--- title: "10 Trying Quotes By Paul Beatty" description: "10 Trying quotes by Paul Beatty. Plus more from Paul Beatty and more Trying sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/paul-beatty-6684_loner_i-try-to-be-accommodating-but-i-m-pretty_2608489.png" --- > [I try to be accommodating, but I'm pretty much a loner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-try-to-be-accommodating-but-i-m-pretty-much-a-loner/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/paul-beatty-6684_loner_i-try-to-be-accommodating-but-i-m-pretty_2608489.png) > [ The other thing \[my psychology professor\] said to me was that I was always very mindful of the person who was away… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/the-other-thing-my-psychology-professor-said-to-me-was-that-i-was/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abe/paul-beatty-6684_always-trying_the-other-thing-my-psychology-professor_2689426.png) > [Don't write about trying to change the world, just write about a changed world or a world that's not changing. Let that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/don-t-write-about-trying-to-change-the-world-just-write-about-a/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/paul-beatty-6684_change_don-t-write-about-trying-to-change-the-w_1306022.png) > [I don't try to be satirical. I just try to get what's in my head on the page. And that part is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-don-t-try-to-be-satirical-i-just-try-to-get-what-s-in-my-head-on/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01c/paul-beatty-6684_hard_i-don-t-try-to-be-satirical-i-just-try-t_2917469.jpg) > [There's this line between propriety and how we really speak and how we really think. And I'm just trying to have fun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/there-s-this-line-between-propriety-and-how-we-really-speak-and-how/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf8/paul-beatty-6684_fun_there-s-this-line-between-propriety-and_1310938.png) > [ There are always so many things happening \[to us\] at one time. We read Isherwood's A Single Man in class, and we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/there-are-always-so-many-things-happening-to-us-at-one-time-we-read/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/642/paul-beatty-6684_asks_there-are-always-so-many-things-happenin_425418.png) > [There are things I don't like, like sitting at the head of the class. It makes me uncomfortable. I'll do it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/there-are-things-i-don-t-like-like-sitting-at-the-head-of-the-class/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/paul-beatty-6684_circles_there-are-things-i-don-t-like-like-sitti_150494.jpg) > [I read an interview with a Japanese freestyle jazz musician once, and he said something like, "Everything I'm going to tell you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-read-an-interview-with-a-japanese-freestyle-jazz-musician-once-and/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b6/paul-beatty-6684_being-true_i-read-an-interview-with-a-japanese-free_2787360.jpg) > [I had a student once come up to me and we were talking about this incident, and, of course, I never had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-had-a-student-once-come-up-to-me-and-we-were-talking-about-this/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d6/paul-beatty-6684_change-the-world_i-had-a-student-once-come-up-to-me-and-w_422004.png) > [I'm not much of a self-promoter or anything. It's not something I feel comfortable doing. But sometimes I would get frustrated, I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-m-not-much-of-a-self-promoter-or-anything-it-s-not-something-i-feel/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/paul-beatty-6684_attention_i-m-not-much-of-a-self-promoter-or-anyth_2320615.png) ## Other authors on Trying ## More by Paul Beatty > [There are things I don't like, like sitting at the head of the class. It makes me uncomfortable. I'll do it in a seminar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/there-are-things-i-don-t-like-like-sitting-at-the-head-of-the-class/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [In The Sellout I tried to capture how we can talk and see race, how we see urbanity, and how we see our history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/in-the-sellout-i-tried-to-capture-how-we-can-talk-and-see-race-how-we/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [In White Boy Shuffle, I combined my seventh-grade teacher, Mr. Takemoto, who really saved me - I don't think I've ever told anyone this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/in-white-boy-shuffle-i-combined-my-seventh-grade-teacher-mr-takemoto/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [I co-taught a seminar called Small Group Processes with my professor. I learned so much from it, so much about myself, about groups, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-co-taught-a-seminar-called-small-group-processes-with-my-professor/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [ I'll say this, and it'll sound like bullshit, but it's not: I don't really pay attention to this stuff \[Man Booker Prize\] very much.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-ll-say-this-and-it-ll-sound-like-bullshit-but-it-s-not-i-don-t/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [“Hereos. Idols. They're never who you think they are. Shorter. Nastier. Smellier. And when you finally meet them, there's something that makes you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/hereos-idols-they-re-never-who-you-think-they-are-shorter-nastier/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [There are many similarities between Germans and blacks. The nouns themselves are loaded with so much historical baggage it's impossible for anyone to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/there-are-many-similarities-between-germans-and-blacks-the-nouns/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [Like when you have the right title for something you're writing and you get lost - you can always go back to the title…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/like-when-you-have-the-right-title-for-something-you-re-writing-and/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [I had a student once come up to me and