--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I write fiction, there's no guarantee…" description: "\"I write fiction, there's no guarantee that what I say is truthful.\" — Steve Toltz" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5f/steve-toltz-3783_fiction_i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-tha_1611962.png" --- # I write fiction, there's no guarantee that what I say is… ![“I write fiction, there's no guarantee that what I say is truthful.” quote by Steve Toltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5f/steve-toltz-3783_fiction_i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-tha_1611962.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5f/steve-toltz-3783_fiction_i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-tha_1611962.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5f/steve-toltz-3783_fiction_i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-tha_1611962.png) > “I write fiction, there's no guarantee that what I say is truthful.” [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. Fiction may not be factual; the author acknowledges creative liberty and the nature of storytelling. **In simple terms:** Fiction isn’t always true. Key Takeaway Accept creative freedom in narratives. Themes fiction truth storytelling authorial intent literature Mood analytical thoughtful Type literary educational When to use this quote - novel writing - teaching literature - media criticism Key Concepts post‑modernism narrative theory creative writing Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate story from reality? - What responsibilities do authors have? A Different Perspective Readers may conflate fiction with fact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Fiction Guarantee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction-guarantee-6147830/) [Say Truthful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/say-truthful-2100975/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truthful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truthful/) [Write Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-fiction/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [If it is not truthful and not helpful, don't say it. If it is truthful and not helpful, don't say it. If it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/if-it-is-not-truthful-and-not-helpful-don-t-say-it-if-it-is-truthful/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [A lot of people would say, to be truthful is to tell all, every dalliance, every crisis. They might be right on paper, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-carolla/a-lot-of-people-would-say-to-be-truthful-is-to-tell-all-every/) [Adam Carolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-carolla/) > [I think the thing that connects everything I've done is that I'm just trying to say something truthful, wherever I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-amstell/i-think-the-thing-that-connects-everything-i-ve-done-is-that-i-m-just/) [Simon Amstell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-amstell/) > [Nothing factual that I write or say will be as truthful as my fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/nothing-factual-that-i-write-or-say-will-be-as-truthful-as-my-fiction/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [To Speak or NOT to Speak If it is not truthful and not helpful don't say it If it is Truthful and not helpful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/to-speak-or-not-to-speak-if-it-is-not-truthful-and-not-helpful-don-t/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [People are going to say, ‘Well, it’s not very truthful.’ But a songwriter doesn’t care about what’s truthful. What he cares about is what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/people-are-going-to-say-well-it-s-not-very-truthful-but-a-songwriter/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [I don't want to write poems that are just really clear about how I'm aware of all the traps involved in writing poetry; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lerner/i-don-t-want-to-write-poems-that-are-just-really-clear-about-how-i-m/) [Ben Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lerner/) > [Because I write fiction, I don't write autobiography, and to me they are very different things. The first-person narrative is a very intimate thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/because-i-write-fiction-i-don-t-write-autobiography-and-to-me-they/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [I remember reading an interview with a writer who said that in nonfiction if you have one lie it sort of messes it up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-remember-reading-an-interview-with-a-writer-who-said-that-in/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [Tell the truth about your wound, and then you will get a truthful picture of the remedy to apply to it. Don't pack whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/tell-the-truth-about-your-wound-and-then-you-will-get-a-truthful/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [I think what saved me is me being honest. I think I somewhow had the courage to do something and say something that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-degeneres/i-think-what-saved-me-is-me-being-honest-i-think-i-somewhow-had-the/) [Ellen DeGeneres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-degeneres/) > [Fiction is lies; we're writing about people who never existed and events that never happened when we write fiction, whether its science fiction or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin-2/fiction-is-lies-we-re-writing-about-people-who-never-existed-and/) [George R. R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin-2/) > [Wanted to write fiction since I was 11, since I first read 'In Our Time' by Hemingway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-heller/wanted-to-write-fiction-since-i-was-11-since-i-first-read-in-our-time/) [Peter Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-heller/) > [“Write non-fiction like fiction, so the reader is constantly turning the page to find out what happens next, and write fiction like non-fiction, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-robinson/write-non-fiction-like-fiction-so-the-reader-is-constantly-turning/) [Jeffrey Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-robinson/) > [If I write nothing but fiction for some time I begin to get stupid, and to feel rather as if it had been a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mary-yonge/if-i-write-nothing-but-fiction-for-some-time-i-begin-to-get-stupid/) [Charlotte Mary Yonge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mary-yonge/) ## 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 Fiction quotes > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) [Phil Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-hogan/) > [The thing about science fiction is that it's totally wide open. But it's wide open in a conditional way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/the-thing-about-science-fiction-is-that-it-s-totally-wide-open-but-it/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) > [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/) [Edward Einhorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-einhorn/) > [Fiction is a way of exploring possibilities present but undreamt of in the living of a single life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/fiction-is-a-way-of-exploring-possibilities-present-but-undreamt-of/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [I love writing fiction and can do it anywhere - I once even missed a flight because I was so engrossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/i-love-writing-fiction-and-can-do-it-anywhere-i-once-even-missed-a/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) > [“The fiction will seek the real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coheed-and-cambria/the-fiction-will-seek-the-real/) [Coheed and Cambria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coheed-and-cambria/) > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. Weatherly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-a-weatherly/) > [Inspiration comes from so many sources. Music, other fiction, the non-fiction I read, TV shows, films, news reports, people I know, stories I hear,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trudi-canavan/inspiration-comes-from-so-many-sources-music-other-fiction-the-non/) [Trudi Canavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trudi-canavan/) > [I'm not interested in making a diagnostic novel or a concern. I'm 100 percent committed in fiction to the pleasure principle - that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-m-not-interested-in-making-a-diagnostic-novel-or-a-concern-i-m-100/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“His hands on my waist he gently pulled me n embrace. I could feel his breath on my face our lips were about to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-eglinger/his-hands-on-my-waist-he-gently-pulled-me-n-embrace-i-could-feel-his/) [Nicole Eglinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-eglinger/) > [In early drafts, one of the trickiest things for me to do was to realize that the techniques and devices that make readable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/in-early-drafts-one-of-the-trickiest-things-for-me-to-do-was-to/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [I don't think it's always a sign of respect for persons (inside or outside of fiction) to pretend to be able to represent, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lerner/i-don-t-think-it-s-always-a-sign-of-respect-for-persons-inside-or/) [Ben Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lerner/) > [Metafiction says something. It has to do with taking a large fiction itself and writing within it; that kind of self-reflecting writing that emerges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coover/metafiction-says-something-it-has-to-do-with-taking-a-large-fiction/) [Robert Coover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-coover/) [Browse all 7,410 Fiction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I write fiction, there's no guarantee that what I say is truthful.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Steve Toltz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-that-what-i-say-is-truthful/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fiction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-that-what-i-say-is-truthful/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5f/steve-toltz-3783_fiction_i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-tha_1611962.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5f/steve-toltz-3783_fiction_i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-tha_1611962.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5f/steve-toltz-3783_fiction_i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-tha_1611962.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I write fiction, there's no guarantee that what I say is truthful.” — 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 write fiction, there's no guarantee...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-that-what-i-say-is-truthful/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-toltz/i-write-fiction-there-s-no-guarantee-that-what-i-say-is-truthful/#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 } } ] } ```