--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Fiction basically is a form of gossip…" description: "\"Fiction basically is a form of gossip where you want to enter other people's lives, the lives of people you don't know, and you want to know what's goi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/vikram-seth-4208_fiction_fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-wh_2637056.jpg" --- # Fiction basically is a form of gossip where you want to… ![“Fiction basically is a form of gossip where you want to enter other people's lives, the lives of people you don't know, and you want to know what's going to happen to them.” quote by Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/vikram-seth-4208_fiction_fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-wh_2637056.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/vikram-seth-4208_fiction_fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-wh_2637056.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/vikram-seth-4208_fiction_fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-wh_2637056.jpg) > “Fiction basically is a form of gossip where you want to enter other people's lives, the lives of people you don't know, and you want to know what's going to happen to them.” [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fiction acts like gossip, letting us explore strangers’ lives and anticipate their futures. **In simple terms:** Fiction is gossip about unknown lives. Key Takeaway Embrace stories to broaden empathy. Themes storytelling empathy curiosity Mood curious engaged Type literary observational When to use this quote - reading clubs - creative writing - media analysis Key Concepts narrative human experience anticipation Questions to Reflect On - How does gossip‑like storytelling shape your worldview? - What responsibilities do authors have to their subjects? A Different Perspective Stories can reinforce stereotypes if not critical. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Gossip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gossip/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Don’t you dare scream. I do not want to end up as tonight’s gossip. But I do want to end up with some part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-frank/don-t-you-dare-scream-i-do-not-want-to-end-up-as-tonight-s-gossip-but/) [Ella Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-frank/) > [There's the fact that American fiction is basically the most apolitical fiction on the globe. A South American writer wouldn't dare think of writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cunningham/there-s-the-fact-that-american-fiction-is-basically-the-most/) [Michael Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cunningham/) > [Narrative, fiction filmmaking is the culmination of several art forms: theater, art history, architecture. Whereas doc filmmaking is more pure cinema, like cinema verité…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-hickenlooper/narrative-fiction-filmmaking-is-the-culmination-of-several-art-forms/) [George Hickenlooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-hickenlooper/) > [“A session of boasting won't attract any real friends.  It will set you up on a pedestal, however, making you a clearer target.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/a-session-of-boasting-won-t-attract-any-real-friends-it-will-set-you/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [I went straight from high school to 'Gossip Girl,' and both were very structured, scheduled environments, so I never had freedom to explore and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-lively/i-went-straight-from-high-school-to-gossip-girl-and-both-were-very/) [Blake Lively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-lively/) > [My mum, Olwen, was a bright and talkative woman who loved a gossip and a story and was given slightly to malapropisms. And she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jason/my-mum-olwen-was-a-bright-and-talkative-woman-who-loved-a-gossip-and/) [David Jason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jason/) > [Destroy gossip by ignoring it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariane-corbito/destroy-gossip-by-ignoring-it/) [Mariane Corbito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariane-corbito/) > [I don't at all like knowing what people say of me behind my back. It makes me far too conceited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-don-t-at-all-like-knowing-what-people-say-of-me-behind-my-back-it/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [There is no friendship that cares about an overheard secret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/there-is-no-friendship-that-cares-about-an-overheard-secret/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [Mechanical instruments, potentially a vehicle of rational human purposes, are scarcely a blessing when they enable the gossip of the village idiot and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-mumford/mechanical-instruments-potentially-a-vehicle-of-rational-human/) [Lewis Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-mumford/) > [Behind every word flows energy. If you use your words to gossip or babble about what you are going to do before you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-choquette/behind-every-word-flows-energy-if-you-use-your-words-to-gossip-or/) [Sonia Choquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-choquette/) > [Because the truth is that gossip is as good as gospel in this town. You can save face but you won't ever save your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-oberst/because-the-truth-is-that-gossip-is-as-good-as-gospel-in-this-town/) [Conor Oberst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-oberst/) > [“She was the goddess of gossip and rumor, not the goddess of thoroughly fact-checked information. Some people, Principal Zeus included, didn't seem to realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-holub-suzanne-williams/she-was-the-goddess-of-gossip-and-rumor-not-the-goddess-of-thoroughly/) Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams > [In every province, the chief occupations, in order of importance, are lovemaking, malicious gossip, and talking nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-province-the-chief-occupations-in-order-of-importance-are/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## More by Vikram Seth > [Realism hasn't fallen out of favor with most people, who are interested in people's lives rather than gymnastics of style or literary trends. