--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I end up having a novel that sells…" description: "\"If I end up having a novel that sells really well and that allows me to pay for health insurance and mortgage without having to work at a day job, that..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7a/ken-liu-4222_books_if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-re_547721.jpg" --- # If I end up having a novel that sells really well and that… ![“If I end up having a novel that sells really well and that allows me to pay for health insurance and mortgage without having to work at a day job, that would be great.” quote by Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7a/ken-liu-4222_books_if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-re_547721.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7a/ken-liu-4222_books_if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-re_547721.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7a/ken-liu-4222_books_if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-re_547721.jpg) > “If I end up having a novel that sells really well and that allows me to pay for health insurance and mortgage without having to work at a day job, that would be great.” [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Success is defined by financial security and creative freedom without a conventional job. **In simple terms:** Earn enough to live while writing. Key Takeaway Aim for sustainable creative independence. Themes creativity financial freedom career Mood optimistic pragmatic Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - self‑publishing - side gigs - health insurance - mortgage payments Key Concepts entrepreneurship literature Questions to Reflect On - Can you sustain creativity without a day job? - What trade‑offs are acceptable? A Different Perspective Risk of burnout if work‑life balance ignored. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/day/) [End](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/end/) [Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great/) [Having Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-novel-3069036/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Mortgage Having](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mortgage-having-4565686/) [Novel Sells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel-sells-4565684/) [Pay Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pay-health-632387/) [Sells Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sells-really-4565685/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [As an author, I love to know my book sells really well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-asher/as-an-author-i-love-to-know-my-book-sells-really-well/) [Jay Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-asher/) > [I write poems about relationships, love relationships, and I'm not able to do that all the time. I could go two years without writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-write-poems-about-relationships-love-relationships-and-i-m-not-able/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [“There is a price to pay when you don't love or respect yourself. Your kids pay, your health pays, your soul and spirit pays,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanesia-harris/there-is-a-price-to-pay-when-you-don-t-love-or-respect-yourself-your/) [Tanesia Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanesia-harris/) > [I don't look for anybody to pay for health care for me and my family. That's my responsibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-yoho/i-don-t-look-for-anybody-to-pay-for-health-care-for-me-and-my-family/) [Ted Yoho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-yoho/) > [Since the 1960s, there has been a tremendous expansion of the resources available to pay for health care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-bredesen/since-the-1960s-there-has-been-a-tremendous-expansion-of-the/) [Phil Bredesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-bredesen/) > [Democrats are fighting for people to be able to quit work while the rest of us pay for their health care while they go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/democrats-are-fighting-for-people-to-be-able-to-quit-work-while-the/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [All of us have a responsibility to help pay for health care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/all-of-us-have-a-responsibility-to-help-pay-for-health-care/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [We all pay too much for health care. Far too many do not go to the doctor or fill a prescription because it simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-beshear/we-all-pay-too-much-for-health-care-far-too-many-do-not-go-to-the/) [Andy Beshear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-beshear/) > [Wal-Mart workers make just over $8 an hour, and they must pay more than a third of their health insurance premium if they choose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-featherstone/wal-mart-workers-make-just-over-8-an-hour-and-they-must-pay-more-than/) [Liza Featherstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-featherstone/) > [Under the British healthcare system, there is a commission that decides whether or not, based on your age and physical condition, the government should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/under-the-british-healthcare-system-there-is-a-commission-that/) [Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/) > [Somebody's going to pay for health coverage for the American people, and the question is, how do you do that?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-price/somebody-s-going-to-pay-for-health-coverage-for-the-american-people/) [Tom Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-price/) > [Many companies today are reducing hours of full-time people to get under the minimum so they don't have to pay health care costs. