--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a writer one has to take the chance on…" description: "\"As a writer one has to take the chance on being a fool.\" — Anne Sexton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/365/anne-sexton-645_chance_as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-o_2393177.png" --- # As a writer one has to take the chance on being a fool. ![“As a writer one has to take the chance on being a fool.” quote by Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/365/anne-sexton-645_chance_as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-o_2393177.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/365/anne-sexton-645_chance_as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-o_2393177.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/365/anne-sexton-645_chance_as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-o_2393177.png) > “As a writer one has to take the chance on being a fool.” [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative work requires daring to appear foolish, embracing risk for authenticity. **In simple terms:** Being a writer means risking foolishness. Key Takeaway Embrace risk to create authentically. Themes creativity risk authenticity Mood introspective encouraging Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - first drafts - public readings Key Concepts vulnerability artistic courage Questions to Reflect On - What does “being a fool” feel like to you? - How can you turn vulnerability into strength? A Different Perspective Fear of judgment can stifle expression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Fool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fool/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luck/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Chance is the fool's name for Fate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-astaire/chance-is-the-fool-s-name-for-fate/) [Fred Astaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-astaire/) > [From time to time, just about every 'Vanity Fair' writer has a chance to sell rights to an article or a book to Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-burrough/from-time-to-time-just-about-every-vanity-fair-writer-has-a-chance-to/) [Bryan Burrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-burrough/) > [“Do you love me?” His voice rang flat in his own ears, deadened and weighted with the recognition there was only one chance, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-s-jennsen/do-you-love-me-his-voice-rang-flat-in-his-own-ears-deadened-and/) [G.S. Jennsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-s-jennsen/) > [I'll never be a good writer, and no chance of being a good actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-vaughn/i-ll-never-be-a-good-writer-and-no-chance-of-being-a-good-actor/) [Matthew Vaughn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-vaughn/) > [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [You must be a poet, a lady of evil luck desiring to be what you are not, longing to be what you can only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/you-must-be-a-poet-a-lady-of-evil-luck-desiring-to-be-what-you-are/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/) [Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/) > [If you scared to take chances, you'll never have the answers...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/if-you-scared-to-take-chances-you-ll-never-have-the-answers/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [Everybody needs a chance to find love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-longoria/everybody-needs-a-chance-to-find-love/) [Eva Longoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-longoria/) > [We like to forget that in fact everything in our life is chance, from our genesis out of the encounter of spermatozoon and egg…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/we-like-to-forget-that-in-fact-everything-in-our-life-is-chance-from/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“I never thought I'd get a second chance at a first time with you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-andrews/i-never-thought-i-d-get-a-second-chance-at-a-first-time-with-you/) [Amy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-andrews/) > [I believe in second chances, but I don't believe in third or fourth chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/selena-gomez/i-believe-in-second-chances-but-i-don-t-believe-in-third-or-fourth/) [Selena Gomez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/selena-gomez/) > [We seal our fate with the choices we take, but don't give a second thought to the chances we take.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-estefan/we-seal-our-fate-with-the-choices-we-take-but-don-t-give-a-second/) [Gloria Estefan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-estefan/) > [Hopin' you would give me a chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyaz/hopin-you-would-give-me-a-chance/) [Iyaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyaz/) > [It is by chance that I met you, and by choice I am keeping you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/it-is-by-chance-that-i-met-you-and-by-choice-i-am-keeping-you/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) ## More by Anne Sexton > [Blind with love, my daughter has cried nightly for horses, those long-necked marchers and churners that she has mastered, any and all, reigning them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/blind-with-love-my-daughter-has-cried-nightly-for-horses-those-long/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I am crazy as hell, but I know it. And knowing it is a kind of sanity that makes the sickness worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-am-crazy-as-hell-but-i-know-it-and-knowing-it-is-a-kind-of-sanity/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [And what of the dead? They lie without shoes in the stone boats. They are more like stone than the sea would be if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/and-what-of-the-dead-they-lie-without-shoes-in-the-stone-boats-they/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [The Witch's Life" When I was a child there was an old woman in our neighborhood whom we called The Witch. All day she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/the-witch-s-life-when-i-was-a-child-there-was-an-old-woman-in-our/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I have forgiven all the old actors for dying. A new one comes on with the same lines, like large white growths, in his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-have-forgiven-all-the-old-actors-for-dying-a-new-one-comes-on-with/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“From the Garden” Come, my beloved, consider the lilies. We are of little faith. We talk too much. Put your mouthful of words away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/from-the-garden-come-my-beloved-consider-the-lilies-we-are-of-little/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Oh thumb, I want a drink it is dark, where are the big people, when will I get there...?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/oh-thumb-i-want-a-drink-it-is-dark-where-are-the-big-people-when-will/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I want to kiss God on His nose and watch Him sneeze and so do you. Not out of disrespect. Out of pique. Out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-want-to-kiss-god-on-his-nose-and-watch-him-sneeze-and-so-do-you-not/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I, in my brand new body, which was not a woman's yet, told the stars my questions and thought God could really see the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-in-my-brand-new-body-which-was-not-a-woman-s-yet-told-the-stars-my/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Father, you died once, salted down at fifty-nine, packed down like a big snow angel, wasn't that enough?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/father-you-died-once-salted-down-at-fifty-nine-packed-down-like-a-big/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [When I'm writing, I know I'm doing the thing I was born to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/when-i-m-writing-i-know-i-m-doing-the-thing-i-was-born-to-do/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Cinderella and the prince lived, they say, happily ever after, like two dolls in a museum case never bothered by diapers or dust, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/cinderella-and-the-prince-lived-they-say-happily-ever-after-like-two/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“Quite collected at cocktail parties, meanwhile in my head I'm undergoing open-heart surgery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/quite-collected-at-cocktail-parties-meanwhile-in-my-head-i-m/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I cannot walk an inch / without trying to walk to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-cannot-walk-an-inch-without-trying-to-walk-to-god/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Now that I have written many words, and let out so many loves, for so many, and been altogether what I always was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/now-that-i-have-written-many-words-and-let-out-so-many-loves-for-so/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) [Explore all 428 Anne Sexton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) ## More Chance quotes > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/) [Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/) > [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/) Alejandro Taubas > [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/) [Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/) > [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/) [Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/) > [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/) [Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/) [Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As a writer one has to take the chance on being a fool.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anne Sexton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-on-being-a-fool/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Chance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-on-being-a-fool/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/365/anne-sexton-645_chance_as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-o_2393177.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/365/anne-sexton-645_chance_as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-o_2393177.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/365/anne-sexton-645_chance_as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-o_2393177.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As a writer one has to take the chance on being a fool.” — Anne Sexton", "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": "Anne Sexton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As a writer one has to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-on-being-a-fool/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/as-a-writer-one-has-to-take-the-chance-on-being-a-fool/#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 } } ] } ```