--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I first told the idea to an editor I had…" description: "\"I first told the idea to an editor I had met who, after reading one of my novels for adults that was set in a high school, had an idea that I might wri..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/daniel-handler-1043_adults_i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had_2276572.jpg" --- # I first told the idea to an editor I had met who, after… ![“I first told the idea to an editor I had met who, after reading one of my novels for adults that was set in a high school, had an idea that I might write something for children.” quote by Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/daniel-handler-1043_adults_i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had_2276572.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/daniel-handler-1043_adults_i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had_2276572.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/daniel-handler-1043_adults_i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had_2276572.jpg) > “I first told the idea to an editor I had met who, after reading one of my novels for adults that was set in a high school, had an idea that I might write something for children.” [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. An editor suggested the author pivot to children's literature after reading an adult novel set in a school. **In simple terms:** Editor encouraged a shift to kids' books. Key Takeaway Consider new audiences. Themes creativity career audience genre growth Mood reflective optimistic Type advice career When to use this quote - publishing - career transition - writing workshops Key Concepts pivot mentorship market development Questions to Reflect On - How could you adapt your voice for children? - What risks do you see in switching audiences? A Different Perspective Changing genre may alienate existing fans. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adults](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adults/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [High school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [ I met \[my editor\] in a bar where alcoholic beverages are served and I bought her one and I told her the idea. And… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-met-my-editor-in-a-bar-where-alcoholic-beverages-are-served-and-i/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [One is lucky to be born in a place where no one is doing it, because then you can say, 'Well, obviously I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/one-is-lucky-to-be-born-in-a-place-where-no-one-is-doing-it-because/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [School of Rock. The best music school anywhere. This whole idea of getting kids not just taking lessons and learning notes and chords, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-snider/school-of-rock-the-best-music-school-anywhere-this-whole-idea-of/) [Dee Snider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-snider/) > [I went to an all-girls school for part of high school, and the idea of boys was amazing to me; like, all I ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-daddario/i-went-to-an-all-girls-school-for-part-of-high-school-and-the-idea-of/) [Alexandra Daddario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-daddario/) > [I'd written my first novel for adults, which was called Basic Eight and was set in a high school, and we were having a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-d-written-my-first-novel-for-adults-which-was-called-basic-eight/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“do NOT go pulling things you like out of your novel because some forum person told you your idea "won't sell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-aaron/do-not-go-pulling-things-you-like-out-of-your-novel-because-some/) [Rachel Aaron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-aaron/) > [For me, I was given a great gift by my father and my mother in that I was never told any idea was bad.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lynch/for-me-i-was-given-a-great-gift-by-my-father-and-my-mother-in-that-i/) [Jennifer Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lynch/) > [ “I told you that my idea was great." "They usually are." "Holy \[crap\]. Did you just admit that?" "Maybe I did." "Uh-huh, you've always… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-lynn/i-told-you-that-my-idea-was-great-they-usually-are-holy-crap-did-you/) [J. Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-lynn/) > [Because 98 percent of our ideas are not great ideas, or everyone would be a billionaire. So yeah. That's something people have had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dax-shepard/because-98-percent-of-our-ideas-are-not-great-ideas-or-everyone-would/) [Dax Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dax-shepard/) > [If it's something I feel I can do alright, I like being in those, and some that I think Rob Schneider and David Spade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-sandler/if-it-s-something-i-feel-i-can-do-alright-i-like-being-in-those-and/) [Adam Sandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-sandler/) > [While writing is a mystical process, it's also work. If you show up to work five days in a row, nobody's going to pat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-darnielle/while-writing-is-a-mystical-process-it-s-also-work-if-you-show-up-to/) [John Darnielle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-darnielle/) > [The idea is to write it so that people hear it and it slides through the brain and goes straight to the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/the-idea-is-to-write-it-so-that-people-hear-it-and-it-slides-through/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I have this belief that if you have an idea, and you have to write it down to remember it, then it can't be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tino-sehgal/i-have-this-belief-that-if-you-have-an-idea-and-you-have-to-write-it/) [Tino Sehgal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tino-sehgal/) > [The Internet is just a chance to do something. Nowhere else can you go, 'I have an idea, I can write this idea, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-scheer/the-internet-is-just-a-chance-to-do-something-nowhere-else-can-you-go/) [Paul Scheer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-scheer/) > [I don't get writer's block. I don't try to write anything; when something comes, I write it. I just practice and when I get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-james/i-don-t-get-writer-s-block-i-don-t-try-to-write-anything-when/) [Jose James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-james/) ## More by Daniel Handler > [We laughed the rest of the way, because the point of this story is, it is not the cookies. It is the love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/we-laughed-the-rest-of-the-way-because-the-point-of-this-story-is-it/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I started making plans, thinking we would get that far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-started-making-plans-thinking-we-would-get-that-far/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I can't imagine why you would want to take your child to see what the career of a writer is like, because it mostly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-can-t-imagine-why-you-would-want-to-take-your-child-to-see-what-the/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“All the deaths are dead for nothing but you're not dead at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/all-the-deaths-are-dead-for-nothing-but-you-re-not-dead-at-all/) [daniel handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“I love you so soundly and I will do anything to drag you forward.