--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Authorship has never been with me a…" description: "\"Authorship has never been with me a matter of choice. I have not done it for amusement, or for money, or for fame, or for any reason but because I coul..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/403/harriet-martineau-6736_amusement_authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matt_120969.png" --- # Authorship has never been with me a matter of choice. I… ![“Authorship has never been with me a matter of choice. I have not done it for amusement, or for money, or for fame, or for any reason but because I could not help it.” quote by Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/403/harriet-martineau-6736_amusement_authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matt_120969.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/403/harriet-martineau-6736_amusement_authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matt_120969.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/403/harriet-martineau-6736_amusement_authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matt_120969.png) > “Authorship has never been with me a matter of choice. I have not done it for amusement, or for money, or for fame, or for any reason but because I could not help it.” [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) ## 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 claims that writing is an involuntary compulsion, not motivated by pleasure, profit, fame, or any other external incentive. **In simple terms:** Writing is an uncontrollable urge. Key Takeaway Compulsion drives creative output more than reward. Themes creativity motivation authorship intrinsic drive Mood intense confessional Type personal confession philosophical insight When to use this quote - journalist facing deadline pressure - artist battling writer’s block - researcher publishing out of curiosity Key Concepts psychology of compulsion creative impulse Practical Applications - schedule regular free‑writing sessions - recognize and honor the internal drive Questions to Reflect On - How can one harness compulsive creativity sustainably? - When does compulsive writing become detrimental? A Different Perspective Compulsion can lead to burnout if not balanced with self‑care. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amusement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amusement/) [Authorship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authorship/) [Authorship Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authorship-matter-1410266/) [Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Fame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fame/) [Fame Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fame-reason-1410267/) [Helping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helping/) [Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Fame is not the reason why brands are created and erected. Be diligent, focused and chain unceasing prayers to God who will continue giving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/fame-is-not-the-reason-why-brands-are-created-and-erected-be-diligent/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [There are some people that probably should be in the Hall of Fame, but they're not for some reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gale-sayers/there-are-some-people-that-probably-should-be-in-the-hall-of-fame-but/) [Gale Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gale-sayers/) > [To expect an author to talk as he writes is ridiculous; or even if he did you would find fault with him as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/to-expect-an-author-to-talk-as-he-writes-is-ridiculous-or-even-if-he/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [That author, however, who has thought more than he has read, read more than he has written, and written more than he has published,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/that-author-however-who-has-thought-more-than-he-has-read-read-more/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [ All these teachers and \[screenwriting\] books mean you see movies that have been worked over by more committees wielding more rules, that all originality… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-schrader/all-these-teachers-and-screenwriting-books-mean-you-see-movies-that/) [Paul Schrader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-schrader/) > [Subtract from many modern poets all that may be found in Shakespeare, and trash will remain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/subtract-from-many-modern-poets-all-that-may-be-found-in-shakespeare/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Our favorites are few; since only what rises from the heart reaches it, being caught and carried on the tongues of men wheresoever love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-bronson-alcott/our-favorites-are-few-since-only-what-rises-from-the-heart-reaches-it/) [Amos Bronson Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-bronson-alcott/) > [So there's a lot of people tied into believing that the traditional response to the authorship question. In terms of actors, some people get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/so-there-s-a-lot-of-people-tied-into-believing-that-the-traditional/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [Authorship, according to the spirit in which it is pursued, is an infancy, a pastime, a labor, a handicraft, an art, a science, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-wilhelm-von-schlegel/authorship-according-to-the-spirit-in-which-it-is-pursued-is-an/) [August Wilhelm Von Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-wilhelm-von-schlegel/) > [ Ye who write, choose a subject suited to your abilities. \[Lat., Sumite materiam vestris, qui scribitis, aequam Viribus.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/ye-who-write-choose-a-subject-suited-to-your-abilities-lat-sumite/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“Every article and review and book that I have ever published has constituted an appeal to the person or persons to whom I should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/every-article-and-review-and-book-that-i-have-ever-published-has/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“If there's a will, there's a way! I feel larger than LIFE--and look up to the stars who shine down on me and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-scrima-black/if-there-s-a-will-there-s-a-way-i-feel-larger-than-life-and-look-up/) [Donna Scrima-Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-scrima-black/) > [The writer, like a priest, must be exempted from secular labor. His work needs a frolic health; he must be at the top of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-writer-like-a-priest-must-be-exempted-from-secular-labor-his-work/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A man starts upon a sudden, takes Pen, Ink, and Paper, and without ever having had a thought of it before, resolves within himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/a-man-starts-upon-a-sudden-takes-pen-ink-and-paper-and-without-ever/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [To write well is to think well, to feel well, and to render well; it is to possess at once intellect, soul, and taste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-louis-leclerc-comte-de-buffon/to-write-well-is-to-think-well-to-feel-well-and-to-render-well-it-is/) [Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-louis-leclerc-comte-de-buffon/) ## More by Harriet Martineau > [There have been few things in my life which have had a more genial effect on my mind than the possession of a piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/there-have-been-few-things-in-my-life-which-have-had-a-more-genial/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [it is a testament to the strength and purity of the democratic sentiment in the country, that the republic has not been overthrown by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/it-is-a-testament-to-the-strength-and-purity-of-the-democratic/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [School is no place of education for any children whatever till their minds are well put in action. This is the work which has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/school-is-no-place-of-education-for-any-children-whatever-till-their/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [it is the worst humiliation and grievance of the suffering, that they cause suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/it-is-the-worst-humiliation-and-grievance-of-the-suffering-that-they/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [Fidelity to conscience is inconsistent with retiring modesty. If it be so, let the modesty succumb. It can be only a false modesty which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/fidelity-to-conscience-is-inconsistent-with-retiring-modesty-if-it-be/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [I wrote because I could not help it. There was something that I wanted to say, and I said it: that was all. