--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I never even dreamt of being a writer…" description: "\"I never even dreamt of being a writer because I didn't feel allowed. When I was a child I was terribly ambitious, but I didn't know at all what this gr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39b/amelie-nothomb-1581_ambitious_i-never-even-dreamt-of-being-a-writer-be_2021903.jpg" --- # I never even dreamt of being a writer because I didn't… ![“I never even dreamt of being a writer because I didn't feel allowed. When I was a child I was terribly ambitious, but I didn't know at all what this great thing would become.” quote by Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39b/amelie-nothomb-1581_ambitious_i-never-even-dreamt-of-being-a-writer-be_2021903.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39b/amelie-nothomb-1581_ambitious_i-never-even-dreamt-of-being-a-writer-be_2021903.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39b/amelie-nothomb-1581_ambitious_i-never-even-dreamt-of-being-a-writer-be_2021903.jpg) > “I never even dreamt of being a writer because I didn't feel allowed. When I was a child I was terribly ambitious, but I didn't know at all what this great thing would become.” [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early ambition can be suppressed by self-doubt and external expectations, delaying creative pursuit. **In simple terms:** Self-doubt blocks creative dreams. Key Takeaway Challenge internal limits to pursue writing. Themes ambition self-doubt creativity identity growth Mood reflective hopeful determined Type inspirational motivational When to use this quote - School projects - career changes - writing workshops - personal journaling - mentor meetings Key Concepts Psychological barriers self-actualization literary aspiration Questions to Reflect On - What internal voice holds you back? - How can you nurture early ambition? A Different Perspective Societal pressures may also shape perceived limits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambitious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Great things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-things/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not terribly ambitious, not terribly driven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-hardy/i-m-not-terribly-ambitious-not-terribly-driven/) [Jeremy Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-hardy/) > [I was freakishly ambitious. I didn't want to be a child. I wanted my own flat, to work and be a grown up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billie-piper/i-was-freakishly-ambitious-i-didn-t-want-to-be-a-child-i-wanted-my/) [Billie Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billie-piper/) > [I wanted success. I was ambitious. I didn't leave United to see out my career picking up wages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-neville/i-wanted-success-i-was-ambitious-i-didn-t-leave-united-to-see-out-my/) [Phil Neville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-neville/) > [I have never been terribly ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-lynn/i-have-never-been-terribly-ambitious/) [Vera Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-lynn/) > [I dreamt of being a writer once I started to read. I started to write 'Bonjour Tristesse' in bistros around the Sorbonne. I finished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/i-dreamt-of-being-a-writer-once-i-started-to-read-i-started-to-write/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [I was terribly ambitious: I was always thinking why wasn't I in the West End. I really wasted my whole youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-hancock/i-was-terribly-ambitious-i-was-always-thinking-why-wasn-t-i-in-the/) [Sheila Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-hancock/) > [As a kid, I dreamt of becoming a writer. My most exciting pastime was reading novels; in fact, I would read anything I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maryam-mirzakhani/as-a-kid-i-dreamt-of-becoming-a-writer-my-most-exciting-pastime-was/) [Maryam Mirzakhani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maryam-mirzakhani/) > [“I once dreamt of being a writer, to have my words known by many from many countries; this dream i dreamt came true...so why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rayvon-l-browne/i-once-dreamt-of-being-a-writer-to-have-my-words-known-by-many-from/) [Rayvon L. Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rayvon-l-browne/) > [I think I became a writer because I didn't know of anything else to do. Maybe some incident from my childhood influenced me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-modiano/i-think-i-became-a-writer-because-i-didn-t-know-of-anything-else-to/) [Patrick Modiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-modiano/) > [Half the reason I turned into a writer is you didn't have to show up anywhere. You could work naked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-stahl/half-the-reason-i-turned-into-a-writer-is-you-didn-t-have-to-show-up/) [Jerry Stahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-stahl/) > [When I was a kid, I wanted to be a writer, but I didn't think it would really be possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-joy/when-i-was-a-kid-i-wanted-to-be-a-writer-but-i-didn-t-think-it-would/) [Lisa Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-joy/) > [I'd given up everything to be a writer, and if I didn't then go on to do that - to write - then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/i-d-given-up-everything-to-be-a-writer-and-if-i-didn-t-then-go-on-to/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [I started writing in the '90s, so I was free to just have an eccentric career and not conform to some idea of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/i-started-writing-in-the-90s-so-i-was-free-to-just-have-an-eccentric/) [Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/) > [I think my parents recognised that I'd always wanted to be a writer, and so they didn't think that this was some idle, faddish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/i-think-my-parents-recognised-that-i-d-always-wanted-to-be-a-writer/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [“I had been a writer all of my life, every waking second, and now that part of my life was over. I suppose the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-greer/i-had-been-a-writer-all-of-my-life-every-waking-second-and-now-that/) [Bonnie Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-greer/) ## More by Amelie Nothomb > [God isn't chocolate, he's the encounter between chocolate and the palate capable of appreciating it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/god-isn-t-chocolate-he-s-the-encounter-between-chocolate-and-the/) [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [“The nature of the epistolary genre was revealed to me: a form of writing devoted to another person. Novels, poems, and so on, were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/the-nature-of-the-epistolary-genre-was-revealed-to-me-a-form-of/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [“I glanced at the contents of what I was photocopying. They were the rules of the golf club of which Mister Saito was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/i-glanced-at-the-contents-of-what-i-was-photocopying-they-were-the/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [“Principio según el cual una persona que me había enseñado a atarme los cordones de los zapatos no podía decir cualquier cosa”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/principio-seg-n-el-cual-una-persona-que-me-hab-a-ense-ado-a-atarme/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [“As she went on with her labour, she became aware that she had Schubert's Erl-King going around in her head. It wasn't the ideal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/as-she-went-on-with-her-labour-she-became-aware-that-she-had-schubert/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [It's while writing that suddenly a point of view appears: 'So, that's what I really thought about this thing'. Then it feels part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/it-s-while-writing-that-suddenly-a-point-of-view-appears-so-that-s/) [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [“I have a Ph.D. in masturbation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/i-have-a-ph-d-in-masturbation/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [ “If I knew what I was thinking \[...