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-schultz/many-companies-today-are-reducing-hours-of-full-time-people-to-get/) [Howard Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-schultz/) > [When I went to law school, which I put myself through for $100,000 dollars of debt, I didn't expect anybody to pay for my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megyn-kelly/when-i-went-to-law-school-which-i-put-myself-through-for-100-000/) [Megyn Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megyn-kelly/) > [I feel I handle the pressure situations well, and that's why I want to be there at the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ab-de-villiers/i-feel-i-handle-the-pressure-situations-well-and-that-s-why-i-want-to/) [AB de Villiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ab-de-villiers/) > [When I was trying to come up with a stage name, I thought 'Lord' was super rad, but really masculine - ever since I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorde/when-i-was-trying-to-come-up-with-a-stage-name-i-thought-lord-was/) [Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorde/) ## More by Ken Liu > [I don't believe in reducing a style and a voice down to a set of descriptions, so I've never done that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/i-don-t-believe-in-reducing-a-style-and-a-voice-down-to-a-set-of/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [People who are ambitious - politicians who crave power - think that they're in control of it, but at some point, the movement that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/people-who-are-ambitious-politicians-who-crave-power-think-that-they/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [“My goal is to act as a faithful interpreter, preserving as much of the original's nuances of meaning as possible without embellishment or omission.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/my-goal-is-to-act-as-a-faithful-interpreter-preserving-as-much-of-the/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [“It’s hard to hear the music behind the words when their meanings get in the way,” she told me once.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/it-s-hard-to-hear-the-music-behind-the-words-when-their-meanings-get/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [The 'silk' in silkpunk refers not to a source of power, but to an entirely different, expressive technology language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/the-silk-in-silkpunk-refers-not-to-a-source-of-power-but-to-an/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [“A memory is a re-creation, precious because it is both more and less than the original.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/a-memory-is-a-re-creation-precious-because-it-is-both-more-and-less/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [Almost all of my stories can be understood to be elaborations on our drive to remake the world and our adjustments to the result.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/almost-all-of-my-stories-can-be-understood-to-be-elaborations-on-our/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [“Dad and I went on walking, our shadows touching.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/dad-and-i-went-on-walking-our-shadows-touching/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [“I can only wish that someday you’ll also be pestered by a student as persistent to learn what you do not wish to teach.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/i-can-only-wish-that-someday-you-ll-also-be-pestered-by-a-student-as/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [I think male authors who want to try to tackle these issues of representation of women can generally do a better job if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/i-think-male-authors-who-want-to-try-to-tackle-these-issues-of/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [“Surveillance is surveillance. I can never understand why some people think it matters whether it's the government doing it to you or a company.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/surveillance-is-surveillance-i-can-never-understand-why-some-people/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [Whenever you talk about Chinese dragons, emperors, palaces, concubines - they conjure up a whole colonial argle-bargle that has nothing to do with historical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/whenever-you-talk-about-chinese-dragons-emperors-palaces-concubines/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [We have never had a society that was truly just. Some groups have always benefited at the expense of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/we-have-never-had-a-society-that-was-truly-just-some-groups-have/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [“By custom, we wield the sword and wear the armor, but who among you does not know a mother, sister, daughter, friend, who exceeds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/by-custom-we-wield-the-sword-and-wear-the-armor-but-who-among-you/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [My wife, Lisa, and I both grew up on wuxia - Chinese historical romances. They're kind of analogous to Western epics. They're based on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/my-wife-lisa-and-i-both-grew-up-on-wuxia-chinese-historical-romances/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) [Explore all 114 Ken Liu quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) ## More Books 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/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [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/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [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/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [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/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I end up having a novel that sells really well and that allows me to pay for health insurance and mortgage without having to work at a day job, that would be great.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ken Liu" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-really-well-and-that-allows-me/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-really-well-and-that-allows-me/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7a/ken-liu-4222_books_if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-re_547721.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7a/ken-liu-4222_books_if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-re_547721.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a7a/ken-liu-4222_books_if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-re_547721.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If I end up having a novel that sells really well and that allows me to pay for health insurance and…” — Ken Liu", "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": "Ken Liu", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If I end up having a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-really-well-and-that-allows-me/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/if-i-end-up-having-a-novel-that-sells-really-well-and-that-allows-me/#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 } } ] } ```