--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have a great many opinions about…" description: "\"I have a great many opinions about writing, but I'm afraid that all of them are unprintable\" — Alfred Lansing" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/alfred-lansing-28327_great-man_i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writi_1312859.png" --- # I have a great many opinions about writing, but I'm afraid… ![“I have a great many opinions about writing, but I'm afraid that all of them are unprintable” quote by Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/alfred-lansing-28327_great-man_i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writi_1312859.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/alfred-lansing-28327_great-man_i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writi_1312859.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/alfred-lansing-28327_great-man_i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writi_1312859.png) > “I have a great many opinions about writing, but I'm afraid that all of them are unprintable” [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing ideas often feel unpublishable, reflecting self‑doubt about creative output. **In simple terms:** Many writing ideas seem unprintable. Key Takeaway Write despite fear. Themes creativity self‑doubt expression Mood reflective motivational Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - journaling - novel drafting - blogging - workshop participation Key Concepts authorship imperfection Questions to Reflect On - What stops you from sharing your work? - How can you accept imperfect drafts? A Different Perspective Perfectionism may block sharing valuable insights. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Great man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-man/) [Great men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-men/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“I used to be afraid about what people might say or think after reading what I had written. I am not afraid anymore, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/i-used-to-be-afraid-about-what-people-might-say-or-think-after/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) > [“The other thing that’s happened with writing is that I’m not afraid it will go away. Up until a couple of years ago, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsha-l-larsen/the-other-thing-that-s-happened-with-writing-is-that-i-m-not-afraid/) Marsha L. Larsen > [I've written so many verses and keep on writing so many more that I became afraid that if I didn't write them into one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-st-vincent-millay/i-ve-written-so-many-verses-and-keep-on-writing-so-many-more-that-i/) [Edna St. Vincent Millay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-st-vincent-millay/) > [ I felt better about myself that I did it \[calling Max Askeli Commander Askeli\], rather than have - rather than thinking it and not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/i-felt-better-about-myself-that-i-did-it-calling-max-askeli-commander/) [Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/) > [I never said anything that was unprintable. Never said anything just for the sake of being startling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bette-davis/i-never-said-anything-that-was-unprintable-never-said-anything-just/) [Bette Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bette-davis/) > [There's something to be said for relatives...it has to be said because it's unprintable!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/there-s-something-to-be-said-for-relatives-it-has-to-be-said-because/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I think writing for me has always been a matter of fear. Writing is fear and not writing is fear. 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The boys have gone hog-wild with liberty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/the-nowadays-ruling-that-no-word-is-unprintable-has-i-think-done-2/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [The nowadays ruling that no word is unprintable has, I think, done nothing whatever for beautiful letters. ... Obscenity is too valuable a commodity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/the-nowadays-ruling-that-no-word-is-unprintable-has-i-think-done/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [I heard a white writer say, 'Oh, I'd never put black people in my writing, I'm afraid I would offend someone by doing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/i-heard-a-white-writer-say-oh-i-d-never-put-black-people-in-my/) [Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/) > [I don't think you have time to waste not writing because you are afraid you won't be good at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-don-t-think-you-have-time-to-waste-not-writing-because-you-are/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [My father was a really great man. I'll never forget the last thing he ever said to me. Nor will I ever repeat it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-s-hall/my-father-was-a-really-great-man-i-ll-never-forget-the-last-thing-he/) [John S. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-s-hall/) > [I think the next 50 years are going to present the human race with challenges that so far exceed the limitations of geopolitical boundaries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-quinto/i-think-the-next-50-years-are-going-to-present-the-human-race-with/) [Zachary Quinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-quinto/) ## More by Alfred Lansing > [“A forbidding-looking place, certainly, but that only made it seem the more pitiful. It was the refuge of twenty-two men who, at that very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/a-forbidding-looking-place-certainly-but-that-only-made-it-seem-the/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“Then he opened the Bible Queen Alexandra had given them and ripped out the flyleaf and the page containing the Twenty-third Psalm. He also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/then-he-opened-the-bible-queen-alexandra-had-given-them-and-ripped/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“The date was October 27, 1915. The name of the ship was Endurance. The position was 69°5´ South, 51°30´ West—deep in the icy wasteland…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/the-date-was-october-27-1915-the-name-of-the-ship-was-endurance-the/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“Of all their enemies -- the cold, the ice, the sea -- he feared none more than demoralization.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/of-all-their-enemies-the-cold-the-ice-the-sea-he-feared-none-more/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [In that instant they felt an overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment. Though they had failed dismally even to come close to the expedition's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/in-that-instant-they-felt-an-overwhelming-sense-of-pride-and/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“Even at home, with theatres and all sorts of amusements, changes of scene and people, four months idleness would be tedious: One can then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/even-at-home-with-theatres-and-all-sorts-of-amusements-changes-of/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“Returning from a hunting trip, Orde-Lees, traveling on skis across the rotting surface of the ice, had just about reached camp when an evil,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/returning-from-a-hunting-trip-orde-lees-traveling-on-skis-across-the/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“They were for all practical purposes alone in the frozen Antarctic seas. It had been very nearly a year since they had last been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/they-were-for-all-practical-purposes-alone-in-the-frozen-antarctic/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“He promised to write a book later about