--- title: "12 Old Writer Quotes by 11 authors" description: "Browse 12 Old Writer quotes by 11 authors. Discover the best Old Writer sayings and thoughts." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/joanna-trollope-18494_definitely_you-can-t-be-too-old-to-be-a-writer-but_1624903.jpg" --- > [You can't be too old to be a writer, but you can definitely be too young!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-trollope/you-can-t-be-too-old-to-be-a-writer-but-you-can-definitely-be-too/) [Joanna Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-trollope/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/joanna-trollope-18494_definitely_you-can-t-be-too-old-to-be-a-writer-but_1624903.jpg) > [Young or old, a writer sends a book into the world, not himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/young-or-old-a-writer-sends-a-book-into-the-world-not-himself/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65d/john-updike-396_book_young-or-old-a-writer-sends-a-book-into_3195940.png) > [The good artist believes that nobody is good enough to give him advice. He has supreme vanity. No matter how much he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/the-good-artist-believes-that-nobody-is-good-enough-to-give-him/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/william-faulkner-306_admire_the-good-artist-believes-that-nobody-is_1699485.png) > [I feel a passion for what we're trying to do.I mean, why does somebody who's old who's a writer keep writing? Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-koch/i-feel-a-passion-for-what-we-re-trying-to-do-i-mean-why-does-somebody/) [Charles Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-koch/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72b/charles-koch-2666_doe_i-feel-a-passion-for-what-we-re-trying-t_2336416.jpg) > [ “\[A\]n old writer’s memory is the whore of his imagination. We all reinvent our pasts, I said, but writers are in a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/a-n-old-writer-s-memory-is-the-whore-of-his-imagination-we-all/) [John le Carré](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/158/john-le-carre-651_autobiographies_a-n-old-writer-s-memory-is-the-whore-of_1720652.jpg) > [“People are laughing at me today for having holes in my pockets, and ink blood on my fingers- a thirty-something old writer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/people-are-laughing-at-me-today-for-having-holes-in-my-pockets-and/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8f/anthony-liccione-783_abandoned_people-are-laughing-at-me-today-for-havi_1187607.jpg) > [I'm a fifty-three-year-old writer who can remember being a ten-year-old writer and who expects someday to be an eighty-year-old writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/i-m-a-fifty-three-year-old-writer-who-can-remember-being-a-ten-year/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/587/octavia-butler-8606_eighty_i-m-a-fifty-three-year-old-writer-who-ca_253593.jpg) > [I guess you go back to the old writer's adage that when they do your stuff in Hollywood, you smile sweetly upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-claremont/i-guess-you-go-back-to-the-old-writer-s-adage-that-when-they-do-your/) [Chris Claremont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-claremont/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e3e/chris-claremont-4123_credit_i-guess-you-go-back-to-the-old-writer-s_1103125.jpg) > [Two years ago, I was a twenty-nine year old secretary. Now I am a thirty-one year old writer. I get paid very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/two-years-ago-i-was-a-twenty-nine-year-old-secretary-now-i-am-a/) [Julie Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-powell/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5f0/julie-powell-10735_fancy_two-years-ago-i-was-a-twenty-nine-year-o_2934520.jpg) > [A twenty-one-year-old writer is likely to be inhibited by a lack of usable experience. Childhood and adolescence were something I knew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/a-twenty-one-year-old-writer-is-likely-to-be-inhibited-by-a-lack-of/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b4/ian-mcewan-494_adolescence_a-twenty-one-year-old-writer-is-likely-t_287059.png) > [I'm a 48-year-old writer who can remember being a 10-year-old writer and who expects someday to be an 80-year-old writer. I'm also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-a-48-year-old-writer-who-can-remember-being-a-10-year-old-writer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5f/anonymous-1_ambition_i-m-a-48-year-old-writer-who-can-remembe_128749.jpg) > [Let the writer take up surgery or bricklaying if he is interested in technique. There is no mechanical way to get the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/let-the-writer-take-up-surgery-or-bricklaying-if-he-is-interested-in/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/408/william-faulkner-306_admire_let-the-writer-take-up-surgery-or-brickl_109854.png) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-writer/#itemlist", "name": "Old Writer Quotes", "numberOfItems": 12, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You can't be too old to be a writer, but you can definitely be too young!", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joanna Trollope" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-trollope/you-can-t-be-too-old-to-be-a-writer-but-you-can-definitely-be-too/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/joanna-trollope-18494_definitely_you-can-t-be-too-old-to-be-a-writer-but_1624903.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/joanna-trollope-18494_definitely_you-can-t-be-too-old-to-be-a-writer-but_1624903.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/joanna-trollope-18494_definitely_you-can-t-be-too-old-to-be-a-writer-but_1624903.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You can't be too old to be a writer, but you can definitely be too young!” — Joanna Trollope", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Young or old, a writer sends a book into the world, not himself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Updike" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/young-or-old-a-writer-sends-a-book-into-the-world-not-himself/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65d/john-updike-396_book_young-or-old-a-writer-sends-a-book-into_3195940.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65d/john-updike-396_book_young-or-old-a-writer-sends-a-book-into_3195940.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65d/john-updike-396_book_young-or-old-a-writer-sends-a-book-into_3195940.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Young or old, a writer sends a book into the world, not himself.” — John Updike", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The good artist believes that nobody is good enough to give him advice. He has supreme vanity. No matter how much he admires the old writer, he wants to beat him.