--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Once upon a time, I wrote a book. People…" description: "\"“Once upon a time, I wrote a book. People seemed to dig it, so I wrote another and one after that. That’s when Hollywood came knocking at my back door...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/894/hank-moody-9280_books_once-upon-a-time-i-wrote-a-book-people-s_2527554.jpg" --- # Once upon a time, I wrote a book. People seemed to dig it… ![“Once upon a time, I wrote a book. People seemed to dig it, so I wrote another and one after that. That’s when Hollywood came knocking at my back door. As soon as I cashed that check, I wrapped my lips around the mighty erection that is the film industry and sucked hard, just like a good whore…” quote by Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/894/hank-moody-9280_books_once-upon-a-time-i-wrote-a-book-people-s_2527554.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/894/hank-moody-9280_books_once-upon-a-time-i-wrote-a-book-people-s_2527554.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/894/hank-moody-9280_books_once-upon-a-time-i-wrote-a-book-people-s_2527554.jpg) > ““Once upon a time, I wrote a book. People seemed to dig it, so I wrote another and one after that. That’s when Hollywood came knocking at my back door. As soon as I cashed that check, I wrapped my lips around the mighty erection that is the film industry and sucked hard, just like a good whore should. Unfortunately, I had to be taught not to orphan the balls.”” [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) ## 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 can become commodified, leading to exploitation and loss of artistic integrity. **In simple terms:** Art can be sold out and lose its soul. Key Takeaway Guard your creative vision. Themes art industry exploitation Mood cynical raw Type literary cultural. When to use this quote - publishing contracts - film deals - advertising collaborations - gallery shows - music licensing Key Concepts creative integrity commercial pressure artist autonomy Questions to Reflect On - What boundaries will you set for your art? - How do you balance profit and authenticity? A Different Perspective Financial incentives often tempt artists to compromise. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Cinema](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) [Film industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film-industry/) [Films-based-on-novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/films-based-on-novels-63937/) [Good Whore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-whore-1311101/) [Hollywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hollywood/) [Hollywood Came](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hollywood-came-1040243/) [Sucked Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sucked-hard-1311102/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Wrote Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote-book/) [Wrote Hollywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote-hollywood-1311100/) ## Related quotes > [“He closed the distance another tight inch. Her breasts pressed against his chest, and her nipples were hard little points stabbing out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-probst/he-closed-the-distance-another-tight-inch-her-breasts-pressed-against/) [Jennifer Probst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-probst/) > [When I got to the first tee on the first day, to hear the cheers, it was like all the oxygen got sucked out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-reed/when-i-got-to-the-first-tee-on-the-first-day-to-hear-the-cheers-it/) [Patrick Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-reed/) > [“...each reader creates his own film inside his head, gives faces to the characters, constructs every scene, hears the voices, smells the smells. ...whenever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/each-reader-creates-his-own-film-inside-his-head-gives-faces-to-the/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I would go to Hollywood if something came in that I really wanted to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mathew-horne/i-would-go-to-hollywood-if-something-came-in-that-i-really-wanted-to/) [Mathew Horne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mathew-horne/) > [“There's a thing that happens in Hollywood, when you hand in a script with magic in it, and the people at the studio who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/there-s-a-thing-that-happens-in-hollywood-when-you-hand-in-a-script/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Sure you can do anything when talking or writing, it's not like living when you can only do what you doing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sure-you-can-do-anything-when-talking-or-writing-it-s-not-like-living/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I pursued a theatre career, and Hollywood came calling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/len-cariou/i-pursued-a-theatre-career-and-hollywood-came-calling/) [Len Cariou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/len-cariou/) > [I didn't come to Hollywood. Hollywood came to me. A lot of people wish they could say the things I say. Everyone out here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mr-t/i-didn-t-come-to-hollywood-hollywood-came-to-me-a-lot-of-people-wish/) [Mr. T](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mr-t/) > [The ones that were relevant while I wrote my book were books like "Beloved" by Toni Morrison, which is based on a historical fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laila-lalami/the-ones-that-were-relevant-while-i-wrote-my-book-were-books-like/) [Laila Lalami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laila-lalami/) > [I think of my success as a kind of fluke. How else could I possibly think of it? And although it's a banal thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayana-mathis/i-think-of-my-success-as-a-kind-of-fluke-how-else-could-i-possibly/) [Ayana Mathis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayana-mathis/) > [I guess if I wrote a book one day, it would be about hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-louis-dreyfus/i-guess-if-i-wrote-a-book-one-day-it-would-be-about-hair/) [Julia Louis-Dreyfus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-louis-dreyfus/) > [When I wrote my first book, I was too scared to find out how people got books published. I was convinced that you needed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-jenkins-reid/when-i-wrote-my-first-book-i-was-too-scared-to-find-out-how-people/) [Taylor Jenkins Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-jenkins-reid/) > [“I just wrote a book. But don't go and buy it yet, because I don't think it's finished.