcoholic'. I like to think of myself as an advanced drinker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/i-don-t-like-the-word-alcoholic-i-like-to-think-of-myself-as-an/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [I feel that people who haven't read my books and haven't heard me lecture - who don't in fact know what my work is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-feel-that-people-who-haven-t-read-my-books-and-haven-t-heard-me/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [When people who believe themselves to be addicts or alcoholics come under great stress or trauma, they mentally give themselves permission to drink or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-prentiss/when-people-who-believe-themselves-to-be-addicts-or-alcoholics-come/) [Chris Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-prentiss/) > [It took a great deal of acceptance to come to terms with being an alcoholic, but the acceptance was key to my sobriety. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-eckersley/it-took-a-great-deal-of-acceptance-to-come-to-terms-with-being-an/) [Dennis Eckersley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-eckersley/) [Browse all 377 Alcoholics quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alcoholics/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Most bad books get that way because their authors are engaged in trying to justify themselves. If a vain author is an alcoholic, then the most sympathetically portrayed character in his book will be an alcoholic. 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