--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The formula for creative writing in high…" description: "\"The formula for creative writing in high school or college is write what you know.\" — Toni Morrison" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/427/toni-morrison-271_college_the-formula-for-creative-writing-in-high_2382577.jpg" --- # The formula for creative writing in high school or college… ![“The formula for creative writing in high school or college is write what you know.” quote by Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/427/toni-morrison-271_college_the-formula-for-creative-writing-in-high_2382577.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/427/toni-morrison-271_college_the-formula-for-creative-writing-in-high_2382577.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/427/toni-morrison-271_college_the-formula-for-creative-writing-in-high_2382577.jpg) > “The formula for creative writing in high school or college is write what you know.” [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She advises writers to draw on personal experience, suggesting authenticity and depth arise from writing what one knows. **In simple terms:** Write from personal experience. Key Takeaway Leverage own life in writing. Themes writing creativity education Mood instructional encouraging Type education creative When to use this quote - college essays - fiction - personal memoir - journalism Key Concepts literary theory authenticity Questions to Reflect On - How can you expand beyond familiar subjects? - When is research necessary? A Different Perspective Limiting to known topics may restrict imagination. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [College](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/college/) [Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) [Creative writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-writing/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [High school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The formula for creative writing in high school or college is write what you know. And I said they don't know nothing. Imagine something.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/the-formula-for-creative-writing-in-high-school-or-college-is-write/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [I don't believe in writer's block. Think about it - when you were blocked in college and had to write a paper, didn't it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-don-t-believe-in-writer-s-block-think-about-it-when-you-were/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [There are a lot of smart people being really thoughtful and writing really interesting things, but that isn't what I want to do. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ottessa-moshfegh/there-are-a-lot-of-smart-people-being-really-thoughtful-and-writing/) [Ottessa Moshfegh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ottessa-moshfegh/) > [When I was in college, I could only write on a WordPerfect program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bock/when-i-was-in-college-i-could-only-write-on-a-wordperfect-program/) [Charles Bock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bock/) > [Creative writing teachers should be purged until every last instructor who has uttered the words 'Write what you know' is confined to a labor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/creative-writing-teachers-should-be-purged-until-every-last/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [“Nothing is sillier than the creative writing teacher's dictum "Write about what you know." But whether you're writing about people or dragons, your personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/nothing-is-sillier-than-the-creative-writing-teacher-s-dictum-write/) [John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/) > [Start dating someone who is funny, someone who has what in high school you called a "really great sense of humor" and what now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorrie-moore/start-dating-someone-who-is-funny-someone-who-has-what-in-high-school/) [Lorrie Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorrie-moore/) > [People say to write about what you know. I'm here to tell you, no one wants to read that, cos you don't know anything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/people-say-to-write-about-what-you-know-i-m-here-to-tell-you-no-one/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [I don't want you to write about what you know, because you don't know anything. I don't want to hear about your boyfriend or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/i-don-t-want-you-to-write-about-what-you-know-because-you-don-t-know/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [The maker of a sentence launches out into the infinite and builds a road into Chaos and old Night, and is followed by those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-maker-of-a-sentence-launches-out-into-the-infinite-and-builds-a/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [All the elements of good writing depend on the writer's skill in choosing one word instead of another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-prose/all-the-elements-of-good-writing-depend-on-the-writer-s-skill-in/) [Francine Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-prose/) > [Metaphors are not user-friendly. They're difficult to find and difficult to use well. Unfortunately, metaphors are a mainstay of good lyric writing-indeed of most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-pattison/metaphors-are-not-user-friendly-they-re-difficult-to-find-and/) [Pat Pattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-pattison/) > [I really think that if there's any one enemy to human creativity, especially creative writing, it's self-consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-dubus/i-really-think-that-if-there-s-any-one-enemy-to-human-creativity/) [Andre Dubus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-dubus/) > [A creative writing workshop will contain students whose ambitions and abilities, whose conceptions of literature itself, are so diverse that what they have in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/a-creative-writing-workshop-will-contain-students-whose-ambitions-and/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [I've always written. When I was in school, the only teacher who ever liked me was my creative writing teacher. I used to enter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-townes-earle/i-ve-always-written-when-i-was-in-school-the-only-teacher-who-ever/) [Justin Townes Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-townes-earle/) ## More by Toni Morrison > [Perhaps that's what all human relationships boiled down to: Would you save my life? or would you take it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/perhaps-that-s-what-all-human-relationships-boiled-down-to-would-you/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [There, in the center of that silence was not eternity but the death of time and a loneliness so profound the word itself had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-center-of-that-silence-was-not-eternity-but-the-death-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [In times of dread, artists must never choose to remain silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/in-times-of-dread-artists-must-never-choose-to-remain-silent/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Not know it was hard;knowing it was harder”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/not-know-it-was-hard-knowing-it-was-harder/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Didn’t everything on God’s earth have or acquire defense?