---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't think I want to write a third…"
description: "\"I don't think I want to write a third book. But the more people talk to me about it, the more I think maybe I do.\" — Frederick Busch"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/frederick-busch-12684_book_i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-bo_1801383.png"
---

#  I don't think I want to write a third book. But the more…

![“I don't think I want to write a third book. But the more people talk to me about it, the more I think maybe I do.” quote by Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/frederick-busch-12684_book_i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-bo_1801383.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/frederick-busch-12684_book_i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-bo_1801383.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/frederick-busch-12684_book_i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-bo_1801383.png)

> “I don't think I want to write a third book. But the more people talk to me about it, the more I think maybe I do.”

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The author hesitates to write another book, yet external encouragement sparks reconsideration.

**In simple terms:** Unsure about continuing writing.

Key Takeaway

Weigh external feedback against internal doubts.

Themes

creativity self‑doubt encouragement

Mood

thoughtful inquisitive

Type

creative personal

When to use this quote

- writing a sequel
- publishing pressure
- creative block

Key Concepts

artistic motivation decision making

Questions to Reflect On

- Do you write for yourself or audience?
- What would a new project mean for you?

A Different Perspective

Pressure may lead to burnout; authenticity matters.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [I never wanted to write a book, and people have asked me for years to do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bob-thornton/i-never-wanted-to-write-a-book-and-people-have-asked-me-for-years-to/)

[Billy Bob Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-bob-thornton/)

> [Nobody has time to write a book. Some people just do it anyhow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharyn-mccrumb/nobody-has-time-to-write-a-book-some-people-just-do-it-anyhow/)

[Sharyn McCrumb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharyn-mccrumb/)

> [I always said that I want to write a book about success and my story and my brand and everything that goes with it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reem-acra/i-always-said-that-i-want-to-write-a-book-about-success-and-my-story/)

[Reem Acra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reem-acra/)

> [I will say I highly recommend, if you want to write a book also, have a child in the midst of that process because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-itzkoff/i-will-say-i-highly-recommend-if-you-want-to-write-a-book-also-have-a/)

[Dave Itzkoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-itzkoff/)

> [“You must feel it from within. You must want to write the book. You must desire to write the book”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-gowor/you-must-feel-it-from-within-you-must-want-to-write-the-book-you-must/)

Emily Gowor

> [I don't think anyone sits down and thinks, 'I know, I'll be a chick-lit writer.' You write the book that you want to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/i-don-t-think-anyone-sits-down-and-thinks-i-know-i-ll-be-a-chick-lit/)

[Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/)

> [I didn't want to write the same book over and over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-pelecanos/i-didn-t-want-to-write-the-same-book-over-and-over/)

[George Pelecanos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-pelecanos/)

> [“I want to write a book like a cloud that changes as it goes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-sukenick/i-want-to-write-a-book-like-a-cloud-that-changes-as-it-goes/)

[Ronald Sukenick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-sukenick/)

> [“I want to write a book again,” I said to Sam on a blazingly hot afternoon on the veranda of the Red Tin Roof.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-pauw/i-want-to-write-a-book-again-i-said-to-sam-on-a-blazingly-hot/)

[Jacques Pauw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-pauw/)

> [you want to write a book for so many reasons ... The main reason ... is because it will make you well-known and beloved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-gurley-brown/you-want-to-write-a-book-for-so-many-reasons-the-main-reason-is/)

[Helen Gurley Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-gurley-brown/)

> [I didn't want to write a book. They made me do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-slick/i-didn-t-want-to-write-a-book-they-made-me-do-it/)

[Grace Slick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-slick/)

> [“A lot of teenagers write to me and say "I want to write a book. I want to get published." And those are two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-johnson/a-lot-of-teenagers-write-to-me-and-say-i-want-to-write-a-book-i-want/)

[Maureen Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-johnson/)

> [I didn't want to write another book about fraudulence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lerner/i-didn-t-want-to-write-another-book-about-fraudulence/)

[Ben Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lerner/)

> [I really strive to bring something new to each book. I don't want to write the same book over and over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-crais/i-really-strive-to-bring-something-new-to-each-book-i-don-t-want-to/)

[Robert Crais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-crais/)

> [I can't write the book I want to write, but I can and will write the book I am capable of writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/i-can-t-write-the-book-i-want-to-write-but-i-can-and-will-write-the/)

[Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/)

## More by Frederick Busch

> [Good art is a form of prayer. It's a way to say what is not sayable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/good-art-is-a-form-of-prayer-it-s-a-way-to-say-what-is-not-sayable/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [What I try to do is read stuff that won't deal with the dangerous dark things I hope I am writing about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/what-i-try-to-do-is-read-stuff-that-won-t-deal-with-the-dangerous/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [I love baseball. What I love about baseball is that you are always waiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-love-baseball-what-i-love-about-baseball-is-that-you-are-always/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [There is a lack of context in contemporary education. And contemporary consideration - because we live in those interiorities so much. Especially young kids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/there-is-a-lack-of-context-in-contemporary-education-and-contemporary/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [“No matter his joking, I thought, this was a man as given to the miseries as I was. You could look into my dead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/no-matter-his-joking-i-thought-this-was-a-man-as-given-to-the/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [When you are writing a character, what the character says is obviously crucial. But what the character doesn't say is absolutely as important as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/when-you-are-writing-a-character-what-the-character-says-is-obviously/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [I know important literary writers who can't get published.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-know-important-literary-writers-who-can-t-get-published/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [I always had good students.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-always-had-good-students/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [It's hard to read real fiction. It takes time. It takes a sustained attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/it-s-hard-to-read-real-fiction-it-takes-time-it-takes-a-sustained/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [History is beautiful stories or scary stories, yeah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/history-is-beautiful-stories-or-scary-stories-yeah/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [If a writer is honest, if what is at stake for him can seem to matter to his readers, then his work may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/if-a-writer-is-honest-if-what-is-at-stake-for-him-can-seem-to-matter/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [I read a lot of poetry. I read some history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-read-a-lot-of-poetry-i-read-some-history/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [I have found myself writing poetry shortly after I retired. Which I hadn't done in forty years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-have-found-myself-writing-poetry-shortly-after-i-retired-which-i/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [Hollywood is the model for publishing, more and more. Not just blockbusters either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/hollywood-is-the-model-for-publishing-more-and-more-not-just/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [Baseball is a game where you are always waiting, and then when something happens it's like turning a kaleidoscope when you were a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/baseball-is-a-game-where-you-are-always-waiting-and-then-when/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

[Explore all 53 Frederick Busch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

## 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 think I want to write a third book. But the more people talk to me about it, the more I think maybe I do.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Frederick Busch"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-book-but-the-more-people-talk/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Book"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-book-but-the-more-people-talk/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/frederick-busch-12684_book_i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-bo_1801383.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/frederick-busch-12684_book_i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-bo_1801383.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a1/frederick-busch-12684_book_i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-bo_1801383.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I don't think I want to write a third book. But the more people talk to me about it, the more I think maybe…” — Frederick Busch",
                "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": "Frederick Busch",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I don't think I want to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-book-but-the-more-people-talk/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-don-t-think-i-want-to-write-a-third-book-but-the-more-people-talk/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
