--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've written virtually as long as I've…" description: "\"I've written virtually as long as I've acted, it wasn't a sudden transition. I acted in my first play when I was 16 and I wrote my first play when I wa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a32/lennie-james-15462_acted_i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-a_2707201.jpg" --- # I've written virtually as long as I've acted, it wasn't a… ![“I've written virtually as long as I've acted, it wasn't a sudden transition. I acted in my first play when I was 16 and I wrote my first play when I was 17.” quote by Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a32/lennie-james-15462_acted_i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-a_2707201.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a32/lennie-james-15462_acted_i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-a_2707201.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a32/lennie-james-15462_acted_i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-a_2707201.jpg) > “I've written virtually as long as I've acted, it wasn't a sudden transition. I acted in my first play when I was 16 and I wrote my first play when I was 17.” [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He has been writing almost as long as acting; the transition was gradual. **In simple terms:** Writing and acting have always overlapped. Key Takeaway Integrate multiple creative pursuits. Themes creativity career development discipline Mood thoughtful motivational Type reflective philosophical When to use this quote - theatre - screenwriting - career planning Key Concepts artistic expression skill blending Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance writing and acting? - What benefits arise from dual skills? A Different Perspective Balancing two crafts can dilute focus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acted/) [Acted Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acted-play-2780333/) [Acted Wasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acted-wasn-1224201/) [First](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Sudden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sudden/) [Transition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transition/) [Ve Acted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ve-acted-249447/) [Virtually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtually/) [Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written/) [Wrote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote/) [Wrote Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrote-play-341187/) ## Related quotes > [“The way I acted...It wasn't you" "Oh, no. You're not even human. You don't get to use the It's not you, it's me line!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-landers/the-way-i-acted-it-wasn-t-you-oh-no-you-re-not-even-human-you-don-t/) [Melissa Landers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-landers/) > [I've acted for as long as I can remember, really.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-purnell/i-ve-acted-for-as-long-as-i-can-remember-really/) [Ella Purnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-purnell/) > [I've acted professionally since I was 16.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/i-ve-acted-professionally-since-i-was-16/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [I've always acted; in fact, I can't remember a time when I was not. When I was little, cinema was a game, then my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonam-kapoor/i-ve-always-acted-in-fact-i-can-t-remember-a-time-when-i-was-not-when/) [Sonam Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonam-kapoor/) > [I've never acted my age and I never will. It's just the way I've always been.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mamie-van-doren/i-ve-never-acted-my-age-and-i-never-will-it-s-just-the-way-i-ve/) [Mamie Van Doren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mamie-van-doren/) > [I've acted like an idiot before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sale/i-ve-acted-like-an-idiot-before/) [Chris Sale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sale/) > [I've never acted, but I'm an entertainer. So I kind of used what I know from being onstage. I've done a thousand and two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-alaina/i-ve-never-acted-but-i-m-an-entertainer-so-i-kind-of-used-what-i-know/) [Lauren Alaina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-alaina/) > [I've always acted, it's my passion and belief system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zawe-ashton/i-ve-always-acted-it-s-my-passion-and-belief-system/) [Zawe Ashton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zawe-ashton/) > [I've acted just to get to directing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-ferrer/i-ve-acted-just-to-get-to-directing/) [Mel Ferrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-ferrer/) > [I've never acted with someone who I knew so well before I started,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-sarsgaard/i-ve-never-acted-with-someone-who-i-knew-so-well-before-i-started/) [Peter Sarsgaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-sarsgaard/) > [The more I've acted, I've realised that I have a) no control of and b) no way of really quite understanding how people react…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/the-more-i-ve-acted-i-ve-realised-that-i-have-a-no-control-of-and-b/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [My parents thought if they put me in drama classes, I might come out of my shell. It worked, and I've acted ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samara-weaving/my-parents-thought-if-they-put-me-in-drama-classes-i-might-come-out/) [Samara Weaving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samara-weaving/) > [I mean, I've acted professionally since I was 16.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/i-mean-i-ve-acted-professionally-since-i-was-16/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [You can't say you're an actor if you've never acted, and you can't act if no one gives you an opportunity, but they won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-orji/you-can-t-say-you-re-an-actor-if-you-ve-never-acted-and-you-can-t-act/) [Yvonne Orji](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-orji/) > [I've acted with shorter heroes, and no one has objected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tabu/i-ve-acted-with-shorter-heroes-and-no-one-has-objected/) [Tabu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tabu/) ## More by Lennie James > [All the great shows owe a lot to 'Hill Street Blues.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/all-the-great-shows-owe-a-lot-to-hill-street-blues/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [The fact that I lost my mum was horrible, and if I could change anything, I would definitely change that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/the-fact-that-i-lost-my-mum-was-horrible-and-if-i-could-change/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [I owe 'Jericho' my whole time in America, really. It was a fantastic group of people to work with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-owe-jericho-my-whole-time-in-america-really-it-was-a-fantastic/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [I'm pretty much a London boy, and it was a big enough city to try and conquer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-m-pretty-much-a-london-boy-and-it-was-a-big-enough-city-to-try-and/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [My foster mother wanted to create a family home. For me, she had made a place that I felt I could always go back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/my-foster-mother-wanted-to-create-a-family-home-for-me-she-had-made-a/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [I was dreading all of the ghost stories of working on American television, not in the least, the length. In Britain, a series is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-was-dreading-all-of-the-ghost-stories-of-working-on-american/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [In the kids' home I was in, there was very little change of staff. People stuck around, and they stuck around because they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/in-the-kids-home-i-was-in-there-was-very-little-change-of-staff/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [One of the things I learnt over the years is that there is a craft to writing, like there is a craft to acting.