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Dana Spiotta Quotes

Your memories from your early childhood seem to have such purchase on your emotions. They are so concrete Picture Quote #1

My teaching exists in a different part of my brain. However, I am lucky enough to teach very smart graduate students Picture Quote #1

I am always trying to do something new and different. The first step is curiosity, questions. You pay attention to what fascinates you. If you can’t shake it, there is something there Picture Quote #1

I always think the novelist should go to the culture’s dark places and poke around. Pose a lot of hard questions Picture Quote #1

I do want to write about social/cultural/historical context. I’m interested in relationships, in character, but within a specific social context. Which is kind of a political thing, I admit that. But it’s what I’m interested in, and it’s how I believe human behavior is legible Picture Quote #1

Each character requires different language, and these issues become inseparable. You have all these balls in the air: language, character, narrative. For me, the primary focus must be words, sentences, paragraphs Picture Quote #1

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I don’t feel sentimental about the past, but I can’t help noticing how hard it has become to keep a grip on anything. Maybe it’s the totalizing impact of corporate culture, maybe it’s the atomizing impact of technology Picture Quote #1

There’s lots of things that can’t make it in the world that are worth making. There are lots of great artists who never make it, there are lots of great writers who don’t get published - is it still worthwhile? Aren’t we glad people are still doing it? Picture Quote #1

The idea that you can live off the grid and just do your own thing is a very American idea - that you should be able to do your own thing, if you want to, if you’re willing to pay the price for it. I think the price has gotten higher and higher Picture Quote #1

I think it’s harder than ever to be an artist. I think that you end up, especially as a middle-aged person, you pay such big consequences for saying, ‘I’m just going to devote my life to making art,’ or ‘I’m going to devote my life to writing novels.’ You end up with no resources Picture Quote #1

I locate a great deal of the power of Occupy Wall Street in the name itself, ‘Occupy Wall Street,’ or ‘#OccupyWallStreet.’ It works because the name contains everything you need to know: the tactic and the target. The name is also modular. You can create your own offshoot in your own city Picture Quote #1

That was one of the reasons I became a writer - I never really had that many friends. I would read a lot, and listen to music. And that was my life Picture Quote #1

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I like to buy books for the kids in my family. I guess that’s why they call me the ‘mean’ aunt Picture Quote #1

Memory is not particularly linear - it is associative, repetitive, subjective and porous. But the writer needs to convey disorder and dysfunction without making the novel itself disorderly or dysfunctional Picture Quote #1

The issue isn’t, Am I good enough? No. The issue is, Do I not have any other choice? Will and desire don’t matter. Ability doesn’t matter. Need is the only thing that matters Picture Quote #1

Tell me it’s forbidden, unthinkable, and that’s where I want to go. Because the chances are it’s complicated, and the complications are meaningful Picture Quote #1

There are lots of authentic, moving characters in so-called systems novels, just as there are certainly deep structural ideas in some character-driven novels Picture Quote #1

I think there’s a lot to be learned from pop culture. But at the same time I see the dangers of using it in an exclusive way to construct meaning in your life Picture Quote #1

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I always think the novelist should go to the culture’s dark places and poke around. Pose a lot of hard questions Picture Quote #1

I like the challenge of creating a world with only sentences Picture Quote #1

The novel is about, for me, sustained and organized looking. I do think that people have a hunger for a sustained engagement, that concentration that the book can offer Picture Quote #1

My husband is a musician. He cooks and he’s a chef but he also, he makes basement recordings. So many people in my life make basement recordings, so I feel very lucky, I’m surrounded by very creative people Picture Quote #1

I have to say that movies have as much impact on me as music. And that I learned as much about narrative from movies as I did from reading novels, how to arrange stories, how to juxtapose things Picture Quote #1

I don’t have a lot of skills, but one thing I can do is, I can compartmentalize. I can make that a little world that I can go back to, so I can be a waitress, or I can be a teacher, and then go and work on my book Picture Quote #1

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Although a great restaurant experience must include great food, a bad restaurant experience can be achieved through bad service alone. Ideally, service is invisible. You notice it only when something goes wrong Picture Quote #1

In order to be a living, breathing thing, a novel has to be failed in some kind of way. Or at least that’s how I keep writing them Picture Quote #1

Yes, I did try acting when I was in high school and I was terrible at it. So I definitely have had the experience of being bad at artistic endeavor Picture Quote #1

It takes a long time to write a novel when you have to keep interrupting your work to earn money Picture Quote #1

I try to write about how we live today, how we use language, technology, our bodies Picture Quote #1

Getting an audience requires luck as well as talent. Some artists are private and shy. It costs them too much Picture Quote #1

