--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Writing ought either to be the…" description: "\"Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for which there is a market demand - a business as safe and commendable as making soap or breakfa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/willa-cather-634_art_writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufactu_1126391.png" --- # Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for… ![“Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for which there is a market demand - a business as safe and commendable as making soap or breakfast foods - or it should be an art, which is always a search for something for which there is no market demand, something new and untried, where the…” quote by Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/willa-cather-634_art_writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufactu_1126391.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/willa-cather-634_art_writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufactu_1126391.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/willa-cather-634_art_writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufactu_1126391.png) > “Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for which there is a market demand - a business as safe and commendable as making soap or breakfast foods - or it should be an art, which is always a search for something for which there is no market demand, something new and untried, where the values are intrinsic and have nothing to do with standardized values.” [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Balancing commercial viability with artistic integrity; market-driven writing versus experimental art. **In simple terms:** Choosing between profit and pure creativity. Key Takeaway Prioritize purpose over profit. Themes art commerce creativity integrity intrinsic value Mood reflective determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - publishing - advertising - creative writing - independent art - entrepreneurship Key Concepts market demand artistic search intrinsic values Questions to Reflect On - Do you write for audience or for self? - How can you sustain art without market support? A Different Perspective Commercial pressure can stifle innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Breakfast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breakfast/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Commendable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commendable/) [Crafts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crafts/) [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Fast food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fast-food/) [Investing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/investing/) [Market Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/market-demand-2422733/) [Ought Manufacture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought-manufacture-3073498/) [Safe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/safe/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Soap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soap/) [Something new](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/something-new/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [Values Intrinsic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values-intrinsic-3073497/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-ought-329075/) ## Related quotes > [Art is an end in itself; its values are intrinsic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-bell/art-is-an-end-in-itself-its-values-are-intrinsic/) [Daniel Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-bell/) > [If we are to have a stabilized market demand, selling pressure should be maintained . . . perhaps increased . . .at the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-hoffman/if-we-are-to-have-a-stabilized-market-demand-selling-pressure-should/) [Paul G. Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-hoffman/) > [There is an enormous market demand for information. It just has to be fulfilled in a way that fits with the technology of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-andreessen/there-is-an-enormous-market-demand-for-information-it-just-has-to-be/) [Marc Andreessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-andreessen/) > [Well, the whole history of Star Trek is the market demand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-takei/well-the-whole-history-of-star-trek-is-the-market-demand/) [George Takei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-takei/) > [Between the Community Redevelopment Act, requiring banks to make what I would call very weak loans, and specific quotas that the Congress imposed on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-ross/between-the-community-redevelopment-act-requiring-banks-to-make-what/) [Wilbur Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-ross/) > [I have concluded that Literature is no proper pursuit for a gentleman and that Writing ought never to be consider'd but as an elegant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/i-have-concluded-that-literature-is-no-proper-pursuit-for-a-gentleman/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [ “Theoretically there's no reason one should get \[writer's block\], if one understands that writing, after all, is only writing, neither something one ought to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/theoretically-there-s-no-reason-one-should-get-writer-s-block-if-one/) [John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/) > [Ideally, writing ought to be like riding a bicycle: something you know how to do without having to think consciously about exactly what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stableford/ideally-writing-ought-to-be-like-riding-a-bicycle-something-you-know/) [Brian Stableford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stableford/) > [All of these declarations of what writing ought to be, which I had myself-though, thank God I had never committed them to paper-I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaica-kincaid/all-of-these-declarations-of-what-writing-ought-to-be-which-i-had/) [Jamaica Kincaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaica-kincaid/) > [“Reading ought to mean understanding; writing ought to mean knowing something; believing ought to mean comprehending; when you desire a thing, you will have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/reading-ought-to-mean-understanding-writing-ought-to-mean-knowing/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [The Libertarians, of whom I'm rather fond, are running Harry Browne. Libertarians are, just as they claim, principled and consistent- they believe in individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/the-libertarians-of-whom-i-m-rather-fond-are-running-harry-browne/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Being