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-welk/i-just-wrote-a-book-but-don-t-go-and-buy-it-yet-because-i-don-t-think/) [Lawrence Welk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-welk/) > [“I stopped writing the book that I wanted to write, and wrote the one the book wanted to write.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lewis/i-stopped-writing-the-book-that-i-wanted-to-write-and-wrote-the-one/) [Jim Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lewis/) > [“I wrote this book because I had formed a strong impression that the people currently living were paying insufficient attention to the dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niall-ferguson/i-wrote-this-book-because-i-had-formed-a-strong-impression-that-the/) [Niall Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niall-ferguson/) ## More by Hank Moody > [You looking for a dick punch?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/you-looking-for-a-dick-punch/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [You can't snort a line of coke off a womans ass and not wonder about her hopes and dreams, it's not gentlemanly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/you-can-t-snort-a-line-of-coke-off-a-womans-ass-and-not-wonder-about/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [So not only are you a cadaverous slut, but you also have sh\*\*\*y taste in movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/so-not-only-are-you-a-cadaverous-slut-but-you-also-have-sh-y-taste-in/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [Life's too short to dance with fat chicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/life-s-too-short-to-dance-with-fat-chicks/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [Hey, its you isnt it, I made a mess of your bush this morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/hey-its-you-isnt-it-i-made-a-mess-of-your-bush-this-morning/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [Girls know at once whether they want to fuck, marry, or kill a guy. Which begs the question: how am I doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/girls-know-at-once-whether-they-want-to-fuck-marry-or-kill-a-guy/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [“Smell you later.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/smell-you-later/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [Wo wo wo what the f\*\*k was that, you just blew me off, you think I can't afford this penile implant on wheels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/wo-wo-wo-what-the-f-k-was-that-you-just-blew-me-off-you-think-i-can-t/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [“Don’t worry, your prayers have been answered. I’m leaving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/don-t-worry-your-prayers-have-been-answered-i-m-leaving/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [“people seem to be getting dumber and dumber. You know, I mean we have all this amazing technology and yet computers have turned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/people-seem-to-be-getting-dumber-and-dumber-you-know-i-mean-we-have/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [She takes after her mother. The make-up and the slutty clothes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/she-takes-after-her-mother-the-make-up-and-the-slutty-clothes/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [“I can’t teach you how to write, and anybody who says they can is full of shit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/i-can-t-teach-you-how-to-write-and-anybody-who-says-they-can-is-full/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [“Whatever you do, don’t be another brick in the wall!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/whatever-you-do-don-t-be-another-brick-in-the-wall/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [Im not wearing any pants but I would like to invite you two ladies to join me, to take your pants off, and come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/im-not-wearing-any-pants-but-i-would-like-to-invite-you-two-ladies-to/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) > [Nobody likes you. You're ugly and your mother dresses you funny. Now smile you f\*\*\*\*\*g douche!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-moody/nobody-likes-you-you-re-ugly-and-your-mother-dresses-you-funny-now/) [Hank Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) [Explore all 74 Hank Moody quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-moody/) ## More Books 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/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [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/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [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/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [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/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Once upon a time, I wrote a book. People seemed to dig it, so I wrote another and one after that. That’s when Hollywood came knocking at my back door. As soon as I cashed that check, I wrapped my lips around the mighty erection that is the film industry and sucked hard, just like a good whore should. 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