--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I didn't know how to be a writer. But I…" description: "\"I didn't know how to be a writer. But I thought, 'I can do this.'\" — Karen Robards" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c3/karen-robards-15440_how_i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-t_1654336.jpg" --- # I didn't know how to be a writer. But I thought, 'I can do… ![“I didn't know how to be a writer. But I thought, 'I can do this.'” quote by Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c3/karen-robards-15440_how_i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-t_1654336.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c3/karen-robards-15440_how_i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-t_1654336.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c3/karen-robards-15440_how_i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-t_1654336.jpg) > “I didn't know how to be a writer. But I thought, 'I can do this.'” [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Believing in your ability to write is the first step toward becoming a writer. **In simple terms:** Confidence sparks writing growth. Key Takeaway Start writing and trust your potential. Themes creativity confidence writing self‑belief Mood encouraging optimistic Type advice motivational When to use this quote - writing workshops - daily journaling - blogging - author mentorship Key Concepts literature psychology skill development Questions to Reflect On - What habits will you build to improve? - How do you handle writer’s block? A Different Perspective Confidence alone may not guarantee skill. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Didn Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/didn-know/) [How](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/how/) [I can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-can/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Know Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-writer-403874/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writer Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer-thought-260890/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“There is a problem with writers. If what a writer wrote was published and sold many, many copies, the writer thought he was great.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/there-is-a-problem-with-writers-if-what-a-writer-wrote-was-published/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [“There is a problem with writers. If what a writer wrote was published and sold many, many copies, the writer thought he was great.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-a-problem-with-writers-if-what-a-writer-wrote-was-published-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was a novelist before I was a TV screenwriter. Actually, as a kid, I think I'd always wanted to be a writer, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-richards/i-was-a-novelist-before-i-was-a-tv-screenwriter-actually-as-a-kid-i/) [Ben Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-richards/) > [My Girl Scout leader. She told me if I listened more and talked less, I could grow up to be a good writer. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-viorst/my-girl-scout-leader-she-told-me-if-i-listened-more-and-talked-less-i/) [Judith Viorst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-viorst/) > [A next-generation innovation writer and thought leader worth watching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/a-next-generation-innovation-writer-and-thought-leader-worth-watching/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [I don't think there was a time I ever thought of myself as anything but a writer. I thought I was going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shonda-rhimes/i-don-t-think-there-was-a-time-i-ever-thought-of-myself-as-anything/) [Shonda Rhimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shonda-rhimes/) > [When I first began to write fiction, I didn't think I was a comic writer; I thought I was a serious writer. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-burgess/when-i-first-began-to-write-fiction-i-didn-t-think-i-was-a-comic/) [Anthony Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-burgess/) > [Like every Southern writer, I thought that I needed to write the next 'Gone With the Wind.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/like-every-southern-writer-i-thought-that-i-needed-to-write-the-next/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [We should read other people's books in order to learn what we feel; it is our own thoughts we should be developing, even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-should-read-other-people-s-books-in-order-to-learn-what-we-feel-it/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“When reading a book, you are sold what some writer thought. When reading a newspaper, you are sold what someone did, and, what some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/when-reading-a-book-you-are-sold-what-some-writer-thought-when/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [I don't like to be described as a Southern writer. The danger is, if you're described as a Southern writer, you might be thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/i-don-t-like-to-be-described-as-a-southern-writer-the-danger-is-if/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“He was already beginning to understand that what was wrong with his writing was that there was something wrong, something misconceived, about him. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/he-was-already-beginning-to-understand-that-what-was-wrong-with-his/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I think a lot of people assume you need to be born into a special creative family to have a career as a writer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-fallon/i-think-a-lot-of-people-assume-you-need-to-be-born-into-a-special/) [Jane Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-fallon/) > [I started out in graduate school to be a fiction writer. I thought I wanted to write short stories. I started writing poems at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-trethewey/i-started-out-in-graduate-school-to-be-a-fiction-writer-i-thought-i/) [Natasha Trethewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-trethewey/) > [“All you had to say was, 'I am a writer,' and you became one. You didn't even have to write anything. You could just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-black/all-you-had-to-say-was-i-am-a-writer-and-you-became-one-you-didn-t/) [Lewis Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-black/) ## More by Karen Robards > [My books are about ordinary people caught up in extraordinary situations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/my-books-are-about-ordinary-people-caught-up-in-extraordinary/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [My parents did not encourage romances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/my-parents-did-not-encourage-romances/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [I love 'The Guardian' series. Bianca St. Ives is one of my favorite heroines ever, and the combination of action, suspense, and romance makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-love-the-guardian-series-bianca-st-ives-is-one-of-my-favorite/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [I write the best book that I can write each time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-write-the-best-book-that-i-can-write-each-time/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [The year I turned 16, I spent the weeks before Christmas dropping hints to my parents about how much I wanted - no, needed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/the-year-i-turned-16-i-spent-the-weeks-before-christmas-dropping/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [“...as jittery as a caffeine addict outside a closed Starbucks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/as-jittery-as-a-caffeine-addict-outside-a-closed-starbucks/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [“He smiled then, a slow smile that sent the blood racing through her veins. Lora felt the throbbing inside her intensify until she was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/he-smiled-then-a-slow-smile-that-sent-the-blood-racing-through-her/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [To move up to hardcover is a way of getting more attention for my books. It means a lot to me: It means my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/to-move-up-to-hardcover-is-a-way-of-getting-more-attention-for-my/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [“Over my dedad body, was his first thought. His second? No, over Carl's.