--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I wanted to write a book about…" description: "\"I wanted to write a book about Hemingway's Paris, but a professor beat me to it. I suddenly realized other people were making a living off all the thin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/jack-hemingway-15377_book_i-wanted-to-write-a-book-about-hemingway_439829.jpg" --- # I wanted to write a book about Hemingway's Paris, but a… ![“I wanted to write a book about Hemingway's Paris, but a professor beat me to it. I suddenly realized other people were making a living off all the things that have to do with my family background so I've got one good story to tell and I'm telling it.” quote by Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/jack-hemingway-15377_book_i-wanted-to-write-a-book-about-hemingway_439829.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/jack-hemingway-15377_book_i-wanted-to-write-a-book-about-hemingway_439829.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/jack-hemingway-15377_book_i-wanted-to-write-a-book-about-hemingway_439829.jpg) > “I wanted to write a book about Hemingway's Paris, but a professor beat me to it. I suddenly realized other people were making a living off all the things that have to do with my family background so I've got one good story to tell and I'm telling it.” [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He realized that others profit from similar personal histories, prompting him to share his unique story. **In simple terms:** He decided to tell his own story despite others doing similar work. Key Takeaway Share your authentic narrative. Themes authenticity storytelling family legacy creative drive Mood determined reflective Type personal motivational When to use this quote - publishing - public speaking - documentary projects Key Concepts personal narrative cultural history writing motivation Questions to Reflect On - How can you differentiate your story? - What unique perspective do you bring? A Different Perspective His story may still be compared to others, risking originality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Family background](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family-background/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Making a living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-a-living/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not a Hemingway scholar, so I've come across some surprises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/i-m-not-a-hemingway-scholar-so-i-ve-come-across-some-surprises/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [If you look at the 1960s, Hemingway was viewed on the basis of the myth of his lifestyles rather than viewing his work. Machismo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/if-you-look-at-the-1960s-hemingway-was-viewed-on-the-basis-of-the/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [There is a new way of seeing him now. Because of that, there has been a lot of scholarship in Hemingway that is more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/there-is-a-new-way-of-seeing-him-now-because-of-that-there-has-been-a/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [When I was in prep school, an English teacher said to me, 'Hemingway, I expect more from you!' And I said, 'Why, sir?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/when-i-was-in-prep-school-an-english-teacher-said-to-me-hemingway-i/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [Peace of mind is found when you stop judging yourself and stop judging others. Aspire to what you were born into and don't let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/peace-of-mind-is-found-when-you-stop-judging-yourself-and-stop/) [Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/) > [If you're going to compare a middle-income black kid with a middle- income white kid, and, say, you control for family background, family education,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-julius-wilson/if-you-re-going-to-compare-a-middle-income-black-kid-with-a-middle/) [William Julius Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-julius-wilson/) > [“Do not assume that a source agrees with a writer when the source summarizes that writer’s line of reasoning. Quote only what a source…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-l-turabian/do-not-assume-that-a-source-agrees-with-a-writer-when-the-source/) Kate L. Turabian > [“When it comes to work - hurry, hurry, hurry. When it comes to payment - delay, delay, delay. Caste, religion, family background nothing. Talent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/when-it-comes-to-work-hurry-hurry-hurry-when-it-comes-to-payment/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [Children from a given family background, when put in schools of different social compositions, will achieve at quite different levels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-s-coleman/children-from-a-given-family-background-when-put-in-schools-of/) [James S. Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-s-coleman/) > [My family background is Mexican, and I was born in Chicago. It's pretty much family tradition every time we get together for Christmas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ailyn-perez/my-family-background-is-mexican-and-i-was-born-in-chicago-it-s-pretty/) [Ailyn Perez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ailyn-perez/) > [I really don't know what makes a comedian. I think it's a family background and environment. Yet if you put the same ingredients in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-newhart/i-really-don-t-know-what-makes-a-comedian-i-think-it-s-a-family/) [Bob Newhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-newhart/) > [You have to set big goals for yourself. And you have to put aside all the negativity in your life that tells you that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/you-have-to-set-big-goals-for-yourself-and-you-have-to-put-aside-all/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [The revolution is carried out by means of one's thought, not through one's family background.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-jong-il/the-revolution-is-carried-out-by-means-of-one-s-thought-not-through/) [Kim Jong Il](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-jong-il/) > [My family background really only consists of my mother. She was a widow. My father died quite young; he must have been thirty-one. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-walcott/my-family-background-really-only-consists-of-my-mother-she-was-a/) [Derek Walcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-walcott/) > [My father was a teacher and my mother also worked in the school, so the family has a background in education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/my-father-was-a-teacher-and-my-mother-also-worked-in-the-school-so/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) ## More by Jack Hemingway > [I'm not a furniture person. You sit on the stuff, sleep on it, make love on it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/i-m-not-a-furniture-person-you-sit-on-the-stuff-sleep-on-it-make-love/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [People ask me what I do, and I tell them, 'I'm a fisherman and a hunter.' They look at me like I'm lazy or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/people-ask-me-what-i-do-and-i-tell-them-i-m-a-fisherman-and-a-hunter/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [I know he wanted me to love fishing and hunting, and I believe that he deliberately set about to make me want to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/i-know-he-wanted-me-to-love-fishing-and-hunting-and-i-believe-that-he/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [At the time of his death and the few years before, I was just starting to pull myself together and make a reasonably good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/at-the-time-of-his-death-and-the-few-years-before-i-was-just-starting/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [He's never portrayed as being funny. He was a very funny, happy, lively person. Fun to be around and exciting. He was my hero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/he-s-never-portrayed-as-being-funny-he-was-a-very-funny-happy-lively/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [My mother, along with Papa's other eventual wives - Pauline, Marty Gelhorn, Mary Welch - they all, at one time or another, no matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/my-mother-along-with-papa-s-other-eventual-wives-pauline-marty/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [It's hard to think of your parents as lovers. You know you got here somehow, but it's hard to visualize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/it-s-hard-to-think-of-your-parents-as-lovers-you-know-you-got-here/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [I was proud of Papa for his sports.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/i-was-proud-of-papa-for-his-sports/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [He was a physically imposing presence - 6 feet tall and very broad in the shoulders - and an imposing intellectual presence as well.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/he-was-a-physically-imposing-presence-6-feet-tall-and-very-broad-in/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [My father had two personas: first, literary, and second, the way he lived. I've been brought up with all of this, but many other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/my-father-had-two-personas-first-literary-and-second-the-way-he-lived/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [Frankly I never seriously read my father's books until after he died. Up to then, there had been no point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/frankly-i-never-seriously-read-my-father-s-books-until-after-he-died/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [You might have to go through some smaller rainbows to get at the big fish, but they're in there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/you-might-have-to-go-through-some-smaller-rainbows-to-get-at-the-big/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [Food has always been a thing in our family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/food-has-always-been-a-thing-in-our-family/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [We were out drinking and fishing one day, and somebody said to me, 'People are starting to make money off your name. You and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/we-were-out-drinking-and-fishing-one-day-and-somebody-said-to-me/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) > [Comfort and solidity was what made him happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-hemingway/comfort-and-solidity-was-what-made-him-happy/) [Jack Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) [Explore all 43 Jack Hemingway quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-hemingway/) ## 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 wanted to write a book about Hemingway's Paris, but a professor beat me to it. 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