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/one-of-the-things-i-learnt-over-the-years-is-that-there-is-a-craft-to/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [I was focused on either being a social worker or physiotherapist. That was the direction I was going until I met a girl who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-was-focused-on-either-being-a-social-worker-or-physiotherapist-that/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [My favorite television show of all time is 'Hill Street Blues.' I think it's the show that is to television what Pele was to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/my-favorite-television-show-of-all-time-is-hill-street-blues-i-think/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [I like arriving somewhere and taking a left when someone tells you to go right. When all the tourist signs are pointing one way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-like-arriving-somewhere-and-taking-a-left-when-someone-tells-you-to/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [I like playing guys where it's as important what they're thinking as what they're saying. Those are the people I like playing, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-like-playing-guys-where-it-s-as-important-what-they-re-thinking-as/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [I particular enjoy the crime writer, Walter Ellis Mosley. He does a series of Chandler-esque detective stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-particular-enjoy-the-crime-writer-walter-ellis-mosley-he-does-a/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [We did four months on 'Line of Duty' from beginning to end, and that would be a long theater run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/we-did-four-months-on-line-of-duty-from-beginning-to-end-and-that/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) > [If you're very clearly good or you're very clearly bad, then there isn't that much internal dilemma going on, and that's not necessarily as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/if-you-re-very-clearly-good-or-you-re-very-clearly-bad-then-there-isn/) [Lennie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) [Explore all 43 Lennie James quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/) ## More Acted quotes > [I never really acted at school. It was doing small parts on TV that really got me started.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-highmore/i-never-really-acted-at-school-it-was-doing-small-parts-on-tv-that/) [Freddie Highmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-highmore/) > [I've acted for as long as I can remember, really.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-purnell/i-ve-acted-for-as-long-as-i-can-remember-really/) [Ella Purnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-purnell/) > [It's rare to get a really truly wonderfully written, acted and produced sci-fi show, period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hatch/it-s-rare-to-get-a-really-truly-wonderfully-written-acted-and/) [Richard Hatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-hatch/) > [Asked at the hearing why she hadn't pressed the FBI more closely about what it knew, or didn't know, about domestic terrorist threats, Rice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-fineman/asked-at-the-hearing-why-she-hadn-t-pressed-the-fbi-more-closely/) [Howard Fineman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-fineman/) > [When you acted like 'The Beast' I still saw 'The Prince' in you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/when-you-acted-like-the-beast-i-still-saw-the-prince-in-you/) [SONYA PARKER](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/) > [Show me a man who has acted, and who has not been the victim and slave of his action. What they have done commits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/show-me-a-man-who-has-acted-and-who-has-not-been-the-victim-and-slave/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I am something of a ham. Yeah, I'd always been a writer. But in high school, I acted in plays. So it wasn't as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-deford/i-am-something-of-a-ham-yeah-i-d-always-been-a-writer-but-in-high/) [Frank Deford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-deford/) > [“The way I acted...It wasn't you" "Oh, no. You're not even human. You don't get to use the It's not you, it's me line!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-landers/the-way-i-acted-it-wasn-t-you-oh-no-you-re-not-even-human-you-don-t/) [Melissa Landers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-landers/) > [I never acted out with my actions to show people that I'm getting grown, you never see me with a cigarette, or see me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bow-wow/i-never-acted-out-with-my-actions-to-show-people-that-i-m-getting/) [Bow Wow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bow-wow/) > [I think I'm one of those guys who was sort of always in comedy. I thought of myself - and other people seemed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-daly/i-think-i-m-one-of-those-guys-who-was-sort-of-always-in-comedy-i/) [Andy Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-daly/) > [It was all for the Games. How you acted. -Peeta Mellark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunger-games/it-was-all-for-the-games-how-you-acted-peeta-mellark/) [Hunger Games](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunger-games/) > [I acted like Cary Grant for so long that I became Cary Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cary-grant/i-acted-like-cary-grant-for-so-long-that-i-became-cary-grant/) [Cary Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cary-grant/) > [The kinds of roles dogs fill can be hard to come by in human relationships. We touch the dog or the pet at whim.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/the-kinds-of-roles-dogs-fill-can-be-hard-to-come-by-in-human/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [I acted in 'Oomakkuyil' under Balu Mahendra's baton.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/y-g-mahendran/i-acted-in-oomakkuyil-under-balu-mahendra-s-baton/) [Y. G. Mahendran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/y-g-mahendran/) > [I really loved when I started doing '70s Show,' though I had never acted before, so it was a great training ground being on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/topher-grace/i-really-loved-when-i-started-doing-70s-show-though-i-had-never-acted/) [Topher Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/topher-grace/) [Browse all 192 Acted quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acted/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I've written virtually as long as I've acted, it wasn't a sudden transition. I acted in my first play when I was 16 and I wrote my first play when I was 17.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lennie James" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-acted-it-wasn-t-a-sudden/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Acted" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-acted-it-wasn-t-a-sudden/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a32/lennie-james-15462_acted_i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-a_2707201.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a32/lennie-james-15462_acted_i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-a_2707201.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a32/lennie-james-15462_acted_i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-a_2707201.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I've written virtually as long as I've acted, it wasn't a sudden transition. I acted in my first play when I…” — Lennie James", "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": "Lennie James", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennie-james/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I've written virtually as long as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-acted-it-wasn-t-a-sudden/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennie-james/i-ve-written-virtually-as-long-as-i-ve-acted-it-wasn-t-a-sudden/#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 } } ] } ```