--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The more talented somebody is, the less…" description: "\"“The more talented somebody is, the less they need the props. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece on the back of a deli menu would not surprise me..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/hugh-macleod-24576_fountain-pen_the-more-talented-somebody-is-the-less-t_2966909.jpg" --- # The more talented somebody is, the less they need the… ![“The more talented somebody is, the less they need the props. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece on the back of a deli menu would not surprise me. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece with a silver Cartier fountain pen on an antique writing table in an airy SoHo loft would seriously…” quote by Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/hugh-macleod-24576_fountain-pen_the-more-talented-somebody-is-the-less-t_2966909.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/hugh-macleod-24576_fountain-pen_the-more-talented-somebody-is-the-less-t_2966909.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/hugh-macleod-24576_fountain-pen_the-more-talented-somebody-is-the-less-t_2966909.jpg) > ““The more talented somebody is, the less they need the props. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece on the back of a deli menu would not surprise me. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece with a silver Cartier fountain pen on an antique writing table in an airy SoHo loft would seriously surprise me.”” [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True talent doesn’t need flashy tools; brilliance can arise from humble means. **In simple terms:** Talent is independent of status symbols. Key Takeaway Value substance over appearance. Themes talent humility authenticity Mood humorous thoughtful Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career development - artistic practice - self‑esteem Key Concepts creative process social perception Questions to Reflect On - What simple tools have helped you create? - How do you recognize genuine talent? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on tools can obscure skill. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Antique Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antique-writing-4547536/) [Fountain pen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fountain-pen/) [Person Wrote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/person-wrote-361548/) [Talented Somebody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talented-somebody-4547535/) [Wrote Masterpiece](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote-masterpiece-853172/) ## Related quotes > [You have two types of writers: one like Proust who was locked in his room and wrote the masterpiece. And the other type was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-have-two-types-of-writers-one-like-proust-who-was-locked-in-his/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“A person who wrote badly did better than a person who does not write at all. A bad writing can be corrected. 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I kind of know him, but I change so much all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-ames/i-don-t-really-know-the-person-who-wrote-the-things-i-wrote-i-kind-of/) [Jonathan Ames](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-ames/) > [“The thing is not to write what no one else has written but to write what only you could have written.' I found this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nam-le/the-thing-is-not-to-write-what-no-one-else-has-written-but-to-write/) [Nam Le](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nam-le/) > [No one sells a song better than the person that wrote it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-mars/no-one-sells-a-song-better-than-the-person-that-wrote-it/) [Bruno Mars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-mars/) > [Even though you're reading something, it's as though that person who wrote it is speaking to you. It's a form of conversation, really.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barry/even-though-you-re-reading-something-it-s-as-though-that-person-who/) [Robert Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barry/) > [“Language stops being a tool; it becomes a map, not to truth but to the person who wrote it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arabella-sveinsdottir/language-stops-being-a-tool-it-becomes-a-map-not-to-truth-but-to-the/) [Arabella Sveinsdottir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arabella-sveinsdottir/) > [“Every book, every volume that you see here, has a soul. 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And many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/in-the-ordinary-jumble-of-my-literary-drawer-i-sometimes-find-texts-i/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [“No book worth reading ever fails to be steeped with the spirit of the person who wrote it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-leicester-ford/no-book-worth-reading-ever-fails-to-be-steeped-with-the-spirit-of-the/) [Paul Leicester Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-leicester-ford/) > [“But I loved those books or at least that first one. And I felt somewhere down deep inside him the person who wrote it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/but-i-loved-those-books-or-at-least-that-first-one-and-i-felt/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [We don't actually know if the person who wrote the Gospel of John had a written copy of Thomas because we don't know exactly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-pagels/we-don-t-actually-know-if-the-person-who-wrote-the-gospel-of-john-had/) [Elaine Pagels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-pagels/) ## More by Hugh MacLeod > [“Have a story. And make sure it’s a good one. A DAMN good one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/have-a-story-and-make-sure-it-s-a-good-one-a-damn-good-one/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“Good