\] I would never have become a writer.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/if-i-knew-what-i-was-thinking-i-would-never-have-become-a-writer/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [The purpose of the photograph is to reveal the love that is felt in a single image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/the-purpose-of-the-photograph-is-to-reveal-the-love-that-is-felt-in-a/) [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [Of course you have memories, and these memories are convincing. But it's really at the moment when I write them down - when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/of-course-you-have-memories-and-these-memories-are-convincing-but-it/) [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [When you have a lot of success you don't need vanity any more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/when-you-have-a-lot-of-success-you-don-t-need-vanity-any-more/) [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [It’s true that someone will always say that good and evil don’t exist: that is a person who has never had any dealings with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/it-s-true-that-someone-will-always-say-that-good-and-evil-don-t-exist/) [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [“War reveals people's deeper nature.' 'I don't like that idea. It would suggest that we need to be put to the test. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/war-reveals-people-s-deeper-nature-i-don-t-like-that-idea-it-would/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [“Society conspires against her from early infancy. Her brain is steadily filled with plaster until it sets: ‘If you’re not married by the time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/society-conspires-against-her-from-early-infancy-her-brain-is/) [Amélie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) > [If you admire yourself in the mirror, let it be in fear and not delight, because the only thing that beauty will bring to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelie-nothomb/if-you-admire-yourself-in-the-mirror-let-it-be-in-fear-and-not/) [Amelie Nothomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) [Explore all 75 Amelie Nothomb quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelie-nothomb/) ## More Ambitious quotes > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [I want my squad to be confident, ambitious. They have to believe in big things and we have to set targets internally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-howe/i-want-my-squad-to-be-confident-ambitious-they-have-to-believe-in-big/) [Eddie Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-howe/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [“Getting rich is easy, staying rich is impressive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-trip/getting-rich-is-easy-staying-rich-is-impressive/) [Don Trip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-trip/) > [Trying to be perfect may be inevitable for people who are smart and ambitious and interested in the world and its good opinion...What is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/trying-to-be-perfect-may-be-inevitable-for-people-who-are-smart-and/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [Business is always a struggle. There are always obstacles and competitors. There is never an open road, except the wide road that leads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kirubi/business-is-always-a-struggle-there-are-always-obstacles-and/) Chris Kirubi > [I am ambitious to do more than what has been offered me. I want to be the best in whatever career I choose and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uday-chopra/i-am-ambitious-to-do-more-than-what-has-been-offered-me-i-want-to-be/) [Uday Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uday-chopra/) > [There are four varieties in society — the lovers, the ambitious, observers, and fools. The fools are the happiest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hippolyte-taine/there-are-four-varieties-in-society-the-lovers-the-ambitious/) [Hippolyte Taine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hippolyte-taine/) > [People who are ambitious - politicians who crave power - think that they're in control of it, but at some point, the movement that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/people-who-are-ambitious-politicians-who-crave-power-think-that-they/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [I'm not ambitious. Not a bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/i-m-not-ambitious-not-a-bit/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [Aggressive and hard-charging women violate unwritten rules about acceptable social conduct. Men are continually applauded for being ambitious and powerful and successful, but women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/aggressive-and-hard-charging-women-violate-unwritten-rules-about/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [I understood early on that I was not the best-looking girl in the room. But I knew my advantage was a hard work ethic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-o-connor/i-understood-early-on-that-i-was-not-the-best-looking-girl-in-the/) [Erin O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-o-connor/) > [It is ordained that to the ambitious, who derive no satisfaction from the gifts of life and the beauty of the world, life shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/it-is-ordained-that-to-the-ambitious-who-derive-no-satisfaction-from/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [If Reagan and John Paul II were linked by anything, it was a grand, ambitious, and generous idea of Western political civilization, one in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/if-reagan-and-john-paul-ii-were-linked-by-anything-it-was-a-grand/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [To talk only about national security, national defense, means to be selfish, ambitious. It is discrimination, isolation. "It is just me. What do I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evo-morales/to-talk-only-about-national-security-national-defense-means-to-be/) [Evo Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evo-morales/) [Browse all 1,269 Ambitious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I never even dreamt of being a writer because I didn't feel allowed. 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