--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I always thought of writing as public, I…" description: "\"I always thought of writing as public, I never thought of writing a diary. I had been struck by, jolted by things I had read, and I wanted to do the sa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/vito-acconci-13895_autobiography_i-always-thought-of-writing-as-public-i_2685029.jpg" --- # I always thought of writing as public, I never thought of… ![“I always thought of writing as public, I never thought of writing a diary. I had been struck by, jolted by things I had read, and I wanted to do the same to others. I don't think it ever was the notion of an autobiography; I skipped that phase totally, I think.” quote by Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/vito-acconci-13895_autobiography_i-always-thought-of-writing-as-public-i_2685029.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/vito-acconci-13895_autobiography_i-always-thought-of-writing-as-public-i_2685029.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/vito-acconci-13895_autobiography_i-always-thought-of-writing-as-public-i_2685029.jpg) > “I always thought of writing as public, I never thought of writing a diary. I had been struck by, jolted by things I had read, and I wanted to do the same to others. I don't think it ever was the notion of an autobiography; I skipped that phase totally, I think.” [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing is a public act meant to impact others, not a private diary; the author seeks to provoke and share ideas. **In simple terms:** Writing aims to affect others, not just record self. Key Takeaway Write to engage and challenge readers. Themes public art communication authorship expression literature Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - public installations - literary workshops - community projects - educational curricula Key Concepts public sphere creative intent audience interaction Questions to Reflect On - What responsibility does a writer have to their audience? - How can you balance personal voice with public impact? A Different Perspective Some audiences may resist or misinterpret provocative content. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Autobiography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiography/) [Diaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diaries/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The very idea of printing my diary has always struck me as completely superficial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-cohen/the-very-idea-of-printing-my-diary-has-always-struck-me-as-completely/) [Andy Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-cohen/) > [Writing my own diary is the best form of remembrance, but only for my own use. I need these notes; it's like an impulse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/writing-my-own-diary-is-the-best-form-of-remembrance-but-only-for-my/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [Writing in a diary is a really strange experience for someone like me. Not only because I’ve never written anything before, but also because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-frank/writing-in-a-diary-is-a-really-strange-experience-for-someone-like-me-3/) [Anne Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-frank/) > [Writing a diary every evening before going to bed is a good habit. We can record in the diary how much time we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/writing-a-diary-every-evening-before-going-to-bed-is-a-good-habit-we/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [And the reason I am so nervous is that everything I do now is leading me to one of three possible futures... Which one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolfo-bioy-casares/and-the-reason-i-am-so-nervous-is-that-everything-i-do-now-is-leading/) [Adolfo Bioy Casares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolfo-bioy-casares/) > [“My advice is to write in the nude. Unless you do your writing in a public restroom, and in that case, I’d recommend wearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/my-advice-is-to-write-in-the-nude-unless-you-do-your-writing-in-a/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [We have a reading, a talking, and a writing public. When shall we have a thinking?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marguerite-gardiner-countess-of-blessington/we-have-a-reading-a-talking-and-a-writing-public-when-shall-we-have-a/) [Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marguerite-gardiner-countess-of-blessington/) > [I often need physical gesture to balance dialogue. If I write in public, every time I need to know what a character is doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/i-often-need-physical-gesture-to-balance-dialogue-if-i-write-in/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Do not let any record company disturb your creative flow. You are not writing for the record company. You're writing for the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grandmaster-flash/do-not-let-any-record-company-disturb-your-creative-flow-you-are-not/) [Grandmaster Flash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grandmaster-flash/) > [“Most words come into being first in speech, then in private writing, and then in public, published writing, which means that if the date…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kory-stamper/most-words-come-into-being-first-in-speech-then-in-private-writing/) [Kory Stamper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kory-stamper/) > [Once you research an idea, you begin to develop a perspective. Writing about anything in public, often in real time, has helped fashion my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/once-you-research-an-idea-you-begin-to-develop-a-perspective-writing/) [Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/) > [For me, writing in public is actually super energizing and so much fun. Especially when writing can typically be really painful and certainly hard,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sloan/for-me-writing-in-public-is-actually-super-energizing-and-so-much-fun/) [Robin Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sloan/) > [Writing in public gives you that access to a junkyard of details all around you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/writing-in-public-gives-you-that-access-to-a-junkyard-of-details-all/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [I write for kids because I think the most interesting (and most humorous) stories come from people's childhoods. When I was writing 'Diary of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-write-for-kids-because-i-think-the-most-interesting-and-most/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [My mother had always taught me to write about my feelings instead of sharing really personal things with others, so I spent many evenings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-guisewite/my-mother-had-always-taught-me-to-write-about-my-feelings-instead-of/) [Cathy Guisewite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-guisewite/) ## More by Vito Acconci > [I like Richard Serra sculptures too but I wish they had a goddamn hot dog stand inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/i-like-richard-serra-sculptures-too-but-i-wish-they-had-a-goddamn-hot/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [It was an incredible way to grow up, because words that you're taught - these definite things - you realize they sort of beautifully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/it-was-an-incredible-way-to-grow-up-because-words-that-you-re-taught/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [Architecture is inherently a totalitarian activity. One thing we hate about it is that when you design a space, you're probably designing people's behavior…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/architecture-is-inherently-a-totalitarian-activity-one-thing-we-hate/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [ \[Photography was necessary to\] make my place in the art-world: in order to do this, I had to make a picture, since a