--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't have a great respect for reality…" description: "\"I don't have a great respect for reality or getting the 'facts' as a means of putting together a story.\" — Steve Toltz" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c22/steve-toltz-3783_facts_i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality_882423.png" --- # I don't have a great respect for reality or getting the… ![“I don't have a great respect for reality or getting the 'facts' as a means of putting together a story.” quote by Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c22/steve-toltz-3783_facts_i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality_882423.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c22/steve-toltz-3783_facts_i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality_882423.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c22/steve-toltz-3783_facts_i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality_882423.png) > “I don't have a great respect for reality or getting the 'facts' as a means of putting together a story.” [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author doubts that factual accuracy is essential for storytelling, valuing imagination over literal truth. **In simple terms:** Facts aren’t necessary for a good story. Key Takeaway Prioritize narrative truth over factual detail. Themes truth storytelling imagination reality skepticism Mood critical curious Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - journalism - fiction writing - advertising - political speech Key Concepts narrative theory creative liberty subjective truth Questions to Reflect On - When is factual accuracy crucial? - How does imagination shape perception? A Different Perspective Overreliance on imagination can mislead audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Great respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-respect/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) ## Related quotes > [“The problem of teaching, therefore, is getting not the facts but the context from my brain to yours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-a-bowen/the-problem-of-teaching-therefore-is-getting-not-the-facts-but-the/) Jose A. Bowen > [When you're getting your facts from people, consider the way that they are being given to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-f-tompkins/when-you-re-getting-your-facts-from-people-consider-the-way-that-they/) [Paul F. Tompkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-f-tompkins/) > [“For me, the heart of Christianity is, a sincere respect of reality in God's creation, purpose and redemptive work in Christ.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-o-ryan/for-me-the-heart-of-christianity-is-a-sincere-respect-of-reality-in/) Barry O'Ryan > [No one's telling Tarantino what to do. You might like it or you might not like it, but the reality is he's getting his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-shaffir/no-one-s-telling-tarantino-what-to-do-you-might-like-it-or-you-might/) [Ari Shaffir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-shaffir/) > [“Getting older is reality, but getting old does not have to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-stanley/getting-older-is-reality-but-getting-old-does-not-have-to-be/) Carol Stanley > [You hear about these shows where there are all these women are supposedly always in a catfight, and then you find out in reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanne-tripplehorn/you-hear-about-these-shows-where-there-are-all-these-women-are/) [Jeanne Tripplehorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanne-tripplehorn/) > [If you know how much reality is getting in, then you know a great deal about what a person sees to be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-j-lieberman/if-you-know-how-much-reality-is-getting-in-then-you-know-a-great-deal/) [David J. Lieberman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-j-lieberman/) > [“Self respect and reality is tough rival when it comes to balance it honestly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ankit-samrat/self-respect-and-reality-is-tough-rival-when-it-comes-to-balance-it/) [Ankit Samrat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ankit-samrat/) > [“Appreciate her beauty, love her uniqueness and respect her reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/appreciate-her-beauty-love-her-uniqueness-and-respect-her-reality/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [The reality is that if you want to be in a reality-based community, you've got to respect reality and that means calling it bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hodgman/the-reality-is-that-if-you-want-to-be-in-a-reality-based-community/) [John Hodgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hodgman/) > [His (the theologian) basic instinct of self preservation forbids him to respect reality at any point or even to let it get a word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/his-the-theologian-basic-instinct-of-self-preservation-forbids-him-to/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [I've learned how to look at things and not judge them, but respect them and use it in a way that people understand that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-e-fresh/i-ve-learned-how-to-look-at-things-and-not-judge-them-but-respect/) [Doug E. Fresh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-e-fresh/) > [I am sure that, on the one hand, the Rothschilds appreciate the merits of Marx, and that on the other hand, Marx feels an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/i-am-sure-that-on-the-one-hand-the-rothschilds-appreciate-the-merits/) [Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/) > [Lamar Odom is a guy we have great respect for as a person and as an all-around player in this league.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-carlisle/lamar-odom-is-a-guy-we-have-great-respect-for-as-a-person-and-as-an/) [Rick Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-carlisle/) > [I have great respect for Icardi and what he's done for football and Galatasaray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-osimhen/i-have-great-respect-for-icardi-and-what-he-s-done-for-football-and/) [Victor Osimhen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-osimhen/) ## More by Steve Toltz > [ “To my horror principles have wormed their way into \[the\] fabric of my being.