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Faulkner" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/the-good-artist-believes-that-nobody-is-good-enough-to-give-him/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/william-faulkner-306_admire_the-good-artist-believes-that-nobody-is_1699485.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/william-faulkner-306_admire_the-good-artist-believes-that-nobody-is_1699485.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a8/william-faulkner-306_admire_the-good-artist-believes-that-nobody-is_1699485.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The good artist believes that nobody is good enough to give him advice. He has supreme vanity. 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Because that's who they are.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles Koch" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-koch/i-feel-a-passion-for-what-we-re-trying-to-do-i-mean-why-does-somebody/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72b/charles-koch-2666_doe_i-feel-a-passion-for-what-we-re-trying-t_2336416.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72b/charles-koch-2666_doe_i-feel-a-passion-for-what-we-re-trying-t_2336416.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72b/charles-koch-2666_doe_i-feel-a-passion-for-what-we-re-trying-t_2336416.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I feel a passion for what we're trying to do.I mean, why does somebody who's old who's a writer keep…” — Charles Koch", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“[A]n old writer’s memory is the whore of his imagination. We all reinvent our pasts, I said, but writers are in a class of their own.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John le Carré" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/a-n-old-writer-s-memory-is-the-whore-of-his-imagination-we-all/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/158/john-le-carre-651_autobiographies_a-n-old-writer-s-memory-is-the-whore-of_1720652.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/158/john-le-carre-651_autobiographies_a-n-old-writer-s-memory-is-the-whore-of_1720652.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/158/john-le-carre-651_autobiographies_a-n-old-writer-s-memory-is-the-whore-of_1720652.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“[A]n old writer’s memory is the whore of his imagination. 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Now I am a thirty-one year old writer. I get paid very well to sit around in my pajamas and type on my ridiculously fancy iMac, unless I'd rather take a nap. Feel free to hate me -- I certainly would.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Julie Powell" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/two-years-ago-i-was-a-twenty-nine-year-old-secretary-now-i-am-a/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5f0/julie-powell-10735_fancy_two-years-ago-i-was-a-twenty-nine-year-o_2934520.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5f0/julie-powell-10735_fancy_two-years-ago-i-was-a-twenty-nine-year-o_2934520.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5f0/julie-powell-10735_fancy_two-years-ago-i-was-a-twenty-nine-year-o_2934520.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Two years ago, I was a twenty-nine year old secretary. Now I am a thirty-one year old writer. I get paid…” — Julie Powell", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 10, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A twenty-one-year-old writer is likely to be inhibited by a lack of usable experience. Childhood and adolescence were something I knew.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ian Mcewan" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/a-twenty-one-year-old-writer-is-likely-to-be-inhibited-by-a-lack-of/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b4/ian-mcewan-494_adolescence_a-twenty-one-year-old-writer-is-likely-t_287059.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b4/ian-mcewan-494_adolescence_a-twenty-one-year-old-writer-is-likely-t_287059.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b4/ian-mcewan-494_adolescence_a-twenty-one-year-old-writer-is-likely-t_287059.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A twenty-one-year-old writer is likely to be inhibited by a lack of usable experience. Childhood and…” — Ian Mcewan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 11, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm a 48-year-old writer who can remember being a 10-year-old writer and who expects someday to be an 80-year-old writer. I'm also comfortably asocial -- a hermit in the middle of Los Angeles -- a pessimist if I'm not careful, a feminist, a Black, a former Baptist, an oil-and-water combination of ambition, laziness, insecurity, certainty, and drive.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-a-48-year-old-writer-who-can-remember-being-a-10-year-old-writer/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5f/anonymous-1_ambition_i-m-a-48-year-old-writer-who-can-remembe_128749.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5f/anonymous-1_ambition_i-m-a-48-year-old-writer-who-can-remembe_128749.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5f/anonymous-1_ambition_i-m-a-48-year-old-writer-who-can-remembe_128749.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I'm a 48-year-old writer who can remember being a 10-year-old writer and who expects someday to be an…” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 12, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Let the writer take up surgery or bricklaying if he is interested in technique. There is no mechanical way to get the writing done, no shortcut. The young writer would be a fool to follow a theory. Teach yourself by your own mistakes; people learn only by error. The good artist believes that nobody is good enough to give him advice. He has supreme vanity. No matter how much he admires the old writer, he wants to beat him.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Faulkner" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/let-the-writer-take-up-surgery-or-bricklaying-if-he-is-interested-in/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/408/william-faulkner-306_admire_let-the-writer-take-up-surgery-or-brickl_109854.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/408/william-faulkner-306_admire_let-the-writer-take-up-surgery-or-brickl_109854.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/408/william-faulkner-306_admire_let-the-writer-take-up-surgery-or-brickl_109854.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Let the writer take up surgery or bricklaying if he is interested in technique. 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