Home / Authors / Emma Donoghue

Emma Donoghue

Emma Donoghue Quotes

Playwright

Emma Donoghue is an Irish-Canadian author renowned for her plays and novels. Her works are celebrated for their deep psychological insights and unique narrative style. Born on October 24, 1969, Donoghue's plays have been performed in several countries, and her novels have been translated into multiple languages.

Filter quotes by topic

All Book Knows Writing Thinking Way People Rooms Stories Film Ifs World Novel Parent Sometimes Want Littles Situation Wells Bits Kids

Famous Emma Donoghue Quotes

“With my first book, I was hired to write a draft of the script. I was so young and less confident. They put me through seven or eight drafts and it was just getting worse and worse, and then the film was never made.”

Writing Firsts Made Book Film Young Seven Scripts Eight

Author:Emma Donoghue

“With a time-based medium like theater or film, you can't have the audience getting restless in their seats. They're stuck there on their bums; you have to pay enormous attention to pace and you can't lose your way.”

Way Film Loses Pay Attention Audience Theater Stuck Enormous Mediums Seats Pace Restless

Author:Emma Donoghue

“I think ultimately the film 'Room' is a kind of hymn to motherhood and to the everyday heroism of parents who find their smiles in terrible times.”

Thinking Kind Film Parent Rooms Terrible Everyday Motherhood Heroism Hymns Terrible Times

Author:Emma Donoghue

“I wrote the novel [Room], and then I thought, "This could work on film, and I want to be the one to do it." So I went ahead and drafted it.”

Want Film Rooms Novel

Author:Emma Donoghue

“I'm really aware that in fiction, women are pretty much equal. There's a lot of very successful women novelists. Not so much [for women writers working] in film.”

Film Fiction Successful Equal Novelists Successful Women

Author:Emma Donoghue

“I needed to do a lot of saying no. I had a lot of [interest] from people who I just didn't think were quite right for it. And I didn't want a bad film to be made of the book, either a sentimental one or a creepy one, so I did a lot of, "No thank you." Then when the right filmmaker came along, yes, I suppose I presented myself very much as wanting to be the writer.”

People Thinking Want Made Book Film Interest Needed Filmmaker Sentimental Creepy Saying No

Author:Emma Donoghue

“If you have written something that the film people want, like a book, it does give you a way in.”

People Ifs Way Want Giving Doe Book Film Written

Author:Emma Donoghue

“The film world is far more male-dominated. I mean, the numbers are staggering at the level of how many people on set there are, and almost all the trades in film, there's a lot more men. So I can see without anyone intending to be biased [that] we have kind of a collective choosing of men's stories and a collective of taking men's stories seriously.”

People Men World Kind Mean I Can Stories Film Levels Numbers Trade Males Collectives Biased Staggering

Author:Emma Donoghue

“I must say, in the case of "Room," both the book and the film, I don't think being a lesbian author held me back at all.”

Thinking Book Film Rooms Cases

Author:Emma Donoghue

“Feminism is still one of those taboo words, so hardly anybody talks about it. People usually go gender-neutral and say the book and film [Room] are about "the triumph of the human spirit.”

People Humans Stills Book Film Spirit Rooms Feminism Gender Triumph Human Spirit Taboo

Author:Emma Donoghue

“I think there are few films out there that take motherhood seriously.”

Thinking Film Motherhood

Author:Emma Donoghue

“Now that I've got a way in [to the industry] - because it can feel a bit like, "How can I possibly write a film?" - but now that I've got at least some experience in the film world, I'd absolutely love to do it again.”

World Way Feels Writing Film Bits Industry

Author:Emma Donoghue

About the Author

Born: October 24, 1969
Known for: Playwright
Quotes: 155

Related Topics

Book Knows Writing Thinking Way People Rooms Stories Film Ifs World Novel Parent Sometimes Want Littles Situation Wells Bits Kids

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

Room: Picador ClassicRelated source material

RoomRelated source material

The Pull of the StarsRelated source material

SlammerkinRelated source material

HoodRelated source material

Kissing the Witch: Old Tales in New SkinsRelated source material

The WonderRelated source material

Frog MusicRelated source material

LandingRelated source material

The Sealed LetterRelated source material

Similar Authors

Paul AusterBrowse related quotes
George SaundersBrowse related quotes
Salman RushdieBrowse related quotes
Stephen KingBrowse related quotes
Junot DiazBrowse related quotes
Sandra CisnerosBrowse related quotes
Neil GaimanBrowse related quotes
Anna QuindlenBrowse related quotes
Joyce Carol OatesBrowse related quotes
John IrvingBrowse related quotes