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/to-my-horror-principles-have-wormed-their-way-into-the-fabric-of-my/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [I'm not sure if I always wanted to be a writer, but I was always writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-m-not-sure-if-i-always-wanted-to-be-a-writer-but-i-was-always/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [“The problem is most of the time when God’s supposed to be the hero, he comes across as the villain. I mean, look at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/the-problem-is-most-of-the-time-when-god-s-supposed-to-be-the-hero-he/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [ \[I'll teach you\] how not to leave the windows of your heart open when it looks like rain and how everyone has a stump… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-ll-teach-you-how-not-to-leave-the-windows-of-your-heart-open-when/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [...I thought how I hate any kind of mob - I hate mobs of sports fans, mobs of environmental demonstrators, I even hate mobs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-thought-how-i-hate-any-kind-of-mob-i-hate-mobs-of-sports-fans-mobs/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [I was in the hospital and I was paralyzed and I went through all of these things. I've had all of these crazy experiences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-was-in-the-hospital-and-i-was-paralyzed-and-i-went-through-all-of/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [Let’s not mince words: the inside of the Sydney casino looks as if Vegas had an illegitimate child with Liberace’s underpants, and that child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/let-s-not-mince-words-the-inside-of-the-sydney-casino-looks-as-if/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [Optimism isn't funny unless you are laughing at the person, whereas extreme pessimism is extremely funny. It's exaggeration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/optimism-isn-t-funny-unless-you-are-laughing-at-the-person-whereas/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [There's nothing perplexing to me about a leafy shrub evolving out of the big bang, but that the post office exists because carbon exploded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/there-s-nothing-perplexing-to-me-about-a-leafy-shrub-evolving-out-of/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [The game is an analogy for life: there are not enough chairs or good times to go around, not enough food, not enough joy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/the-game-is-an-analogy-for-life-there-are-not-enough-chairs-or-good/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [“Don't touch me, you fat ghost!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/don-t-touch-me-you-fat-ghost/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [Raymond Chandler I love a lot, and the Austrian writer Thomas Bernhard. I really love his voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/raymond-chandler-i-love-a-lot-and-the-austrian-writer-thomas-bernhard/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [The universe doesn't really care if you bounce back. It doesn't feel that weird to write about paralysis or being in hospital or losing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/the-universe-doesn-t-really-care-if-you-bounce-back-it-doesn-t-feel/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [“The world's not falling apart imperceptibly anymore, these days it makes a loud shredding noise!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/the-world-s-not-falling-apart-imperceptibly-anymore-these-days-it/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) > [“Sex: the match that sets off human firework.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/sex-the-match-that-sets-off-human-firework/) [Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) [Explore all 119 Steve Toltz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/) ## More Facts quotes > [It is indeed a surprising and fortunate fact that nature can be expressed by relatively low-order mathematical functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-carnap/it-is-indeed-a-surprising-and-fortunate-fact-that-nature-can-be/) [Rudolf Carnap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-carnap/) > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [He bombarded me with words, of all things, apparently clueless to the fact that the predawn hours rendered me incapable of coherent thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darynda-jones/he-bombarded-me-with-words-of-all-things-apparently-clueless-to-the/) [Darynda Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darynda-jones/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [I am told many children block out the memory of trauma. In fact, the healing process can only truly begin when we are willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-stone/i-am-told-many-children-block-out-the-memory-of-trauma-in-fact-the/) [Phoebe Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-stone/) > [Because the truth is that gossip is as good as gospel in this town. You can save face but you won't ever save your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-oberst/because-the-truth-is-that-gossip-is-as-good-as-gospel-in-this-town/) [Conor Oberst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-oberst/) > [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/) C-DASH > [We did an episode where she goes out to get a job and she gets fired because she's not good. They hire a babysitter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-heaton/we-did-an-episode-where-she-goes-out-to-get-a-job-and-she-gets-fired/) [Patricia Heaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-heaton/) > [Le biologiste passe, la grenouille reste. The biologist passes, the frog remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/le-biologiste-passe-la-grenouille-reste-the-biologist-passes-the-frog/) [Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/) [George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/) [Browse all 19,906 Facts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I don't have a great respect for reality or getting the 'facts' as a means of putting together a story.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Steve Toltz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality-or-getting-the-facts-as-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Facts" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality-or-getting-the-facts-as-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c22/steve-toltz-3783_facts_i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality_882423.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c22/steve-toltz-3783_facts_i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality_882423.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c22/steve-toltz-3783_facts_i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality_882423.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I don't have a great respect for reality or getting the 'facts' as a means of putting together a story.” — Steve Toltz", "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": "Steve Toltz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-toltz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I don't have a great respect...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality-or-getting-the-facts-as-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-don-t-have-a-great-respect-for-reality-or-getting-the-facts-as-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 } } ] } ```