we were talking about this incident, and, of course, I never had the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-had-a-student-once-come-up-to-me-and-we-were-talking-about-this/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [ There are always so many things happening \[to us\] at one time. We read Isherwood's A Single Man in class, and we had to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/there-are-always-so-many-things-happening-to-us-at-one-time-we-read/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [I forget how beautiful and calm California is. It's not so much about the place, but also the age that I came to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-forget-how-beautiful-and-calm-california-is-it-s-not-so-much-about/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [“My litmus test of compatibility is 'Tom Cruise.' I hate people who hate Tom Cruise, cultural automatons who at the mention of his name…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/my-litmus-test-of-compatibility-is-tom-cruise-i-hate-people-who-hate/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [“Sometimes it's the nihilism that makes life worth living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/sometimes-it-s-the-nihilism-that-makes-life-worth-living/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [I think there's nothing new going on. Except that, you're even more public than you've ever been.There's some good and some bad to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-think-there-s-nothing-new-going-on-except-that-you-re-even-more/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) > [“Would he read the paper and see that the Union he saved was now a dysfunctional plutocracy,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/would-he-read-the-paper-and-see-that-the-union-he-saved-was-now-a/) [Paul Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-beatty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/paul-beatty/#itemlist", "name": "10 Trying Quotes By Paul Beatty", "numberOfItems": 10, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I try to be accommodating, but I'm pretty much a loner.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paul Beatty" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-try-to-be-accommodating-but-i-m-pretty-much-a-loner/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/paul-beatty-6684_loner_i-try-to-be-accommodating-but-i-m-pretty_2608489.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/paul-beatty-6684_loner_i-try-to-be-accommodating-but-i-m-pretty_2608489.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d16/paul-beatty-6684_loner_i-try-to-be-accommodating-but-i-m-pretty_2608489.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I try to be accommodating, but I'm pretty much a loner.” — Paul Beatty", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The other thing [my psychology professor] said to me was that I was always very mindful of the person who was away from the group, that I was always trying to bring them in.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paul Beatty" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/the-other-thing-my-psychology-professor-said-to-me-was-that-i-was/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abe/paul-beatty-6684_always-trying_the-other-thing-my-psychology-professor_2689426.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abe/paul-beatty-6684_always-trying_the-other-thing-my-psychology-professor_2689426.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abe/paul-beatty-6684_always-trying_the-other-thing-my-psychology-professor_2689426.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The other thing [my psychology professor] said to me was that I was always very mindful of the person who…” — Paul Beatty", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Don't write about trying to change the world, just write about a changed world or a world that's not changing. 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Because that hopefully frees up some people by making somebody else sit at the nominal head of the table.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paul Beatty" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/there-are-things-i-don-t-like-like-sitting-at-the-head-of-the-class/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/paul-beatty-6684_circles_there-are-things-i-don-t-like-like-sitti_150494.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/paul-beatty-6684_circles_there-are-things-i-don-t-like-like-sitti_150494.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/paul-beatty-6684_circles_there-are-things-i-don-t-like-like-sitti_150494.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are things I don't like, like sitting at the head of the class. It makes me uncomfortable. 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But later on, I realized I should have said: Don't write about trying to change the world, just write about a changed world or a world that's not changing. 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It's not something I feel comfortable doing. But sometimes I would get frustrated, I'd think, \"You know, this is a good book, how come no one is paying attention to it?\" So it's nice to have some recognition. I don't write to put it in a drawer, I hope that people see it. But what am I willing to do for that? I struggle with that a little bit. I try to be accommodating, but I'm pretty much a loner. I'll say this, and it'll sound like bullshit, but it's not: I don't really pay attention to this stuff very much.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paul Beatty" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-beatty/i-m-not-much-of-a-self-promoter-or-anything-it-s-not-something-i-feel/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/paul-beatty-6684_attention_i-m-not-much-of-a-self-promoter-or-anyth_2320615.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/paul-beatty-6684_attention_i-m-not-much-of-a-self-promoter-or-anyth_2320615.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/paul-beatty-6684_attention_i-m-not-much-of-a-self-promoter-or-anyth_2320615.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I'm not much of a self-promoter or anything. It's not something I feel comfortable doing. 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