--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I just wrote the book and was amazed and…" description: "\"I just wrote the book and was amazed and astounded that it became a bestseller and won the Pulitzer Prize. It still hasn't sunk in.\" — Frank McCourt" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bf/frank-mccourt-2576_amazed_i-just-wrote-the-book-and-was-amazed-and_3077680.png" --- # I just wrote the book and was amazed and astounded that it… ![“I just wrote the book and was amazed and astounded that it became a bestseller and won the Pulitzer Prize. It still hasn't sunk in.” quote by Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bf/frank-mccourt-2576_amazed_i-just-wrote-the-book-and-was-amazed-and_3077680.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bf/frank-mccourt-2576_amazed_i-just-wrote-the-book-and-was-amazed-and_3077680.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bf/frank-mccourt-2576_amazed_i-just-wrote-the-book-and-was-amazed-and_3077680.png) > “I just wrote the book and was amazed and astounded that it became a bestseller and won the Pulitzer Prize. It still hasn't sunk in.” [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A writer is stunned by sudden acclaim and struggles to internalize success. **In simple terms:** Surprised by fame and its impact. Key Takeaway Allow time to process achievement. Themes success surprise humility Mood reflective humble Type conversational inspirational When to use this quote - book launch - award ceremony - media interview - personal reflection Key Concepts celebrity shock psychology of achievement Questions to Reflect On - How does fame change self‑identity? - What steps help integrate new reality? A Different Perspective Success can feel unreal and isolating. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amazed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amazed/) [Astounded Bestseller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astounded-bestseller-5235655/) [Bestseller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bestseller/) [Bestseller Won](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bestseller-won-5235654/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book Amazed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-amazed-5235656/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Prize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prize/) [Pulitzer Prize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pulitzer-prize-355820/) [Still](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/still/) [Won Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/won-pulitzer-355819/) ## Related quotes > [“Annie Dillard was a pioneer in her Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, which won a Pulitzer Prize in 1974. 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After winning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-page/one-thing-about-winning-a-pulitzer-it-means-you-know-what-the-first/) [Clarence Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-page/) > [If I were a writer, the Pulitzer Prize would be important to me. This is my profession, so an Oscar is important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-landau/if-i-were-a-writer-the-pulitzer-prize-would-be-important-to-me-this/) [Martin Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-landau/) > [The paper nominated me 12 or 13 times for the Pulitzer Prize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-scheer/the-paper-nominated-me-12-or-13-times-for-the-pulitzer-prize/) [Robert Scheer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-scheer/) > [When I look at Perfidia, I think, "That's a Pulitzer Prize winner. That's a National Book Award winner." It's not going to get it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ellroy/when-i-look-at-perfidia-i-think-that-s-a-pulitzer-prize-winner-that-s/) [James Ellroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ellroy/) > [The Pulitzer Prize is an idea; it's a vote of confidence. Like literature, it exists purely in the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/the-pulitzer-prize-is-an-idea-it-s-a-vote-of-confidence-like/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [The Pulitzer Prize was established when Joseph Pulitzer died in 1911, leaving a bequest to create the eponymous award. An immigrant from Hungary, Pulitzer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nell-scovell/the-pulitzer-prize-was-established-when-joseph-pulitzer-died-in-1911/) [Nell Scovell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nell-scovell/) ## More by Frank McCourt > [I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... It was a slow process for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intellectuals-who-can-stand-back-and/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the ghettos,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go-off-on-their-own-and-do-god/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [When I act tough they listen politely till the spasm passes. They know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-i-act-tough-they-listen-politely-till-the-spasm-passes-they-know/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Just luxuriate in a certain memory, and the details will come. It's like a magnet attracting steel filings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/just-luxuriate-in-a-certain-memory-and-the-details-will-come-it-s/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Sing your song. Dance your dance. Tell your tale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/sing-your-song-dance-your-dance-tell-your-tale/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [They all went into the bar business. Which was a mistake, because they began to sip at the merchandise and it set them back,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/they-all-went-into-the-bar-business-which-was-a-mistake-because-they/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [My childhood here... was very limited. So it was a long, long time before I actually went out to Brooklyn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/my-childhood-here-was-very-limited-so-it-was-a-long-long-time-before/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [We never really had any kind of a Christmas. This is one part where my memory fails me completely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/we-never-really-had-any-kind-of-a-christmas-this-is-one-part-where-my/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [A lot of people say writers start losing their powers after 60 or 65. But I look at the best-seller list and see a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/a-lot-of-people-say-writers-start-losing-their-powers-after-60-or-65/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [“When the dark clouds flutter like bats in my head I wish I could open a window and release them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-the-dark-clouds-flutter-like-bats-in-my-head-i-wish-i-could-open/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Shakespeare is like mashed potatoes, you can never get enough of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/shakespeare-is-like-mashed-potatoes-you-can-never-get-enough-of-him/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I just have to proceed as usual. No matter what happens, nothing helps with the writing of the next book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-just-have-to-proceed-as-usual-no-matter-what-happens-nothing-helps/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Worse than the ordinary, miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/worse-than-the-ordinary-miserable-childhood-is-the-miserable-irish/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [It's not enough to be American. You always have to be something else, Irish-American, German-American, and you'd wonder how they'd get along if someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/it-s-not-enough-to-be-american-you-always-have-to-be-something-else/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I had to get rid of any idea of hell or any idea of the afterlife. That's what held me, kept me down. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-had-to-get-rid-of-any-idea-of-hell-or-any-idea-of-the-afterlife/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) [Explore all 159 Frank McCourt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## More Amazed quotes > [You will never cease to be the most amazed person on earth at what God has done for you on the inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/you-will-never-cease-to-be-the-most-amazed-person-on-earth-at-what/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [You'd be amazed at pain and tears a single smile hides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-vasquez/you-d-be-amazed-at-pain-and-tears-a-single-smile-hides/) [Christian Vasquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-vasquez/) > [“I am amazed at how being with him changes everything for me, socially speaking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-hand/i-am-amazed-at-how-being-with-him-changes-everything-for-me-socially/) [Cynthia Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-hand/) > [I'm endlessly amazed by what people are capable of, and incapable of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dov-davidoff/i-m-endlessly-amazed-by-what-people-are-capable-of-and-incapable-of/) [Dov Davidoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dov-davidoff/) > [Souls love. 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