ideas come with a heavy burden. Which is why so few people have them. So few people can handle it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/good-ideas-come-with-a-heavy-burden-which-is-why-so-few-people-have/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“You do not own the molecules. They are stardust. They belong to God. What you do own is your soul. Nobody can take that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/you-do-not-own-the-molecules-they-are-stardust-they-belong-to-god/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“Art suffers the moment other people start paying for it. The more you need the money, the more people will tell you what to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/art-suffers-the-moment-other-people-start-paying-for-it-the-more-you/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“The only people who can change the world are people who want to. 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You didn't fear them in Kindergarten, why fear them now?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/they-re-only-crayons-you-didn-t-fear-them-in-kindergarten-why-fear/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“Everyone is born creative; everyone is given a box of crayons in kidergarten. Then wen you hit puberty they take te crayons away and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/everyone-is-born-creative-everyone-is-given-a-box-of-crayons-in-2/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“Part of being a Master is learning how to sing in nobody else's voice but your own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/part-of-being-a-master-is-learning-how-to-sing-in-nobody-else-s-voice/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“If you try to make something just to fit your uninformed view of some hypothetical market, you will fail. If you make something special…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/if-you-try-to-make-something-just-to-fit-your-uninformed-view-of-some/) [Hugh Macleod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“..The stuff you learn beforehand will never be one-tenth as useful as the stuff you learn the hard way, on the job.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/the-stuff-you-learn-beforehand-will-never-be-one-tenth-as-useful-as/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“...the best Evil Plan offers something much more for people--a chance to buy into an idea that matters, and share it with people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/the-best-evil-plan-offers-something-much-more-for-people-a-chance-to/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOUR IDEA IS ANY GOOD the moment it’s created. Neither does anyone else. The most you can hope for is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/you-don-t-know-if-your-idea-is-any-good-the-moment-it-s-created/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) > [“Stuff designed to make them sound clever and make us part with our money. Which is fine, but their shtick isn’t the whole story.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-macleod/stuff-designed-to-make-them-sound-clever-and-make-us-part-with-our/) [Hugh MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) [Explore all 22 Hugh MacLeod quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-macleod/) ## More Fountain pen quotes > [An Optimist Is A Person Who Starts A Crossword Puzzle With A Fountain Pen...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/an-optimist-is-a-person-who-starts-a-crossword-puzzle-with-a-fountain/) [Pacifiersucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pacifiersucker/) > [“Perhaps there are people in this world who love their fountain pens with every fiber of their being—and that's very sad. 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Has written real actual poems, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-ankarr/he-has-given-caspar-flowers-has-given-him-soft-toys-however/) [Alex Ankarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-ankarr/) > [None of us can have as many virtues as the fountain-pen, or half its cussedness; but we can try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/none-of-us-can-have-as-many-virtues-as-the-fountain-pen-or-half-its/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“It was my mother who bought me green ink for the first time, along with the fountain pen she gave me as a gift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-was-my-mother-who-bought-me-green-ink-for-the-first-time-along/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You can borrow my Blackbird, if you like,' said Ben. This was his new fountain pen, which troubled him. It was guaranteed not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-fitzgerald/you-can-borrow-my-blackbird-if-you-like-said-ben-this-was-his-new/) [Penelope Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-fitzgerald/) > [I write with a fountain pen. And then revise word by word and line by line so that the first draft of a scene…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dufresne/i-write-with-a-fountain-pen-and-then-revise-word-by-word-and-line-by/) [John Dufresne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dufresne/) > [I get used to my fountain pens and my clothes, and I can never throw them away. 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Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitley-strieber/the-upheavals-of-adolescence-silenced-a-christmas-carol-for-a-few/) [Whitley Strieber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitley-strieber/) [Browse all 61 Fountain pen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fountain-pen/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The more talented somebody is, the less they need the props. Meeting a person who wrote a masterpiece on the back of a deli menu would not surprise me. 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