A Quote by Lynn Nottage

I know what I'm trying to say, so I'm always open to learning how to say it. — © Lynn Nottage
I know what I'm trying to say, so I'm always open to learning how to say it.
I put a lot of pressure on myself to figure out what to say and, lately, I've started trying to work through things in my head. Before, I wouldn't trust my instincts or what I wanted to say and I really struggled with what I wanted to say. I guess it's just the classic case of writer's block and learning how to work through that. I'm slowly learning how.
I'm one of those people who writes out words. All of my text messages? You can read them. Everyone would know what I'm trying to say. My sister will say 'BTW.' Do you mean 'by the way'? Is that what you're trying to say?
You know how sometimes you're talking to people who love you and give you unconditional love, and you say, "But you know what? Let me back up. I forgot to say . . ."You can do that, right? You don't hesitate and say, "Oh my God! I forgot to say that!". You just speak! And you say it all, until you have nothing more to say. And that's your first draft. It's done.
You can never know too much about writing. If you think you know everything, you're not leaving yourself open to learn. . . . The best writers are always learning, exploring, and trying to improve.
It's really fun to say no sometimes. I just don't want to discount how fun it is to say no and exercise your right to say no, and - as a girl - it's important to know how to say no... and that no means no!
When I started out as an actor, I thought, Here's what I have to say; how shall I say it? I began to understand that what I do in the scene is not as important as what happens between me and the other person. And listening is what lets it happen. It's almost always the other person who causes you to say what you say next. You don't have to figure out how you'll say it. You have to listen so simply, so innocently, that the other person brings about a change in you that makes you say it and informs the way you say it.
Now, we are still learning how to approach girls, you know, learning what to say, etc., because the practice we've had was with our other girl, the cello. If you noticed, it has the shape of a female.
That's the trouble with the conventional doctors. They always say, 'How does it work?' but often there isn't any neat little answer...Something simply works...We don't really know how it works. We say we do. We know one or two things we can see and measure.
People who know me know that I'm not going to open my mouth and say something if I don't mean it. I'm very short and sweet. I'm old-school when it comes to it: I say what I mean and mean what I say, and then get off of it. It's simple as that.
For too long people have been scared to offend people, or to say the wrong thing. You know what? You might say the wrong thing, like I might say the wrong thing, but we're all learning, and how are we ever going to see any type of change if we don't?
Sometimes you say punchlines or say things in music and you may not even know any seriousness behind it. You're just trying to say something in the moment to catch attention.
Regardless of the weight of the role, I feel like the job is always kind of the same. Who is this person? What's this guy here, what's he trying to say? And what's the volley with all these other people around him? So I don't feel like that part of it changes. I have not reached the point - if there's a point you reach as an actor where it's, "Oh, I got this figured out, I know how to do this". But I am happy to say that the primary building blocks of where you start, at least, there is a little bit of sameness to that. And that's always nice.
People can say what they want to say, but at the end of the day, I can look at myself in the mirror. I know how hard I fought. I know how many storylines I pitched. I know how hard I worked in the ring.
A lot of people tell me, 'You are from North; how do you manage to get along in the South?' I don't know what to say to them. I've always felt at home here, and by learning to speak Telugu, my connection with the place has gotten that much stronger.
People always say, "Can writing be taught?" I always think, I can teach you how to write a better sentence, how to do dialogue, how to do character, but I can't teach you how to be a decent person, and I can't teach you how to have something to say.
Adults always wonder what to say and how to say it when they're talking to a child. You want to be wise, but all you are is a child yourself in a larger body. Nothing is ever what it seems. The things that you think you know are never certain. I know that now. I wish that I didn't, but I do.
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