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/over-my-dedad-body-was-his-first-thought-his-second-no-over-carl-s/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [I write to please me, and I've been very lucky. It's like playing baseball. You just keep swinging, and eventually you get a hit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-write-to-please-me-and-i-ve-been-very-lucky-it-s-like-playing/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [“Lora followed his eyes to the subject of their conversation. He was such a masculine man, tall and strong and sure of himself, cocky…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/lora-followed-his-eyes-to-the-subject-of-their-conversation-he-was/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [My method is, I just sit down and write a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/my-method-is-i-just-sit-down-and-write-a-book/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [You look beautiful sitting there spitting at me like a she-cat. All I have to do is look at you, and I lust. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/you-look-beautiful-sitting-there-spitting-at-me-like-a-she-cat-all-i/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [“You got here in the nick of time," Johnny said, grinning insolently at him. "I was just about to start ripping off her clothes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/you-got-here-in-the-nick-of-time-johnny-said-grinning-insolently-at/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [“The point is, we all come to forks in the road, and we all make our choices and live with them, for good or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/the-point-is-we-all-come-to-forks-in-the-road-and-we-all-make-our/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) [Explore all 43 Karen Robards quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) ## More How quotes > [You'd be surprised how hard it can often be to translate an action into an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/you-d-be-surprised-how-hard-it-can-often-be-to-translate-an-action/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Academically, I was never that interested. I skipped classes. My biggest dream was to have a coffee shop, but I had no idea how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-espinosa/academically-i-was-never-that-interested-i-skipped-classes-my-biggest/) [Daniel Espinosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-espinosa/) > [I was very lucky to get well known much later in life. You need to have flopped quite a few times to get a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/i-was-very-lucky-to-get-well-known-much-later-in-life-you-need-to/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [As a family, we all loved the Flyers. To me, rooting for the Flyers were how I bonded with my dad especially.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-f-goldberg/as-a-family-we-all-loved-the-flyers-to-me-rooting-for-the-flyers-were/) [Adam F. Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-f-goldberg/) > [I know how hard it is to be a woman, especially a black woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/i-know-how-hard-it-is-to-be-a-woman-especially-a-black-woman/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [This is how McGregor is, waging mental warfare before the fights. There's no way that guy is going to get in my head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-mendes/this-is-how-mcgregor-is-waging-mental-warfare-before-the-fights-there/) [Chad Mendes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chad-mendes/) > [I think everyone will agree that it doesn't matter how we get to an international tournament. We are going to do whatever it takes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcginn/i-think-everyone-will-agree-that-it-doesn-t-matter-how-we-get-to-an/) [John McGinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcginn/) > [Troy was a sweet, good man. We just were never destined to be married. We just didn't have the same values. But I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-pleshette/troy-was-a-sweet-good-man-we-just-were-never-destined-to-be-married/) [Suzanne Pleshette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-pleshette/) > [How wonderful it would be to scatter words as they rise to consciousness, to let them lie where they fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-scott/how-wonderful-it-would-be-to-scatter-words-as-they-rise-to/) [Joanna Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-scott/) > [Pitchers pitch differently. Hitters, hardly anyone has the same stance. That's just how it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-zimmerman/pitchers-pitch-differently-hitters-hardly-anyone-has-the-same-stance/) [Ryan Zimmerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-zimmerman/) > [Everything affects hip-hop. The question is, how does it affect the money that corporations are going to invest to put out different kinds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-i-am/everything-affects-hip-hop-the-question-is-how-does-it-affect-the/) [will.i.am](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-i-am/) > [When you see how fragile and delicate life can be, all else fades into the background.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-morasca/when-you-see-how-fragile-and-delicate-life-can-be-all-else-fades-into/) [Jenna Morasca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-morasca/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. Weatherly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-a-weatherly/) > [I've never had a couch that needed to be cleaned or learned how to couch-clean in general. That feels too grown-up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-mckinnon/i-ve-never-had-a-couch-that-needed-to-be-cleaned-or-learned-how-to/) [Kate McKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-mckinnon/) > [People take years learning how to act; it's a skill, not just a job. If I tried it out and thought I'd be OK,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-fimmel/people-take-years-learning-how-to-act-it-s-a-skill-not-just-a-job-if/) [Travis Fimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-fimmel/) [Browse all 14,172 How quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/how/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I didn't know how to be a writer. But I thought, 'I can do this.'", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Karen Robards" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-thought-i-can-do-this/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "How" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-thought-i-can-do-this/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c3/karen-robards-15440_how_i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-t_1654336.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c3/karen-robards-15440_how_i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-t_1654336.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c3/karen-robards-15440_how_i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-t_1654336.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I didn't know how to be a writer. But I thought, 'I can do this.'” — Karen Robards", "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": "Karen Robards", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I didn't know how to be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-thought-i-can-do-this/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-didn-t-know-how-to-be-a-writer-but-i-thought-i-can-do-this/#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 } } ] } ```