Quote by Kurt Vonnegut

When I used to teach creative writing, I would tell the students to make their characters want something right away - even if it's only a glass of water. Characters paralyzed by the meaninglessness of modern life still have to drink water from time to time.

When I used to teach creative writing, I would tell the stud

Summary

This quote emphasizes the importance of giving characters in creative writing a strong and immediate desire, even if it is seemingly trivial. It suggests that even when individuals feel lost and unable to find meaning in today's world, they still have basic needs and desires that must be attended to. By starting with small desires such as needing a glass of water, the quote implies that these simple motivations can provide a starting point for building more complex and profound character development throughout a story.

Topics

Life Water Writing Characters Creative Writing Meaningless Meaninglessness Modern Life Paralyzed Write

By Kurt Vonnegut

Liked the quote? Share it with your friends.

Random Quotations

It's the job that's never started takes longest to finish.

It's the job that's never started takes longest to finish.

J. R. R. Tolkien

Procrastination

My boyfriend calls me 'princess', but I think of myself more

My boyfriend calls me 'princess', but I think of myself more along the lines of 'monkey' and 'retard'.

Alicia Silverstone

Dating

It was a great experience for a kid, because it was a bunch

It was a great experience for a kid, because it was a bunch of kids playing on pirate ships and water slides, so looking back on it, it was the fondest experience of my childhood.

Experience

It is true that the environment does have an influence but w

It is true that the environment does have an influence but what has much greater effect on the artist is love or hatred.He uses his setting to express these things.

Henri Gaudier-Brzeska

Love Environment

A man should hear a little music, read a little poetry, and

A man should hear a little music, read a little poetry, and see a fine picture every day of his life, in order that worldly cares may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful which God has implanted in the human soul.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Music Poetry Art Beauty Wonder

I take sounds and change them into words.

I take sounds and change them into words.

Change

The attorney general would call at 5 o'clock in the evening

The attorney general would call at 5 o'clock in the evening and say: 'Tomorrow morning we are going to try to integrate the University of Mississippi. Get us a memo on what we're likely to do, and what we can do if the governor sends the National Guard there.'

Harold H. Greene

Money

I found enormous opposition to my religion. It's like if you

I found enormous opposition to my religion. It's like if you want to strengthen your biceps, you lift heavy weight, as heavy as you can handle, and work your muscles against resistance until it grows strong. I had to do that with my religion.

Ricardo Montalban

Religion

I think I can work with any type of actor.

I think I can work with any type of actor.

Work

He will always be a slave who does not know how to live upon

He will always be a slave who does not know how to live upon a little.

Moderation

There are no trivial facts in humanity, nor little leaves in

There are no trivial facts in humanity, nor little leaves in vegetation.

Life Philosophy

Jazz in itself is not struggling. That is, the music itself

Jazz in itself is not struggling. That is, the music itself is not struggling... It's the attitude that's in trouble. My plays insist that we should not forget or toss away our history.