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/didn-t-everything-on-god-s-earth-have-or-acquire-defense/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [If you can't count, they can cheat you. If you can't read, they can beat you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/if-you-can-t-count-they-can-cheat-you-if-you-can-t-read-they-can-beat/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You looked at them and wondered why the were so ugly; you looked closely and could not find the source. Then you realized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-looked-at-them-and-wondered-why-the-were-so-ugly-you-looked/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [All she saw, down in the cellar well beneath the stoop, was a light yellow feather with a tip of green. And she had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/all-she-saw-down-in-the-cellar-well-beneath-the-stoop-was-a-light/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [For me, Art is the restoration of order. It may discuss all sort of terrible things, but there must be satisfaction at the end.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/for-me-art-is-the-restoration-of-order-it-may-discuss-all-sort-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“To Sethe, the future was a matter of keeping the past at bay”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/to-sethe-the-future-was-a-matter-of-keeping-the-past-at-bay/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Hate does that. Burns off everything but itself, so whatever your grievance is, your face looks just like your enemy's.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/hate-does-that-burns-off-everything-but-itself-so-whatever-your/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You know how a star is supposed to twinkle? We say twinkle because that is how it looks, but when a star feels itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-know-how-a-star-is-supposed-to-twinkle-we-say-twinkle-because/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“There is no bad luck in the world but whitefolks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-is-no-bad-luck-in-the-world-but-whitefolks/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [My father saw two black men lynched on his street in Cartersville, as a child. And I think seeing two black businessmen - not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/my-father-saw-two-black-men-lynched-on-his-street-in-cartersville-as/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“She was fierce in the presence of death, heroic even, as she was at no other time. Its threat gave her direction, clarity, audacity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/she-was-fierce-in-the-presence-of-death-heroic-even-as-she-was-at-no/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) [Explore all 774 Toni Morrison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## More College quotes > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [My first ever job after college was as a flight attendant. 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I do believe that young adults go to college to learn things, and that this process will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-weingarten/i-do-not-believe-in-public-shaming-i-do-believe-that-young-adults-go/) [Gene Weingarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-weingarten/) > [Some people, you know, should just go to college and do what they do and have a great job and not worry about trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-legend/some-people-you-know-should-just-go-to-college-and-do-what-they-do/) [John Legend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-legend/) > [Children should finish school and even go to college if they can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fuller/children-should-finish-school-and-even-go-to-college-if-they-can/) [Robert Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fuller/) > [I was totally sober in college and really, really focused. I just took the time when other people might be partying and just made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-flay/i-was-totally-sober-in-college-and-really-really-focused-i-just-took/) [K. Flay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-flay/) > [In college we didn't pass block the way they do in the pros - they played the I-formation at Wisconsin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-webster/in-college-we-didn-t-pass-block-the-way-they-do-in-the-pros-they/) [Mike Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-webster/) > [Plant flowers in others' gardens and your life becomes a bouquet! Submitted by Lisa Letto, Coordinator, Nutrition Resource and Volunteer Centre, College of Pharmacy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/plant-flowers-in-others-gardens-and-your-life-becomes-a-bouquet/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [The number of poor, and poorly prepared, students who succeed in college and beyond undercuts the simplistic notion that economic or educational disadvantage is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-merullo/the-number-of-poor-and-poorly-prepared-students-who-succeed-in/) [Roland Merullo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-merullo/) > [Doing away with separate black colleges meets resistance from alumni and other blacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/constance-baker-motley/doing-away-with-separate-black-colleges-meets-resistance-from-alumni/) [Constance Baker Motley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/constance-baker-motley/) > [My son going to college is a big milestone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gore/my-son-going-to-college-is-a-big-milestone/) [Frank Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gore/) > [The reason I got into acting was not to explore myself. 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