--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What happens if the writer is good is…" description: "\"“What happens if the writer is good is usually not that the work seems derivative or trivial but just the opposite: the work actually acquires depth an..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e3/thomas-c-foster-20469_books_what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-us_1494385.jpg" --- # What happens if the writer is good is usually not that the… ![“What happens if the writer is good is usually not that the work seems derivative or trivial but just the opposite: the work actually acquires depth and resonance from the echoes and chimes it sets up with prior texts, weight from the accumulated use of certain basic patterns and tendencies…” quote by Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e3/thomas-c-foster-20469_books_what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-us_1494385.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e3/thomas-c-foster-20469_books_what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-us_1494385.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e3/thomas-c-foster-20469_books_what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-us_1494385.jpg) > ““What happens if the writer is good is usually not that the work seems derivative or trivial but just the opposite: the work actually acquires depth and resonance from the echoes and chimes it sets up with prior texts, weight from the accumulated use of certain basic patterns and tendencies. Moreover, works are actually more comforting because we can recognize elements of them from our prior reading. I suspect that a wholly original work, one that owed nothing to previous writing, would so lack familiarity as to be quite unnerving to readers.”” [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Good writing gains depth by echoing familiar patterns, making it resonant and comforting rather than derivative. **In simple terms:** Echoes of past works add depth and comfort. Key Takeaway Embrace familiar literary patterns. Themes literary analysis comfort originality resonance familiarity Mood thoughtful analytical curious Type critical educational reflective When to use this quote - book clubs - creative writing workshops - literary criticism - teaching literature Key Concepts intertextuality cognitive fluency pattern recognition Questions to Reflect On - How do familiar patterns shape your reading experience? - Can a work be both original and resonant? A Different Perspective Pure originality may feel unsettling to readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“If you reshape yourself to fit a mold, then you are no longer an original work of art.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/if-you-reshape-yourself-to-fit-a-mold-then-you-are-no-longer-an/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [The only original part in a work of art is the infusion of the artist's own character, if he has one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-o-malley/the-only-original-part-in-a-work-of-art-is-the-infusion-of-the-artist/) [Austin O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-o-malley/) > [Original work has no floor and no ceiling. You can reach essentially zero readers or millions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-s-kemp/original-work-has-no-floor-and-no-ceiling-you-can-reach-essentially/) [Paul S. Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-s-kemp/) > [“very well represent a collected edition of these lumped together with the original work. It is also possible,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/very-well-represent-a-collected-edition-of-these-lumped-together-with/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [“If you re-shape yourself to fit a mold, then you are no longer an original work of art.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/if-you-re-shape-yourself-to-fit-a-mold-then-you-are-no-longer-an/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [“You were born an original work of art. Stay original.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/you-were-born-an-original-work-of-art-stay-original/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [What I've always seen in writers and artists is the courage it takes to make an original work of art. I think the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/what-i-ve-always-seen-in-writers-and-artists-is-the-courage-it-takes/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The print on canvas is the closest to the original work. I personally sign them as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-hickman/the-print-on-canvas-is-the-closest-to-the-original-work-i-personally/) [Dwayne Hickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-hickman/) > [Learn the duty as well as taste the pleasure of original work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-james-graves/learn-the-duty-as-well-as-taste-the-pleasure-of-original-work/) Robert James Graves > [Many years ago, Clement Greenberg said, 'All profoundly original work looks ugly at first.' This should be updated now to 'All profoundly ugly work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-darby-bannard/many-years-ago-clement-greenberg-said-all-profoundly-original-work/) [Walter Darby Bannard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-darby-bannard/) > [I really like the grittiness of early Amon Tobin - I'm a huge fan of his old music, and I tried to borrow from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deadmau5/i-really-like-the-grittiness-of-early-amon-tobin-i-m-a-huge-fan-of/) Deadmau5 > [I think translations should convey the feelings expressed in the original work. This is what I have believed in and practised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gulzar/i-think-translations-should-convey-the-feelings-expressed-in-the/) [Gulzar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gulzar/) > [Being a writer is a good, good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-hale/being-a-writer-is-a-good-good-thing/) [Shannon Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-hale/) > [You can't be a good writer without being a good thinker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/you-can-t-be-a-good-writer-without-being-a-good-thinker/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [“Honestly,” he says, “I judge writers on how they write queries. If you’re a good writer, you’re a good writer.” And if not, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-gessen/honestly-he-says-i-judge-writers-on-how-they-write-queries-if-you-re/) [Keith Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-gessen/) ## More by Thomas C. Foster > [“I can’t go as far as Barthes in killing off the author, but I’m with him on the importance of the reader. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/i-can-t-go-as-far-as-barthes-in-killing-off-the-author-but-i-m-with/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“of his need to assert responsibility for his own life. It may be that Adela does panic in the face of Nothingness, only recovering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/of-his-need-to-assert-responsibility-for-his-own-life-it-may-be-that/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“When it's over, we may feel wooed, adored, appreciated, or abused, but it will have been an affair to remember.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/when-it-s-over-we-may-feel-wooed-adored-appreciated-or-abused-but-it/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“The novels we read allow us to encounter possible persons, versions of ourselves hat we would never see, never permit ourselves to see, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/the-novels-we-read-allow-us-to-encounter-possible-persons-versions-of/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“Education is mostly about institutions and getting tickets stamped; learning is what we do for ourselves. When we're lucky, they go together. If I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/education-is-mostly-about-institutions-and-getting-tickets-stamped/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“The novels we read allow us to encounter possible persons, visions of ourselves that we would never see, never permit ourselves to become, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/the-novels-we-read-allow-us-to-encounter-possible-persons-visions-of/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“we accept fictions as fictions, as things that might be true in their world, if not quite in ours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/we-accept-fictions-as-fictions-as-things-that-might-be-true-in-their/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“We sometimes hear of the death of literature or of this or that genre, but literature doesn't die, just as it doesn't 'progress' or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/we-sometimes-hear-of-the-death-of-literature-or-of-this-or-that-genre/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“corollaries—where have I seen his face, don’t I know that”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/corollaries-where-have-i-seen-his-face-don-t-i-know-that/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“Always" and "never" are not words that have much meaning in literary study. For one thing, as soon as something seems to always be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/always-and-never-are-not-words-that-have-much-meaning-in-literary/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“characters as rich and complex as those we believe ourselves to be”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/characters-as-rich-and-complex-as-those-we-believe-ourselves-to-be/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“So how do we get from there to a pattern of experience that can stand for the whole of postcolonial Latin America? Ah, our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/so-how-do-we-get-from-there-to-a-pattern-of-experience-that-can-stand/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“Every novel is brand-new. It’s never been written before in the history of the world. At the same time, it’s merely the latest in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/every-novel-is-brand-new-it-s-never-been-written-before-in-the/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“The process of dehuminazing the locals was under way, and it had very little to do with veracity. The Puritan narratives would continue that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/the-process-of-dehuminazing-the-locals-was-under-way-and-it-had-very/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) > [“A novel is a made-up work about made-up people in a made-up place, all of which is very real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/a-novel-is-a-made-up-work-about-made-up-people-in-a-made-up-place-all/) [Thomas C. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) [Explore all 29 Thomas C. Foster quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/) ## More Books 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/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“What happens if the writer is good is usually not that the work seems derivative or trivial but just the opposite: the work actually acquires depth and resonance from the echoes and chimes it sets up with prior texts, weight from the accumulated use of certain basic patterns and tendencies. Moreover, works are actually more comforting because we can recognize elements of them from our prior reading. I suspect that a wholly original work, one that owed nothing to previous writing, would so lack familiarity as to be quite unnerving to readers.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas C. Foster" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-usually-not-that-the-work-seems/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-usually-not-that-the-work-seems/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e3/thomas-c-foster-20469_books_what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-us_1494385.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e3/thomas-c-foster-20469_books_what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-us_1494385.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e3/thomas-c-foster-20469_books_what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-us_1494385.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What happens if the writer is good is usually not that the work seems derivative or trivial but just the…” — Thomas C. Foster", "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": "Thomas C. Foster", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-c-foster/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“What happens if the writer is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-usually-not-that-the-work-seems/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-c-foster/what-happens-if-the-writer-is-good-is-usually-not-that-the-work-seems/#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 } } ] } ```