--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time…" description: "\"I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time for me. I was going to try to do the same thing, I did make a valiant attempt but it did not work - to do the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/oprah-winfrey-186_book_i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time_590976.png" --- # I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time for me. I was… ![“I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time for me. I was going to try to do the same thing, I did make a valiant attempt but it did not work - to do the same thing with documentaries that we had done with the book club [in 2011]. The zeitgeist wasn't ready. It just wasn't ready.” quote by Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/oprah-winfrey-186_book_i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time_590976.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/oprah-winfrey-186_book_i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time_590976.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/oprah-winfrey-186_book_i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time_590976.png) > “I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time for me. I was going to try to do the same thing, I did make a valiant attempt but it did not work - to do the same thing with documentaries that we had done with the book club \[in 2011\]. The zeitgeist wasn't ready. It just wasn't ready.” [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker attempted a documentary project but felt the cultural moment wasn’t receptive, leading to its failure. **In simple terms:** Timing matters; the audience wasn’t ready. Key Takeaway Align projects with audience readiness. Themes creativity timing media failure adaptation Mood reflective determined Type motivational cautionary When to use this quote - film production - community events - media launches - book club adaptations Key Concepts cultural readiness project management Questions to Reflect On - How can you gauge cultural readiness before launching? - What alternative formats could convey the same message? A Different Perspective Even with effort, external context can hinder success. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book club](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-club/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Clubs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clubs/) [Documentaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documentaries/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Valiant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/valiant/) [Zeitgeist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zeitgeist/) ## Related quotes > [From a young age, I wanted to play in the NBA. Oh well... It was when I was a senior in college that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-james/from-a-young-age-i-wanted-to-play-in-the-nba-oh-well-it-was-when-i/) [Steve James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-james/) > [I interviewed - no - had lunch with Harper Lee several years ago, trying to convince Harper Lee to do "To Kill a Mockingbird"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-interviewed-no-had-lunch-with-harper-lee-several-years-ago-trying/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [“With winter the feeling had deepened. I would see a neighbor running along the sidewalk in front of the house, training, I imagined, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/with-winter-the-feeling-had-deepened-i-would-see-a-neighbor-running/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > […She was, obviously, one of those women whose polished words may reflect a book club or bridge club, or any other deadly conventionality, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/she-was-obviously-one-of-those-women-whose-polished-words-may-reflect/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“ Changing Topics Changing topics gracefully is the hallmark of an excellent conversationalist. Changing topics keeps the conversation fresh and allows you to explore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-berent/changing-topics-changing-topics-gracefully-is-the-hallmark-of-an/) [Jonathan Berent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-berent/) > [“Sometimes, you simply must follow your heart," she said. "No reasonable man can blame you for that." A smile. "No reasonable woman can, either.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-pitts-jr/sometimes-you-simply-must-follow-your-heart-she-said-no-reasonable/) [Leonard Pitts Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-pitts-jr/) > [People who dislike Oprah's Book Club dislike it for the same reason that they dislike Barnes & Noble. The fact that the two do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norah-vincent/people-who-dislike-oprah-s-book-club-dislike-it-for-the-same-reason/) [Norah Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norah-vincent/) > [“There is comfort, even among strangers, when people find something they are equally passionate about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-rachelle/there-is-comfort-even-among-strangers-when-people-find-something-they/) [Joyce Rachelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-rachelle/) > [Book clubs are the best thing that has happened to the world of publishing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adriana-trigiani/book-clubs-are-the-best-thing-that-has-happened-to-the-world-of/) [Adriana Trigiani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adriana-trigiani/) > [“The first rule of book club - is that nobody wants to talk about book club.