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-love-you-so-soundly-and-i-will-do-anything-to-drag-you-forward/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I’d ruin any day, all my days, for those long nights with you, and I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-d-ruin-any-day-all-my-days-for-those-long-nights-with-you-and-i-did/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [Chestnuts in stuffing tastes like someone chewed up a tree branch and then French-kissed it into your mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/chestnuts-in-stuffing-tastes-like-someone-chewed-up-a-tree-branch-and/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [Lemony Snicket. Now, I'm told - the books, of course, starting from the very first one, became hugely popular, selling millions and millions. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/lemony-snicket-now-i-m-told-the-books-of-course-starting-from-the/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“The matches were a little 'he loves me, he loves me not,' but then I saw right on the box that I had twenty-four,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-matches-were-a-little-he-loves-me-he-loves-me-not-but-then-i-saw/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I didn't like books where people played on a sports team and won a bunch of games, or went to summer camp and had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-didn-t-like-books-where-people-played-on-a-sports-team-and-won-a/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I love no one but you, I have discovered, but you are far away and I am here alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-love-no-one-but-you-i-have-discovered-but-you-are-far-away-and-i-am/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [The Basic Eight and Watch Your Mouth both have first-person voices, and I ended up investigating those voices and investing so much in them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-basic-eight-and-watch-your-mouth-both-have-first-person-voices/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [The Long Goodbye' is one book I like to read over and over again, and it was an enormous inspiration for 'All The Wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-long-goodbye-is-one-book-i-like-to-read-over-and-over-again-and/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [The whole thing of what I’ve been trying,” you said, “is that you’re different, and you keep asking about the other girls, but what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-whole-thing-of-what-i-ve-been-trying-you-said-is-that-you-re/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [ I wrote a comedy, which hopefully \[Rick director\] Curtiss Clayton will bring to the screen, that I thought was the antithesis of all my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-wrote-a-comedy-which-hopefully-rick-director-curtiss-clayton-will/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) [Explore all 295 Daniel Handler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) ## More Adults quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [Plainly, the environment must be a living one, directed by a higher intelligence, arranged by an adult who is prepared for his mission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/plainly-the-environment-must-be-a-living-one-directed-by-a-higher/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Almost everywhere we find . . . the use of various coercive measures, to rid ourselves as quickly as possible of the child withinus--i.e.,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/almost-everywhere-we-find-the-use-of-various-coercive-measures-to-rid/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [Education, for most people, means trying to lead the child to resemble the typical adult of his society . . . but for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/education-for-most-people-means-trying-to-lead-the-child-to-resemble/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [I do not believe in public shaming. I do believe that young adults go to college to learn things, and that this process will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-weingarten/i-do-not-believe-in-public-shaming-i-do-believe-that-young-adults-go/) [Gene Weingarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-weingarten/) > [The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance”: “The differences between expert performers and normal adults are not immutable, that is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-anders-ericsson/the-role-of-deliberate-practice-in-the-acquisition-of-expert/) K. 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As much as we like them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-abagnale/when-i-was-a-child-at-sixteen-i-was-just-a-child-all-sixteen-year/) [Frank Abagnale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-abagnale/) [Browse all 3,113 Adults quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adults/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I first told the idea to an editor I had met who, after reading one of my novels for adults that was set in a high school, had an idea that I might write something for children.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daniel Handler" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had-met-who-after-reading-one-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adults" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had-met-who-after-reading-one-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/daniel-handler-1043_adults_i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had_2276572.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/daniel-handler-1043_adults_i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had_2276572.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/efe/daniel-handler-1043_adults_i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had_2276572.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I first told the idea to an editor I had met who, after reading one of my novels for adults that was set in…” — Daniel Handler", "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": "Daniel Handler", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I first told the idea to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had-met-who-after-reading-one-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-first-told-the-idea-to-an-editor-i-had-met-who-after-reading-one-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 } } ] } ```