--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My own books drive themselves. I know…" description: "\"My own books drive themselves. I know roughly where a book is going to end, but essentially the story develops under my fingers. It's just a matter of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/terry-pratchett-19_book_my-own-books-drive-themselves-i-know-rou_832154.jpg" --- # My own books drive themselves. I know roughly where a book… ![“My own books drive themselves. I know roughly where a book is going to end, but essentially the story develops under my fingers. It's just a matter of joining the dots.” quote by Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/terry-pratchett-19_book_my-own-books-drive-themselves-i-know-rou_832154.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/terry-pratchett-19_book_my-own-books-drive-themselves-i-know-rou_832154.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/484/terry-pratchett-19_book_my-own-books-drive-themselves-i-know-rou_832154.jpg) > “My own books drive themselves. I know roughly where a book is going to end, but essentially the story develops under my fingers. It's just a matter of joining the dots.” [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## 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 feels the story unfolds organically, with a vague end in mind, guiding the narrative like connecting dots. **In simple terms:** Stories grow as you write, guided by intuition. Key Takeaway Trust the writing process. Themes creativity storytelling intuition process Mood inspirational reflective Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - writing - novel planning - creative workshops Key Concepts authorial control narrative development creative flow Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance planning and spontaneity? - When does intuition override outline? A Different Perspective Uncertainty can hinder confidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Drive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drive/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) ## Related quotes > [I like to sit down every day and not know where the book is going. I have no idea where the book is going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-bell/i-like-to-sit-down-every-day-and-not-know-where-the-book-is-going-i/) [Ted Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-bell/) > [I am rich because I sell a lot of books, but it's not my drive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-dukan/i-am-rich-because-i-sell-a-lot-of-books-but-it-s-not-my-drive/) [Pierre Dukan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-dukan/) > [“A central thesis then begins to emerge: man is in his actions and practice, as well as in his fictions, essentially a story-telling animal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-central-thesis-then-begins-to-emerge-man-is-in-his-actions-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Story is the oldest, commonest, most beloved, and most effective form of communication because our life is essentially a story. That's why the Bible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kreeft/story-is-the-oldest-commonest-most-beloved-and-most-effective-form-of/) [Peter Kreeft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kreeft/) > [Life is like a Book.Don't try to open my book if you are not going to read it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sushan-sharma/life-is-like-a-book-don-t-try-to-open-my-book-if-you-are-not-going-to/) [Sushan Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sushan-sharma/) > [When a book is going well, it tells you where to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/when-a-book-is-going-well-it-tells-you-where-to-go/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [Often they do go back and forth the whole way, and I don't know until the very end what the last line of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-rae-perkins/often-they-do-go-back-and-forth-the-whole-way-and-i-don-t-know-until/) [Lynne Rae Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-rae-perkins/) > [I wouldn't mind writing a long book which is going to occupy me for the rest of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/i-wouldn-t-mind-writing-a-long-book-which-is-going-to-occupy-me-for/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Usually I work out the plot before I start. 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I don't think I've ever written a book thinking, 'This will be bad and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-north/you-always-hope-a-book-s-going-to-be-a-success-i-don-t-think-i-ve/) [Ryan North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-north/) > [If you stay by the book, it's not always going to work. You've got to venture off a little bit. But you can't get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-cain/if-you-stay-by-the-book-it-s-not-always-going-to-work-you-ve-got-to/) [Matt Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-cain/) ## More by Terry Pratchett > [“This one’s mental.’ ‘Eccentric.’ ‘What’s the difference?’ ‘A bag of cash.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/this-one-s-mental-eccentric-what-s-the-difference-a-bag-of-cash/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“But I did not return until half past four this morning and I distinctly remember stubbing my toe on the stairs. I am as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/but-i-did-not-return-until-half-past-four-this-morning-and-i/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Someone broke from the scrum and, punching and kicking, staggered towards the Klatchian goal. "Isn't that man your butler?" said Ahmed. "Yes." "One of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/someone-broke-from-the-scrum-and-punching-and-kicking-staggered/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. 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And now it's full of young people.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/there-were-more-old-people-the-world-was-full-of-them-said-the-wizard/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Hobson was big and heavyset, but not exactly fat; he was probably what you’d get if you shaved a bear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/hobson-was-big-and-heavyset-but-not-exactly-fat-he-was-probably-what/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“There is a night that never comes to an end… The clock of the world turns under its own shadow. Midnight is a moving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/there-is-a-night-that-never-comes-to-an-end-the-clock-of-the-world/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“You'd like Freedom, Truth, and Justice, wouldn't you, Comrade Sergeant?' said Reg encouragingly. 'I'd like a hard-boiled egg,' said Vimes, shaking the match out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-d-like-freedom-truth-and-justice-wouldn-t-you-comrade-sergeant/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“You are not apprehensive, are you? I can't detect no trace of fear none whatsoever Roomy cranium all possible videos of all possible outcomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-are-not-apprehensive-are-you-i-can-t-detect-no-trace-of-fear-none/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Imagination, not intelligence, made us human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/imagination-not-intelligence-made-us-human/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) [Explore all 3,328 Terry Pratchett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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