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-lewis/the-first-rule-of-book-club-is-that-nobody-wants-to-talk-about-book/) Douglas Lewis > [My mother had a book club that would dissolve into opening wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-federle/my-mother-had-a-book-club-that-would-dissolve-into-opening-wine/) [Tim Federle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-federle/) > [“I think she was in a book club for a while, but she quit when they stopped talking about the books and started talking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/i-think-she-was-in-a-book-club-for-a-while-but-she-quit-when-they/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“What I had come to love about book club (besides the fabulous desserts and free liquor) was how in hearing so many opinions about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-landvik/what-i-had-come-to-love-about-book-club-besides-the-fabulous-desserts/) [Lorna Landvik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-landvik/) > [Books are something social - a writer speaking to a reader - so I think making the reading of a book the center of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/books-are-something-social-a-writer-speaking-to-a-reader-so-i-think/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [“Is it? Because that picture of me was taken by my old school's yearbook club, and they put it in the section titled 'STUDENT…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-wolf/is-it-because-that-picture-of-me-was-taken-by-my-old-school-s/) [Sara Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-wolf/) ## More by Oprah Winfrey > [I've seen that many times in rural African villages where people have nothing but a hut and a bowl. The joy in the children's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-ve-seen-that-many-times-in-rural-african-villages-where-people-have/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [These French-style caramels are handmade in California. It's always hard to give them away!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/these-french-style-caramels-are-handmade-in-california-it-s-always/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [I was in a conversation and someone said: "You know, we were talking about the whole issue of transgender and how it has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-was-in-a-conversation-and-someone-said-you-know-we-were-talking/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [“Forgiveness is about letting go of the past and not holding on to it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/forgiveness-is-about-letting-go-of-the-past-and-not-holding-on-to-it/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [The deepest courage we can exercise is continuing to believe in our dreams until we make them come true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/the-deepest-courage-we-can-exercise-is-continuing-to-believe-in-our/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [If you can see it, and believe it, it is a LOT easier to achieve it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/if-you-can-see-it-and-believe-it-it-is-a-lot-easier-to-achieve-it/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [There is no greater gift you can give or receive than to honor your calling. It's why you were born. And how you become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/there-is-no-greater-gift-you-can-give-or-receive-than-to-honor-your/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Gratitude is the single greatest treasure I will take with me from this experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/gratitude-is-the-single-greatest-treasure-i-will-take-with-me-from/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [I am disappointed by this controversy surrounding A Million Little Pieces because I rely on the publishers to define the category that a book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-am-disappointed-by-this-controversy-surrounding-a-million-little/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Keep a grateful journal. Every night, list five things that you are grateful for. What it will begin to do is change our perspective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/keep-a-grateful-journal-every-night-list-five-things-that-you-are/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [I want every day to be a fresh start on expanding what is possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-want-every-day-to-be-a-fresh-start-on-expanding-what-is-possible/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [We often block our own blessings because we don't feel inherently good enough or smart enough or pretty enough or worthy enough... You're worthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/we-often-block-our-own-blessings-because-we-don-t-feel-inherently/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [One if the hardest things in life to learn are which bridges to cross and which bridges to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/one-if-the-hardest-things-in-life-to-learn-are-which-bridges-to-cross/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [You must feed your mind with reading material, thoughts, and ideas that open you to new possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/you-must-feed-your-mind-with-reading-material-thoughts-and-ideas-that/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Your soul tells you when it's time to move on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/your-soul-tells-you-when-it-s-time-to-move-on/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) [Explore all 971 Oprah Winfrey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) ## More Book 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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time for me. I was going to try to do the same thing, I did make a valiant attempt but it did not work - to do the same thing with documentaries that we had done with the book club [in 2011]. The zeitgeist wasn't ready. It just wasn't ready.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Oprah Winfrey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time-for-me-i-was-going-to-try-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time-for-me-i-was-going-to-try-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/oprah-winfrey-186_book_i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time_590976.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/oprah-winfrey-186_book_i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time_590976.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b2/oprah-winfrey-186_book_i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time_590976.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time for me. I was going to try to do the same thing, I did make a…” — Oprah Winfrey", "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": "Oprah Winfrey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I tried documentaries.It wasn't the time...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time-for-me-i-was-going-to-try-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-tried-documentaries-it-wasn-t-the-time-for-me-i-was-going-to-try-to/#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 } } ] } ```