--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are, it is true, at present no…" description: "\"There are, it is true, at present no great prizes in literature such as are offered by the learned professions, but there are quite as many small ones ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4be/james-payn-23169_books_there-are-it-is-true-at-present-no-great_2799980.png" --- # There are, it is true, at present no great prizes in… ![“There are, it is true, at present no great prizes in literature such as are offered by the learned professions, but there are quite as many small ones - competences; while, on the other hand, it is not so much of a lottery.” quote by James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4be/james-payn-23169_books_there-are-it-is-true-at-present-no-great_2799980.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4be/james-payn-23169_books_there-are-it-is-true-at-present-no-great_2799980.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4be/james-payn-23169_books_there-are-it-is-true-at-present-no-great_2799980.png) > “There are, it is true, at present no great prizes in literature such as are offered by the learned professions, but there are quite as many small ones - competences; while, on the other hand, it is not so much of a lottery.” [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Literature lacks big prizes but offers many small competencies; success isn’t purely luck. **In simple terms:** Literature offers small rewards, not big prizes; success isn’t luck. Key Takeaway Focus on skill development over fame. Themes literature achievement skill development Mood thoughtful pragmatic Type creative personal When to use this quote - publishing - academic awards - personal fulfillment Key Concepts competence career path Questions to Reflect On - What small competencies matter most to you? - How do you measure success in writing? A Different Perspective Big prizes can still motivate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Lottery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lottery/) [Prize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prize/) [Profession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profession/) ## Related quotes > [Like university science departments, the arts have shown how they can earn their way and point to an economically newborn future for this country.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvyn-bragg/like-university-science-departments-the-arts-have-shown-how-they-can/) [Melvyn Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvyn-bragg/) > [“Every joy that life gives must be earned ere it is secured; and how hardly earned, those only know who have wrestled for great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/every-joy-that-life-gives-must-be-earned-ere-it-is-secured-and-how/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [With regard to the learned professions, little need be observed; they truly form no distinct interest in society . . . \[discussing the landed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/with-regard-to-the-learned-professions-little-need-be-observed-they/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [It is impossible to win the great prizes of life without running risks, and the greatest of all prizes are those connected with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/it-is-impossible-to-win-the-great-prizes-of-life-without-running/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [May this plain statement of facts prevail on the friends of the rising generation to interpose for their welfare; that the education of children…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-lancaster/may-this-plain-statement-of-facts-prevail-on-the-friends-of-the/) [Joseph Lancaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-lancaster/) > [I have been very lucky, I have won prizes and I've even won the lottery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erro/i-have-been-very-lucky-i-have-won-prizes-and-i-ve-even-won-the-lottery/) [Erro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erro/) > [Many Nobel Prizes are awaiting good research to understand and explain the many mysteries of our bodies, such as the basic mechanism of memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cameron/many-nobel-prizes-are-awaiting-good-research-to-understand-and/) [John Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cameron/) > [There are very few institutions that give prizes to people who may not have got to be number one, but are possibly better at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/there-are-very-few-institutions-that-give-prizes-to-people-who-may/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [Life will always remain a gamble, with prizes sometimes for the imprudent, and blanks so often to the wise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-k-jerome/life-will-always-remain-a-gamble-with-prizes-sometimes-for-the/) [Jerome K. 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Lots of people giving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-powell/in-an-era-when-party-fundraising-is-badly-tainted-dinners-are-a/) [Lucy Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-powell/) > [The effect of prizes on one's career - if that is what to call it - is considerable, since they give one more clout…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/the-effect-of-prizes-on-one-s-career-if-that-is-what-to-call-it-is/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) ## More by James Payn > [How large and varied is the educational bill of fare set before every young gentleman in Great Britain; and to judge by the mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/how-large-and-varied-is-the-educational-bill-of-fare-set-before-every/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [I never had a piece of toast particularly long and wide, But fell upon the sanded floor, And always on the buttered side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/i-never-had-a-piece-of-toast-particularly-long-and-wide-but-fell-upon/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [The fact is, if a young man is naturally indolent, the spur of necessity will drive him but a very little way, while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/the-fact-is-if-a-young-man-is-naturally-indolent-the-spur-of/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [It has often struck me that the relation of two important members of the social body to one another has never been sufficiently considered,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/it-has-often-struck-me-that-the-relation-of-two-important-members-of/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [But, on the other hand, the occasional and precarious dripping of coppers has by no means a genial effect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/but-on-the-other-hand-the-occasional-and-precarious-dripping-of/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [It is quite extraordinary how very various are the opinions entertained on this point, and, before sifting them, one must be careful in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/it-is-quite-extraordinary-how-very-various-are-the-opinions/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [A nobler example, because a less personal one, of the pinch of poverty, is when it prevents the accomplishment of some cherished scheme for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/a-nobler-example-because-a-less-personal-one-of-the-pinch-of-poverty/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [One forgives the critic - perhaps - but never the good-natured friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-payn/one-forgives-the-critic-perhaps-but-never-the-good-natured-friend/) [James Payn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-payn/) > [As a rule, anyone who can tell a good story can write one, so there really need be no mistake about his qualification; 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