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/realism-hasn-t-fallen-out-of-favor-with-most-people-who-are/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [I don't think anyone should be banned. If you don't like a book, set it aside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/i-don-t-think-anyone-should-be-banned-if-you-don-t-like-a-book-set-it/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [It's not the gods But our own hearts We need to fear. The evil starts Against all odds Not there but here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/it-s-not-the-gods-but-our-own-hearts-we-need-to-fear-the-evil-starts/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [“But what should I do?' Varun was saying. 'I'm not good for anything.' 'Write a book! Pull a rickshaw! Live! Don't make excuses,' said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/but-what-should-i-do-varun-was-saying-i-m-not-good-for-anything-write/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [“In a clear brook With joyful haste The whimsical trout Shot past me like an arrow I play the line of the song, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/in-a-clear-brook-with-joyful-haste-the-whimsical-trout-shot-past-me/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [Boredom provides a stronger inclination to write than anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/boredom-provides-a-stronger-inclination-to-write-than-anything/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [I don't think people give Indian society enough credit. We may not like to talk much about things but we do, basically, want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/i-don-t-think-people-give-indian-society-enough-credit-we-may-not/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [The problem with too beautiful a view is that it's alright for the mulling stage. But for the writing stage, you want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/the-problem-with-too-beautiful-a-view-is-that-it-s-alright-for-the/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [“Romantic retrospect aside, the night spent in the truck is distinctly unpleasant. We are cramped and cold. The much-vaunted heating of the truck is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/romantic-retrospect-aside-the-night-spent-in-the-truck-is-distinctly/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [Is it not love that knows how to make smooth things rough and rough things smooth?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/is-it-not-love-that-knows-how-to-make-smooth-things-rough-and-rough/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [“Well, what do you think? Avanti?" "Avanti," cries everyone, and, after a few quick re-tunings of our instruments, and re-initialisings of our hearts, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/well-what-do-you-think-avanti-avanti-cries-everyone-and-after-a-few/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [Behind every door on every ordinary street, in every hut in every ordinary village in this middling planet of a trivial star, such riches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/behind-every-door-on-every-ordinary-street-in-every-hut-in-every/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [“Perhaps it is true that for all the evidence of the mirror, one pictures oneself in some deep niche of the mind as forever 18.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/perhaps-it-is-true-that-for-all-the-evidence-of-the-mirror-one/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [What is the difference between my life and my love? One gets me low, the other lets me go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/what-is-the-difference-between-my-life-and-my-love-one-gets-me-low/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [“The past is the past, and he can't make amends, only hope that the gain will outlast the damage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/the-past-is-the-past-and-he-can-t-make-amends-only-hope-that-the-gain/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) [Explore all 113 Vikram Seth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) ## 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 > [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 > [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 > [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": "Fiction basically is a form of gossip where you want to enter other people's lives, the lives of people you don't know, and you want to know what's going to happen to them.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Vikram Seth" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-where-you-want-to-enter-other/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fiction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-where-you-want-to-enter-other/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/vikram-seth-4208_fiction_fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-wh_2637056.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/vikram-seth-4208_fiction_fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-wh_2637056.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/vikram-seth-4208_fiction_fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-wh_2637056.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Fiction basically is a form of gossip where you want to enter other people's lives, the lives of people you…” — Vikram Seth", "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": "Vikram Seth", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Fiction basically is a form of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-where-you-want-to-enter-other/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/fiction-basically-is-a-form-of-gossip-where-you-want-to-enter-other/#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 } } ] } ```