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/i-wrote-because-i-could-not-help-it-there-was-something-that-i-wanted/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [The instruction furnished is not good enough for the youth of such a country ... There is not even any systematic instruction given on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/the-instruction-furnished-is-not-good-enough-for-the-youth-of-such-a/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [ \[I\] wish that the land-tax went a little more according to situation than it does. 'Tis really ridiculous, how one has to pay five… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/i-wish-that-the-land-tax-went-a-little-more-according-to-situation/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [Who is apt, on occasion, to assign a multitude of reasons when one will do? This is a sure sign of weakness in argument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/who-is-apt-on-occasion-to-assign-a-multitude-of-reasons-when-one-will/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [It is hard to tell which is worse; the wide diffusion of things that are not true, or the suppression of things that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/it-is-hard-to-tell-which-is-worse-the-wide-diffusion-of-things-that/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [Religion is a temper, not a pursuit. It is the moral atmosphere in which human beings are to live and move. Men do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/religion-is-a-temper-not-a-pursuit-it-is-the-moral-atmosphere-in/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [Moral excellence has no regard to classes and professions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/moral-excellence-has-no-regard-to-classes-and-professions/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [I want to be a free rover on the breezy common of the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/i-want-to-be-a-free-rover-on-the-breezy-common-of-the-universe/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [For my own part, I had rather suffer any inconvenience from having to work occasionally in chambers and kitchenthan witness the subservience in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/for-my-own-part-i-had-rather-suffer-any-inconvenience-from-having-to/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) > [As new discoveries are causing all-penetrating physical lights so to abound as that, as has been said, we shall soon not know where in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/as-new-discoveries-are-causing-all-penetrating-physical-lights-so-to/) [Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) [Explore all 98 Harriet Martineau quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/) ## More Amusement quotes > [Cultivate the habit of thinking ahead, and of anticipating the necessary and immediate consequences of all your actions… Likewise in your pleasures, ask yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/cultivate-the-habit-of-thinking-ahead-and-of-anticipating-the/) [Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/) > [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [Every producer in Hollywood had set me down as a type. I was both amused and disappointed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bela-lugosi/every-producer-in-hollywood-had-set-me-down-as-a-type-i-was-both/) [Bela Lugosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bela-lugosi/) > [By amusing myself with all these games, all this nonsense, all these picture puzzles, I became famous... I am only a public entertainer who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/by-amusing-myself-with-all-these-games-all-this-nonsense-all-these/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [I just started writing for my own amusement and occasionally singing in little clubs around Los Angeles. Then I wrote 'The Rose,' and through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-mcbroom/i-just-started-writing-for-my-own-amusement-and-occasionally-singing/) [Amanda McBroom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-mcbroom/) > [Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/happiness-does-not-consist-in-pastimes-and-amusements-but-in-virtuous/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-mass-of-men-lead-lives-of-quiet-desperation-what-is-called/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Ordinary people simply don't know what books mean to us, shut up here. Reading, learning, and the radio are our amusements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-frank/ordinary-people-simply-don-t-know-what-books-mean-to-us-shut-up-here/) [Anne Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-frank/) > [My first job was at an amusement park in Virginia. It was the worst. I loved the park but once I'd worked there all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-mcbride/my-first-job-was-at-an-amusement-park-in-virginia-it-was-the-worst-i/) [Danny McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-mcbride/) > [The Stoics say, "Retire within yourselves; it is there you will find your rest." And that is not true. Others say, "Go out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-stoics-say-retire-within-yourselves-it-is-there-you-will-find/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [I realized, "Gee, you're making the same film over and over here." I just kept making them for my own amusement, but also with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-jarmusch/i-realized-gee-you-re-making-the-same-film-over-and-over-here-i-just/) [Jim Jarmusch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-jarmusch/) > [I like these boots," I told Vayl. "Do you think they'd sell them to me cheap? I keep ruining mine." "Since when do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rardin/i-like-these-boots-i-told-vayl-do-you-think-they-d-sell-them-to-me/) [Jennifer Rardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rardin/) > [It has to be now,” he insisted, a flick of amusement in his voice. He nudged his burgeoning loins against her. “After all, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/it-has-to-be-now-he-insisted-a-flick-of-amusement-in-his-voice-he/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [Act as if the universe is a prodigious miracle created for your amusement and illumination. Assume that secret helpers are working behind the scenes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-brezsny/act-as-if-the-universe-is-a-prodigious-miracle-created-for-your/) [Rob Brezsny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-brezsny/) > [Amusement that is excessive and followed only for its own sake, allures and deceives us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/amusement-that-is-excessive-and-followed-only-for-its-own-sake/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) [Browse all 567 Amusement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amusement/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Authorship has never been with me a matter of choice. I have not done it for amusement, or for money, or for fame, or for any reason but because I could not help it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Harriet Martineau" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matter-of-choice-i-have-not-done/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Amusement" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matter-of-choice-i-have-not-done/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/403/harriet-martineau-6736_amusement_authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matt_120969.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/403/harriet-martineau-6736_amusement_authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matt_120969.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/403/harriet-martineau-6736_amusement_authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matt_120969.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Authorship has never been with me a matter of choice. I have not done it for amusement, or for money, or for…” — Harriet Martineau", "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": "Harriet Martineau", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Authorship has never been with me...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matter-of-choice-i-have-not-done/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/authorship-has-never-been-with-me-a-matter-of-choice-i-have-not-done/#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 } } ] } ```