--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had to decide if I wanted to be known…" description: "\"I had to decide if I wanted to be known as a writer or a reader. I chose writer.\" — Nathan Lowell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/nathan-lowell-27268_books_i-had-to-decide-if-i-wanted-to-be-known_2315672.jpg" --- # I had to decide if I wanted to be known as a writer or a… ![“I had to decide if I wanted to be known as a writer or a reader. I chose writer.” quote by Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/nathan-lowell-27268_books_i-had-to-decide-if-i-wanted-to-be-known_2315672.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/nathan-lowell-27268_books_i-had-to-decide-if-i-wanted-to-be-known_2315672.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/nathan-lowell-27268_books_i-had-to-decide-if-i-wanted-to-be-known_2315672.jpg) > “I had to decide if I wanted to be known as a writer or a reader. I chose writer.” [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Choosing a professional identity shapes your path; embracing creation over consumption defines purpose. **In simple terms:** Choosing to create rather than just consume. Key Takeaway Embrace the role you want. Themes identity career choice Mood reflective determined Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - writing career - personal branding - creative projects Key Concepts self‑definition agency Questions to Reflect On - What does being a writer mean to you? - How might reading still influence your work? A Different Perspective Choosing a role may limit other opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I think the novel form chose me. I was a writer before I became a criminal... my first instinct was to write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-david-roberts/i-think-the-novel-form-chose-me-i-was-a-writer-before-i-became-a/) [Gregory David Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-david-roberts/) > [“I never really chose to be a writer. It's just always been what I do. Writing chose me...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-russ/i-never-really-chose-to-be-a-writer-it-s-just-always-been-what-i-do/) Té Russ > [“Day dreamers often can become night writers...When young I didn't toy with the concept of a glass half full or half empty. 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Only through the assimilation of ideas, thoughts and philosophies can one begin to focus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-w-eckert/if-you-would-be-a-writer-first-be-a-reader-only-through-the/) Allan W. Eckert > [Genre is a useful thing when organizing texts in a bookshop but immaterial to the particular exchange between writer and reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumaan-alam/genre-is-a-useful-thing-when-organizing-texts-in-a-bookshop-but/) [Rumaan Alam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumaan-alam/) ## More by Nathan Lowell > [My books are offered through Podiobooks.com and the iTunes Music Store as free audio downloads. I don't sell them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/my-books-are-offered-through-podiobooks-com-and-the-itunes-music/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [Stop aspiring. Start doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/stop-aspiring-start-doing/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [I credit Podiobooks and the free audio podcasts for helping me develop the audience I needed when I started selling my books in text…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/i-credit-podiobooks-and-the-free-audio-podcasts-for-helping-me/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [Podiobooks rules. It's still the best way I know to find an audience for longer works in any genre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/podiobooks-rules-it-s-still-the-best-way-i-know-to-find-an-audience/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [specialize in small cast/single reader long fiction so I only compete against other podcasts of novels in that form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/specialize-in-small-cast-single-reader-long-fiction-so-i-only-compete/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [More and more of my audio fans are asking for audiobook versions - files without the intro/outro/etc that go into the podcasts. 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I grew tired of always reading about how the people with power, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/my-works-are-a-direct-response-to-the-typical-space-opera-i-grew/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [“the shadow from my body creating a window in the reflection, a hole in the room where an empty man stood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/the-shadow-from-my-body-creating-a-window-in-the-reflection-a-hole-in/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [I can write three novels in the time it takes to write one novella. I'm probably not going to go with that form again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/i-can-write-three-novels-in-the-time-it-takes-to-write-one-novella-i/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [“I really felt like it was coming together and I regretted that feeling with every step. If experience taught me anything, it was that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/i-really-felt-like-it-was-coming-together-and-i-regretted-that/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [I only read on my phone and the whole "let's see if we can get people to do it" idea seems less "wouldn't it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/i-only-read-on-my-phone-and-the-whole-let-s-see-if-we-can-get-people/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [“I call on the Guardian of the South to bless her with the fire of life, to keep her passion alive even as she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/i-call-on-the-guardian-of-the-south-to-bless-her-with-the-fire-of/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [Coffee takes on an almost ritualistic meaning. I learned that from being on hurricane patrol for a year in the North Atlantic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/coffee-takes-on-an-almost-ritualistic-meaning-i-learned-that-from/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) > [“Sometimes you needed to be an outsider to really appreciate how things worked. Otherwise you took it for granted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lowell/sometimes-you-needed-to-be-an-outsider-to-really-appreciate-how/) [Nathan Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) [Explore all 20 Nathan Lowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lowell/) ## 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 > [“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 > [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": "I had to decide if I wanted to be known as a writer or a reader. 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