--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't know why Sinclair Lewis fell in…" description: "\"I don't know why Sinclair Lewis fell in love with me. He didn't get even the slightest response from me. But his letters were lovely. And the poems he ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/fay-wray-18005_book_i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in_38167.png" --- # I don't know why Sinclair Lewis fell in love with me. He… ![“I don't know why Sinclair Lewis fell in love with me. He didn't get even the slightest response from me. But his letters were lovely. And the poems he wrote me were lovely. I used some of them in my book.” quote by Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/fay-wray-18005_book_i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in_38167.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/fay-wray-18005_book_i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in_38167.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/fay-wray-18005_book_i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in_38167.png) > “I don't know why Sinclair Lewis fell in love with me. He didn't get even the slightest response from me. But his letters were lovely. And the poems he wrote me were lovely. I used some of them in my book.” [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on an unreciprocated affection from Sinclair Lewis, noting his heartfelt letters and poems despite her lack of response, and later incorporating his work into her own writing. **In simple terms:** Unrequited admiration turned literary inspiration. Key Takeaway Personal indifference can coexist with artistic appreciation. Themes unrequited love literary collaboration creative reuse personal boundaries emotional complexity Mood nostalgic reflective bittersweet Type personal anecdote literary reflection When to use this quote - receiving unreciprocated affection - using others' work in one's own book - reflecting on past relationships - navigating artistic influence Key Concepts sentiment authorship interpersonal dynamics Practical Applications - incorporating admired letters into a publication - drawing inspiration from unreciprocated relationships Questions to Reflect On - How does unreciprocated affection affect creative output? - What ethical considerations arise when using someone else's personal writings? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) ## Related quotes > [Billy Collins writes lovely poems. Limpid, gently and consistently startling, more serious than they seem, they describe all the worlds that are and were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/billy-collins-writes-lovely-poems-limpid-gently-and-consistently/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [One of these poems I wrote after having been here only a month. The other, I wrote this morning. In the space between the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/one-of-these-poems-i-wrote-after-having-been-here-only-a-month-the/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [( Hey guys heres one of my poems I wrote hope you like it comment so I can see :) ) ask me why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalya-johnson/hey-guys-heres-one-of-my-poems-i-wrote-hope-you-like-it-comment-so-i/) [Natalya Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalya-johnson/) > [“all the pretty woman thought the poems i wrote on love were meant for them. and i always felt badly about having written them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-veli-kan-k/all-the-pretty-woman-thought-the-poems-i-wrote-on-love-were-meant-for/) Orhan Veli Kanık > [I like to go back and read poems that I wrote fifty years ago, twenty years ago, and sometimes they surprise me - I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-like-to-go-back-and-read-poems-that-i-wrote-fifty-years-ago-twenty/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [One of the very first poems I wrote was Docker That fist would drop a hammer on a Catholic and one of the sturdiest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/one-of-the-very-first-poems-i-wrote-was-docker-that-fist-would-drop-a/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [“The bartender put a notepad and a pencil before me. Breathing hard, the pencil trembling, I wrote: Dear Sinclair Lewis: You were once a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fante/the-bartender-put-a-notepad-and-a-pencil-before-me-breathing-hard-the/) [John Fante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fante/) > [Sinclair Lewis was asked one time to give a talk to class of students about writing. When he got there he asked the class,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-t-hall/sinclair-lewis-was-asked-one-time-to-give-a-talk-to-class-of-students/) [Tom T. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-t-hall/) > [ Sinclair Lewis is the perfect example of the false sense of time of the newspaper world… \[ellipsis in source\] He was always dominated by… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/sinclair-lewis-is-the-perfect-example-of-the-false-sense-of-time-of/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [“It is, to tell the truth, just such a Main Street as Sinclair Lewis describes with such delightful malevolence, but like that Main Street…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earnest-elmo-calkins/it-is-to-tell-the-truth-just-such-a-main-street-as-sinclair-lewis/) Earnest Elmo Calkins > [Go back and read Sinclair Lewis - It Can't Happen Here or Babbitt. For a guy or girl who's going to do an hour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cross/go-back-and-read-sinclair-lewis-it-can-t-happen-here-or-babbitt-for-a/) [David Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cross/) > [Until I was a junior in high school, I was a "boy scientist" type and expected to go into chemistry. Then I discovered the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-w-wood/until-i-was-a-junior-in-high-school-i-was-a-boy-scientist-type-and/) [Allen W. Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-w-wood/) > [“Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov and Milan Kundera’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being might suit our moment. Sinclair Lewis’s novel It Can’t Happen Here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-snyder/fyodor-dostoevsky-s-the-brothers-karamazov-and-milan-kundera-s-the/) [Timothy Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-snyder/) > [“I forged more notes and my trips to the library became frequent. Reading grew into a passion. My first serious novel was Sinclair Lewis’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-wright/i-forged-more-notes-and-my-trips-to-the-library-became-frequent/) [Richard Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-wright/) > [“Novelist Sinclair Lewis was supposed to deliver an hour-long lecture to a group of college students who planned to be writers. Lewis opened his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-prichard/novelist-sinclair-lewis-was-supposed-to-deliver-an-hour-long-lecture/) Peter Prichard ## More by Fay Wray > [Juan Tripp was a friend. Good name for an airline man, huh? Juan Tripp after another?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/juan-tripp-was-a-friend-good-name-for-an-airline-man-huh-juan-tripp/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [My children didn't when they were little because I thought that they had to be of a certain age. I hoped they liked me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/my-children-didn-t-when-they-were-little-because-i-thought-that-they/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Lillian Gish thought that there should be a cabinet position for the arts and I think she was right. I think she was right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/lillian-gish-thought-that-there-should-be-a-cabinet-position-for-the/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [She wanted us to feel we were above everyone in the town. She really did tell us that we were related to Chief Justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/she-wanted-us-to-feel-we-were-above-everyone-in-the-town-she-really/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [It was good for us, I suppose. Those kinds of times produce qualities in us that make us better for having had them. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/it-was-good-for-us-i-suppose-those-kinds-of-times-produce-qualities/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [It was so satisfying for me - a great reward, just to see it done well. And it was beautifully directed by my daughter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/it-was-so-satisfying-for-me-a-great-reward-just-to-see-it-done-well/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Cary Grant and I were doing a play in New York. He had a crush on me. Whenever we went to a party, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/cary-grant-and-i-were-doing-a-play-in-new-york-he-had-a-crush-on-me/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Crawford washed her hands a lot. She washed her arms all the way up past her elbows. She just couldn't get enough done in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/crawford-washed-her-hands-a-lot-she-washed-her-arms-all-the-way-up/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Paul Lucas had a particularly amusing accent, so I chuckled. That was terrible; I shouldn't have done that, but he took it too big.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/paul-lucas-had-a-particularly-amusing-accent-so-i-chuckled-that-was/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Well, the Empire State was about 40' high in the studio. King Kong was a little model about 2' high, and the scenery that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/well-the-empire-state-was-about-40-high-in-the-studio-king-kong-was-a/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [When we were making KONG, I went into the sound room and made an aria of horror sounds. I was in charge of it;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/when-we-were-making-kong-i-went-into-the-sound-room-and-made-an-aria/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [I think the studio gave me that series on purpose, because they knew perfectly well that Robert Riskin was ill and that I needed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/i-think-the-studio-gave-me-that-series-on-purpose-because-they-knew/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Recently, a six-year-old boy said to me, "I've been waiting to meet you for half my life."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/recently-a-six-year-old-boy-said-to-me-i-ve-been-waiting-to-meet-you/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Actually, the camera was never overhead at any time. It was always a side view of me. Subsequently, after the picture was released, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/actually-the-camera-was-never-overhead-at-any-time-it-was-always-a/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [When it was over my daughter said, 'Oh, I felt so sorry for him - he didn't want to hurt you, he liked you.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/when-it-was-over-my-daughter-said-oh-i-felt-so-sorry-for-him-he-didn/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) [Explore all 36 Fay Wray quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I don't know why Sinclair Lewis fell in love with me. He didn't get even the slightest response from me. But his letters were lovely. And the poems he wrote me were lovely. I used some of them in my book.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Fay Wray" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in-love-with-me-he-didn-t-get/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in-love-with-me-he-didn-t-get/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/fay-wray-18005_book_i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in_38167.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/fay-wray-18005_book_i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in_38167.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/fay-wray-18005_book_i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in_38167.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I don't know why Sinclair Lewis fell in love with me. He didn't get even the slightest response from me. But…” — Fay Wray", "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": "Fay Wray", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I don't know why Sinclair Lewis...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in-love-with-me-he-didn-t-get/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/i-don-t-know-why-sinclair-lewis-fell-in-love-with-me-he-didn-t-get/#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 } } ] } ```