picture… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/photography-was-necessary-to-make-my-place-in-the-art-world-in-order/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [Especially once those poetry events began, because, yeah, the stuff was still on the page, but the page was starting to spill into real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/especially-once-those-poetry-events-began-because-yeah-the-stuff-was/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [I became much more interested in plot when I really didn't consider myself a writer anymore. When I was in an art context and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/i-became-much-more-interested-in-plot-when-i-really-didn-t-consider/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [The kind of influence you want is a much deeper influence. It's like empowerment. Things are like this, but what if they were like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/the-kind-of-influence-you-want-is-a-much-deeper-influence-it-s-like/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [If something's public then it seems like the important thing is the person in that public. And the notion of rhetoric. I went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/if-something-s-public-then-it-seems-like-the-important-thing-is-the/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [Everybody uses labels: they give you a handle on things - an over-simplified handle, sure, but without labels, without ads, without words, the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/everybody-uses-labels-they-give-you-a-handle-on-things-an-over/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [My first pieces, in an art context, were ways to get myself off the page and into real space. These photographic pieces were ways…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/my-first-pieces-in-an-art-context-were-ways-to-get-myself-off-the/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [I came from the time of so-called New Criticism - the poem in itself, the writing in itself - but around that time I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/i-came-from-the-time-of-so-called-new-criticism-the-poem-in-itself/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [There's a legal term for a problem in public space: something that might draw people to an area-say, across train tracks-where they might be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/there-s-a-legal-term-for-a-problem-in-public-space-something-that/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [Public space can be a lot better with some private space to contradict it and vice versa. It keeps the system alive. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/public-space-can-be-a-lot-better-with-some-private-space-to/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [As a kid I learned notions of art and notions of not having any money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/as-a-kid-i-learned-notions-of-art-and-notions-of-not-having-any-money/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) > [Maybe I had to stop photographing so that I could learn to touch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vito-acconci/maybe-i-had-to-stop-photographing-so-that-i-could-learn-to-touch/) [Vito Acconci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) [Explore all 48 Vito Acconci quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vito-acconci/) ## More Autobiography quotes > [I think anything that anyone writes thats any good is going to have a lot of autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-adly-guirgis/i-think-anything-that-anyone-writes-thats-any-good-is-going-to-have-a/) [Stephen Adly Guirgis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-adly-guirgis/) > [“I am not and autobiographical writer--one can't be without a solid and explicable self--and read all autobiographical writers with the same curiosity. What kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yiyun-li/i-am-not-and-autobiographical-writer-one-can-t-be-without-a-solid-and/) [Yiyun Li](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yiyun-li/) > [“Someday, I want to write an unauthorized autobiography of myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mcmullen-sullivan/someday-i-want-to-write-an-unauthorized-autobiography-of-myself/) [David McMullen-Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mcmullen-sullivan/) > [“As well as writing, 2004 saw my first attempt at wine making: the elixir of life. Unfortunately, my effort tasted more like the elixir…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-briggs/as-well-as-writing-2004-saw-my-first-attempt-at-wine-making-the/) Craig Briggs > [I caught a cold and didn't have time to work on my autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-doucet/i-caught-a-cold-and-didn-t-have-time-to-work-on-my-autobiography/) [Julie Doucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-doucet/) > [Who ever heard, indeed, of an autobiography that was not (interesting)? I can recall none in all the literature of the world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/who-ever-heard-indeed-of-an-autobiography-that-was-not-interesting-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't really think of my essays as being about myself. I know it sounds insane, but I just don't think of them as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-crosley/i-don-t-really-think-of-my-essays-as-being-about-myself-i-know-it/) [Sloane Crosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-crosley/) > [The way I would live my life is: never do something in real life that I would not want to write about in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddharth-katragadda/the-way-i-would-live-my-life-is-never-do-something-in-real-life-that/) [Siddharth Katragadda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddharth-katragadda/) > [biography cannot be separated from autobiography: that is, the life written about is inextricably entangled with the life of the biographer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-simon/biography-cannot-be-separated-from-autobiography-that-is-the-life/) Linda Simon > [I think I'm like most novelists in that my books have gotten farther and farther away from autobiography the longer I've been writing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-i-m-like-most-novelists-in-that-my-books-have-gotten-farther/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [If you wish to understand me at all (and to write an autobiography is only to open a window into one's heart) you must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-melba/if-you-wish-to-understand-me-at-all-and-to-write-an-autobiography-is/) [Nellie Melba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-melba/) > [I want an autobiography without revealing any personal information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-ross/i-want-an-autobiography-without-revealing-any-personal-information/) [Diana Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-ross/) > [I don't like the word 'autobiography.' I rather like the term 'autofiction.' The second you make a script out of the story of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-don-t-like-the-word-autobiography-i-rather-like-the-term/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [Because I write fiction, I don't write autobiography, and to me they are very different things. The first-person narrative is a very intimate thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/because-i-write-fiction-i-don-t-write-autobiography-and-to-me-they/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [“I don't think anyone could write a completely honest autobiography. I am sure no one could bear to read it: My Past Was An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/i-don-t-think-anyone-could-write-a-completely-honest-autobiography-i/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) [Browse all 642 Autobiography quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiography/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I always thought of writing as public, I never thought of writing a diary. I had been struck by, jolted by things I had read, and I wanted to do the same to others. 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