--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Writing is really a way of thinking--not…" description: "\"Writing is really a way of thinking--not just feeling but thinking about things that are disparate, unresolved, mysterious, problematic or just sweet.\"..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77c/toni-morrison-271_feelings_writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not_1809636.jpg" --- # Writing is really a way of thinking--not just feeling but… ![“Writing is really a way of thinking--not just feeling but thinking about things that are disparate, unresolved, mysterious, problematic or just sweet.” quote by Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77c/toni-morrison-271_feelings_writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not_1809636.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77c/toni-morrison-271_feelings_writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not_1809636.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77c/toni-morrison-271_feelings_writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not_1809636.jpg) > “Writing is really a way of thinking--not just feeling but thinking about things that are disparate, unresolved, mysterious, problematic or just sweet.” [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. Writing serves as a tool for organizing and examining complex, unresolved ideas, not merely expressing emotions. **In simple terms:** Writing helps clarify confusing thoughts. Key Takeaway Use writing to explore and structure difficult concepts. Themes creativity analysis reflection Mood introspective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - journaling - research papers - creative writing workshops - personal essays Key Concepts cognitive processing artistic expression problem solving Questions to Reflect On - How does writing change your perception of a problem? - What topics do you avoid writing about? A Different Perspective Writing alone cannot resolve issues without action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The feeling that while you are thinking of him, he is also thinking someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/no-voice/the-feeling-that-while-you-are-thinking-of-him-he-is-also-thinking/) NO VOICE > [I want to draw and study a few things closely by feeling, not thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-milner/i-want-to-draw-and-study-a-few-things-closely-by-feeling-not-thinking/) [Marion Milner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-milner/) > [“Before seeing, before feeling, and before thinking: What is the mind?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kusan-sunim/before-seeing-before-feeling-and-before-thinking-what-is-the-mind/) Kusan Sunim > [Sometimes feeling and thinking are one and the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/sometimes-feeling-and-thinking-are-one-and-the-same/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [It is less fun to talk about what I am feeling rather than what I am thinking. Saying 'I feel awesome' isn't really interesting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-catton/it-is-less-fun-to-talk-about-what-i-am-feeling-rather-than-what-i-am/) [Eleanor Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-catton/) > [Nine times out of ten if you have that feeling and you thinking it thats what it is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nine-times-out-of-ten-if-you-have-that-feeling-and-you-thinking-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Feeling is what you get for thinking the way you do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-vos-savant/feeling-is-what-you-get-for-thinking-the-way-you-do/) [Marilyn vos Savant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-vos-savant/) > [Feeling and thinking are directly proportional to each other and inseparable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/feeling-and-thinking-are-directly-proportional-to-each-other-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm aware that as much as people like hearing and listening to my music, it's also very therapeutic for me to be able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/little-simz/i-m-aware-that-as-much-as-people-like-hearing-and-listening-to-my/) [Little Simz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/little-simz/) > [I wasn't in control of my destiny, feeling empty thinking wheres the rest of me, gotta make it but I need the recipe, tellin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-wasn-t-in-control-of-my-destiny-feeling-empty-thinking-wheres-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [One of the great things going on right now is social media and you get a real sense, immediately, about what people are feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-piven/one-of-the-great-things-going-on-right-now-is-social-media-and-you/) [Jeremy Piven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-piven/) > [Feeling and thinking are actually the blind man who carries the lame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/feeling-and-thinking-are-actually-the-blind-man-who-carries-the-lame/) [Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/) > [“I think, One of these things is not like the other, and it is a haunting, lonely feeling, thinking you don’t belong with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/i-think-one-of-these-things-is-not-like-the-other-and-it-is-a/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [I travel a lot, so when I arrive in a city, I like to go to good local bookshops and make a selection based…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ono/i-travel-a-lot-so-when-i-arrive-in-a-city-i-like-to-go-to-good-local/) [Yoko Ono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ono/) > [In the real life-process, willing, feeling, and thinking are only different aspects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-dilthey/in-the-real-life-process-willing-feeling-and-thinking-are-only/) [Wilhelm Dilthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-dilthey/) ## 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 Feelings quotes > [I have a strong feeling about this quick movement and changing of society and populations growing - something scary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiroshi-sugimoto/i-have-a-strong-feeling-about-this-quick-movement-and-changing-of/) [Hiroshi Sugimoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiroshi-sugimoto/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [We never realize the importance of any our action until we be the hunt of same situation in reaction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fadi/we-never-realize-the-importance-of-any-our-action-until-we-be-the/) [Fadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fadi/) > [Sometimes we wish for the feel but we never understand that we have to give a lot to get the feel !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reynolds/sometimes-we-wish-for-the-feel-but-we-never-understand-that-we-have/) [Robert Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reynolds/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [My feeling has always been that 'Good Eats' would have never happened had it been left to a committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/my-feeling-has-always-been-that-good-eats-would-have-never-happened/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) > [Jobs and money are never the primary cause of stress. Thinking, negative thinking causes stress. The real cause of all problems lie in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/jobs-and-money-are-never-the-primary-cause-of-stress-thinking/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [If someone really loves you, no matter how many other people they meet, their feelings for you wouldn't change. A real lover cant be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-someone-really-loves-you-no-matter-how-many-other-people-they-meet/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [“I urge you: don't cut short these thought-trains of yours. Follow them through to their end. Your thoughts and your feelings. Follow them through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/i-urge-you-don-t-cut-short-these-thought-trains-of-yours-follow-them/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [Good girls don't hurt other people's feelings. Good girls are not overly aggressive, competitive, or boastful. Good girls please others. But what good girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jane-gilman/good-girls-don-t-hurt-other-people-s-feelings-good-girls-are-not/) [Susan Jane Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jane-gilman/) > [You will never fully understand how much you mean to me, because there are no amount of words that can begin to describe my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-fully-understand-how-much-you-mean-to-me-because-there/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) [Browse all 21,172 Feelings quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Writing is really a way of thinking--not just feeling but thinking about things that are disparate, unresolved, mysterious, problematic or just sweet.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Toni Morrison" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not-just-feeling-but-thinking/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Feelings" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not-just-feeling-but-thinking/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77c/toni-morrison-271_feelings_writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not_1809636.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77c/toni-morrison-271_feelings_writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not_1809636.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77c/toni-morrison-271_feelings_writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not_1809636.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Writing is really a way of thinking--not just feeling but thinking about things that are disparate…” — Toni Morrison", "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": "Toni Morrison", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Writing is really a way of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not-just-feeling-but-thinking/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/writing-is-really-a-way-of-thinking-not-just-feeling-but-thinking/#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 } } ] } ```