good is commendable, but only when it is combined with doing good is it useful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/being-good-is-commendable-but-only-when-it-is-combined-with-doing/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Frequently, we busily search for group service projects, which are surely needed and commendable, when quiet, personal service is also urgently needed. Sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/frequently-we-busily-search-for-group-service-projects-which-are/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [So-called Western Civilization, as practised in half of Europe, some of Asia and a few parts of North America, is better than anything else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/so-called-western-civilization-as-practised-in-half-of-europe-some-of/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [The pursuit of perfection is frustrating and a waste of time, because nothing is ever perfect. The pursuit of excellence is commendable and worthwhile.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-kulwicki/the-pursuit-of-perfection-is-frustrating-and-a-waste-of-time-because/) [Alan Kulwicki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-kulwicki/) ## More by Willa Cather > [The end is nothing; the road is all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/the-end-is-nothing-the-road-is-all/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/of-all-the-bewildering-things-about-a-new-country-the-absence-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Success is less interesting than struggle. There is great pleasure in the effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/success-is-less-interesting-than-struggle-there-is-great-pleasure-in/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“I only knew the schoolbooks said he "died in the wilderness, of a broken heart." "More than him has done that," said Antonia sadly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/i-only-knew-the-schoolbooks-said-he-died-in-the-wilderness-of-a/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Have the last word ma'm," he said cheerfully. "It's a lady's privilege.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/have-the-last-word-ma-m-he-said-cheerfully-it-s-a-lady-s-privilege/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > ["More than him has done that," said Antonia sadly, and the girls murmured assent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/more-than-him-has-done-that-said-antonia-sadly-and-the-girls-murmured/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Nothing mattered ... but writing books, and living the kind of life that made it possible to write them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/nothing-mattered-but-writing-books-and-living-the-kind-of-life-that/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Money and office and success are the consolations of impotence. Fortune turns kind to such solid people and lets them suck their bone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/money-and-office-and-success-are-the-consolations-of-impotence/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [But she still had that something which fires the imagination, could still stop one's breath for a moment by a look or gesture that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/but-she-still-had-that-something-which-fires-the-imagination-could/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“You remember how homesick I used to get, and what long talks we used to have coming from school? We've someway always felt alike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/you-remember-how-homesick-i-used-to-get-and-what-long-talks-we-used/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“He placed this book in my grandmother's hands, looked at her entreatingly, and said, with an earnestness which I shall never forget, "Te-e-ach, te-e-ach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/he-placed-this-book-in-my-grandmother-s-hands-looked-at-her/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [The sincerity of feeling that is possible between a writer and a reader is one of the finest things I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/the-sincerity-of-feeling-that-is-possible-between-a-writer-and-a/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [One realizes that human relationships are the tragic necessity of human life; that they can never be wholly satisfactory, that every ego is half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/one-realizes-that-human-relationships-are-the-tragic-necessity-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Our tree became the talking tree of the fairy tale; legends and stories nestled like birds in its branches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/our-tree-became-the-talking-tree-of-the-fairy-tale-legends-and/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Isn’t it queer: there are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they had never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/isn-t-it-queer-there-are-only-two-or-three-human-stories-and-they-go/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) [Explore all 434 Willa Cather quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for which there is a market demand - a business as safe and commendable as making soap or breakfast foods - or it should be an art, which is always a search for something for which there is no market demand, something new and untried, where the values are intrinsic and have nothing to do with standardized values.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Willa Cather" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufacture-of-stories-for-which-there/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufacture-of-stories-for-which-there/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/willa-cather-634_art_writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufactu_1126391.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/willa-cather-634_art_writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufactu_1126391.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/willa-cather-634_art_writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufactu_1126391.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for which there is a market demand - a business as…” — Willa Cather", "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": "Willa Cather", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Writing ought either to be the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufacture-of-stories-for-which-there/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/writing-ought-either-to-be-the-manufacture-of-stories-for-which-there/#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 } } ] } ```