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Friendship Quotes

Motivational Quotes

Inspirational Quotes

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Text Quotes

Your memories from your early childhood seem to have such purchase on your emotions. They are so concrete (Dana Spiotta Quotes) My teaching exists in a different part of my brain. However, I am lucky enough to teach very smart graduate students. (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I am always trying to do something new and different. The first step is curiosity, questions. You pay attention to what fascinates you. If you can’t shake it, there is something there. (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I always think the novelist should go to the culture’s dark places and poke around. Pose a lot of hard questions. (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I do want to write about social/cultural/historical context. I’m interested in relationships, in character, but within a specific social context. Which is kind of a political thing, I admit that. But it’s what I’m interested in, and it’s how I believe human behavior is legible (Dana Spiotta Quotes) Each character requires different language, and these issues become inseparable. You have all these balls in the air: language, character, narrative. For me, the primary focus must be words, sentences, paragraphs (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I don’t feel sentimental about the past, but I can’t help noticing how hard it has become to keep a grip on anything. Maybe it’s the totalizing impact of corporate culture, maybe it’s the atomizing impact of technology (Dana Spiotta Quotes) There’s lots of things that can’t make it in the world that are worth making. There are lots of great artists who never make it, there are lots of great writers who don’t get published - is it still worthwhile? Aren’t we glad people are still doing it? (Dana Spiotta Quotes) The idea that you can live off the grid and just do your own thing is a very American idea - that you should be able to do your own thing, if you want to, if you’re willing to pay the price for it. I think the price has gotten higher and higher (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I think it’s harder than ever to be an artist. I think that you end up, especially as a middle-aged person, you pay such big consequences for saying, ‘I’m just going to devote my life to making art,’ or ‘I’m going to devote my life to writing novels.’ You end up with no resources (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I locate a great deal of the power of Occupy Wall Street in the name itself, ‘Occupy Wall Street,’ or ‘#OccupyWallStreet.’ It works because the name contains everything you need to know: the tactic and the target. The name is also modular. You can create your own offshoot in your own city (Dana Spiotta Quotes) That was one of the reasons I became a writer - I never really had that many friends. I would read a lot, and listen to music. And that was my life (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I like to buy books for the kids in my family. I guess that’s why they call me the ‘mean’ aunt (Dana Spiotta Quotes) Memory is not particularly linear - it is associative, repetitive, subjective and porous. But the writer needs to convey disorder and dysfunction without making the novel itself disorderly or dysfunctional (Dana Spiotta Quotes) The issue isn’t, Am I good enough? No. The issue is, Do I not have any other choice? Will and desire don’t matter. Ability doesn’t matter. Need is the only thing that matters (Dana Spiotta Quotes) Tell me it’s forbidden, unthinkable, and that’s where I want to go. Because the chances are it’s complicated, and the complications are meaningful (Dana Spiotta Quotes) There are lots of authentic, moving characters in so-called systems novels, just as there are certainly deep structural ideas in some character-driven novels (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I think there’s a lot to be learned from pop culture. But at the same time I see the dangers of using it in an exclusive way to construct meaning in your life (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I always think the novelist should go to the culture’s dark places and poke around. Pose a lot of hard questions (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I like the challenge of creating a world with only sentences (Dana Spiotta Quotes) The novel is about, for me, sustained and organized looking. I do think that people have a hunger for a sustained engagement, that concentration that the book can offer (Dana Spiotta Quotes) My husband is a musician. He cooks and he’s a chef but he also, he makes basement recordings. So many people in my life make basement recordings, so I feel very lucky, I’m surrounded by very creative people (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I have to say that movies have as much impact on me as music. And that I learned as much about narrative from movies as I did from reading novels, how to arrange stories, how to juxtapose things (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I don’t have a lot of skills, but one thing I can do is, I can compartmentalize. I can make that a little world that I can go back to, so I can be a waitress, or I can be a teacher, and then go and work on my book (Dana Spiotta Quotes) Although a great restaurant experience must include great food, a bad restaurant experience can be achieved through bad service alone. Ideally, service is invisible. You notice it only when something goes wrong (Dana Spiotta Quotes) In order to be a living, breathing thing, a novel has to be failed in some kind of way. Or at least that’s how I keep writing them (Dana Spiotta Quotes) Yes, I did try acting when I was in high school and I was terrible at it. So I definitely have had the experience of being bad at artistic endeavor (Dana Spiotta Quotes) It takes a long time to write a novel when you have to keep interrupting your work to earn money (Dana Spiotta Quotes) I try to write about how we live today, how we use language, technology, our bodies (Dana Spiotta Quotes) Getting an audience requires luck as well as talent. Some artists are private and shy. It costs them too much (Dana Spiotta Quotes)

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