the trip. He sold the rights to the motion pictures and still photographs that would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/he-promised-to-write-a-book-later-about-the-trip-he-sold-the-rights/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [it's been my experience that most writers don't talk about their craft--they just do it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/it-s-been-my-experience-that-most-writers-don-t-talk-about-their/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [No matter what the odds, a man does not pin his last hope for survival on something and then expect that it will fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/no-matter-what-the-odds-a-man-does-not-pin-his-last-hope-for-survival/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“The whole undertaking was criticized in some circles as being too "audacious." And perhaps it was. But if it hadn't been audacious, it wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/the-whole-undertaking-was-criticized-in-some-circles-as-being-too/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“The simple act of sailing had carried him beyond the world of reversals, frustrations, and inanities. And in the space of a few short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/the-simple-act-of-sailing-had-carried-him-beyond-the-world-of/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“Whatever his mood—whether it was gay and breezy, or dark with rage—he had one pervading characteristic: he was purposeful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/whatever-his-mood-whether-it-was-gay-and-breezy-or-dark-with-rage-he/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) > [“The ship reacted to each fresh wave of pressure in a different way. Sometimes she simply quivered briefly as a human being might wince…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/the-ship-reacted-to-each-fresh-wave-of-pressure-in-a-different-way/) [Alfred Lansing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) [Explore all 19 Alfred Lansing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/) ## More Great man quotes > [I think the next 50 years are going to present the human race with challenges that so far exceed the limitations of geopolitical boundaries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-quinto/i-think-the-next-50-years-are-going-to-present-the-human-race-with/) [Zachary Quinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-quinto/) > [Football is a team sport. I'm proud of what I achieved in my career, but I also know that I wouldn't have achieved any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schmeichel/football-is-a-team-sport-i-m-proud-of-what-i-achieved-in-my-career/) [Peter Schmeichel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schmeichel/) > [My father was a really great man. I'll never forget the last thing he ever said to me. Nor will I ever repeat it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-s-hall/my-father-was-a-really-great-man-i-ll-never-forget-the-last-thing-he/) [John S. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-s-hall/) > [To vilify a great man is the readiest way in which a little man can himself attain greatness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/to-vilify-a-great-man-is-the-readiest-way-in-which-a-little-man-can/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [There are a great many colored people who are ashamed of the cake-walk, but I think they ought to be proud of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/there-are-a-great-many-colored-people-who-are-ashamed-of-the-cake/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [“The effects of the division of labour, in the general business of society, will be more easily understood by considering in what manner it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/the-effects-of-the-division-of-labour-in-the-general-business-of/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [Greatness by nature includes a power, but not a will to power. ... The great man, whether we comprehend him in the most intense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-buber/greatness-by-nature-includes-a-power-but-not-a-will-to-power-the/) [Martin Buber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-buber/) > [A great man isn't the one who can show all his greatness, but great man is the one who can show his Humility upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-great-man-isn-t-the-one-who-can-show-all-his-greatness-but-great/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But the mark of a great man is one who knows when to set aside the important things in order to accomplish the vital…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/but-the-mark-of-a-great-man-is-one-who-knows-when-to-set-aside-the/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [It's awfully hard to be the son of a great man and also of a half-crazy woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-steele-commager/it-s-awfully-hard-to-be-the-son-of-a-great-man-and-also-of-a-half/) [Henry Steele Commager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-steele-commager/) > [“...a great man who is vicious will only be a great doer of evil, and a rich man who is not liberal will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-cervantes/a-great-man-who-is-vicious-will-only-be-a-great-doer-of-evil-and-a/) Miguel Cervantes > [We expect a great man to be a good reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-expect-a-great-man-to-be-a-good-reader/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Nature never sends a great man into the planet, without confiding the secret to another soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/nature-never-sends-a-great-man-into-the-planet-without-confiding-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“We’re not the greatest thing in the universe, certainly not the smartest. Seems logical there’d be a great many things in it we can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvain-neuvel/we-re-not-the-greatest-thing-in-the-universe-certainly-not-the/) [Sylvain Neuvel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvain-neuvel/) > [All I am in private life is a literary critic and historian, that's my job...And I'm prepared to say on that basis if anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/all-i-am-in-private-life-is-a-literary-critic-and-historian-that-s-my/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) [Browse all 1,429 Great man quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-man/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have a great many opinions about writing, but I'm afraid that all of them are unprintable", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alfred Lansing" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writing-but-i-m-afraid-that-all-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Great man" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writing-but-i-m-afraid-that-all-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/alfred-lansing-28327_great-man_i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writi_1312859.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/alfred-lansing-28327_great-man_i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writi_1312859.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11f/alfred-lansing-28327_great-man_i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writi_1312859.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have a great many opinions about writing, but I'm afraid that all of them are unprintable” — Alfred Lansing", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alfred Lansing", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lansing/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I have a great many opinions...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writing-but-i-m-afraid-that-all-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lansing/i-have-a-great-many-opinions-about-writing-but-i-m-afraid-that-all-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```