--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes I'm writing for magazines on…" description: "\"Sometimes I'm writing for magazines on assignment, but the university has to be patient with me. I mean, during the ten-week periods that I have a clas..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e12/pam-houston-11232_assignment_sometimes-i-m-writing-for-magazines-on-a_2812279.jpg" --- # Sometimes I'm writing for magazines on assignment, but the… ![“Sometimes I'm writing for magazines on assignment, but the university has to be patient with me. I mean, during the ten-week periods that I have a class, I'm there every Thursday night or whatever it is, but sometimes that's all I'm there, because I'm somewhere else the rest of the time.” quote by Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e12/pam-houston-11232_assignment_sometimes-i-m-writing-for-magazines-on-a_2812279.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e12/pam-houston-11232_assignment_sometimes-i-m-writing-for-magazines-on-a_2812279.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e12/pam-houston-11232_assignment_sometimes-i-m-writing-for-magazines-on-a_2812279.jpg) > “Sometimes I'm writing for magazines on assignment, but the university has to be patient with me. I mean, during the ten-week periods that I have a class, I'm there every Thursday night or whatever it is, but sometimes that's all I'm there, because I'm somewhere else the rest of the time.” [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Balancing academic responsibilities with freelance writing leads to fragmented availability and time management challenges. **In simple terms:** Juggling teaching and writing causes schedule gaps. Key Takeaway Create structured time blocks for each role. Themes balance time management freelance Mood reflective pragmatic Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career planning - personal development - mental health Key Concepts academic duties creative work productivity Questions to Reflect On - How can you negotiate more consistent teaching hours? - What strategies improve focus across roles? A Different Perspective Freelance work may suffer from inconsistent presence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Assignment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assignment/) [Assignment University](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assignment-university-3527530/) [Assignments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assignments/) [Be patient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/be-patient/) [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Magazines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magazines/) [Magazines Assignment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magazines-assignment-3527532/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Patient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patient/) [Periods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Somewhere else](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/somewhere-else/) [Ten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten/) [Thursday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thursday/) [Thursday night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thursday-night/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [University](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/university/) [Week](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/week/) [Week Periods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/week-periods-3527531/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Magazines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-magazines-2866723/) ## Related quotes > [When I got out of college, I had to make a living, and I started writing for magazines, and it felt like the perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-heller/when-i-got-out-of-college-i-had-to-make-a-living-and-i-started/) [Peter Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-heller/) > [Writing for TV made way more sense than writing for magazines. And by sense, I mean money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nell-scovell/writing-for-tv-made-way-more-sense-than-writing-for-magazines-and-by/) [Nell Scovell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nell-scovell/) > [There are plenty of paths to becoming a writer, but I think the most reliable ones involve total commitment: writing for magazines and newspapers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pavone/there-are-plenty-of-paths-to-becoming-a-writer-but-i-think-the-most/) [Chris Pavone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pavone/) > [I always wrote as a vehicle for expression but did not try writing for publication until my mid-thirties, at which time I started writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-always-wrote-as-a-vehicle-for-expression-but-did-not-try-writing/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [Doing the games for the NFL Network on Thursday night on a short week, that's work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cris-collinsworth/doing-the-games-for-the-nfl-network-on-thursday-night-on-a-short-week/) [Cris Collinsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cris-collinsworth/) > [We covered so much ground on Thursday night that it took us half and hour. I'm not trying to look for excuses but that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-boateng/we-covered-so-much-ground-on-thursday-night-that-it-took-us-half-and/) [George Boateng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-boateng/) > [The biggest move that put Fox on the map, from an entertainment perspective, was when 'The Simpsons' moved to Thursday night, and that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-reilly/the-biggest-move-that-put-fox-on-the-map-from-an-entertainment/) [Kevin Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-reilly/) > [Right after retiring I didn't want to be on the road 16 weeks a year - leaving on a Thursday night and coming home…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-sehorn/right-after-retiring-i-didn-t-want-to-be-on-the-road-16-weeks-a-year/) [Jason Sehorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-sehorn/) > [“That night, Marlboro Man and I had a date. It was the Thursday night before our wedding, and the rehearsal dinner was the following…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ree-drummond/that-night-marlboro-man-and-i-had-a-date-it-was-the-thursday-night/) [Ree Drummond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ree-drummond/) > [“You been asleep, baby." My body went still at his words. Tack kept talking. "Green tea. Yoga. No TV. Placemats for your coffee table.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-ashley/you-been-asleep-baby-my-body-went-still-at-his-words-tack-kept/) [Kristen Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-ashley/) > [As loud as fans were , they need to go home now and start soaking up a lot of tea, drinking a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lebron-james/as-loud-as-fans-were-they-need-to-go-home-now-and-start-soaking-up-a/) [LeBron James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lebron-james/) > [“It was time for me to go that Thursday night. We’d just watched Citizen Kane --a throwback to my Cinema 190 class at USC--and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ree-drummond/it-was-time-for-me-to-go-that-thursday-night-we-d-just-watched/) [Ree Drummond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ree-drummond/) > [If someone's a nurse and they're going to the Comedy Cellar on a Thursday night and they paid $30 and a two-drink minimum to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-sherman/if-someone-s-a-nurse-and-they-re-going-to-the-comedy-cellar-on-a/) [Sarah Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-sherman/) > [“We called the result “Welcome to the Jungle.” We played the song live for the first time when we opened a show at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duff-mckagan/we-called-the-result-welcome-to-the-jungle-we-played-the-song-live/) [Duff McKagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duff-mckagan/) > [“Retired missionaries taught us Arts & Crafts each July at Bible Camp: how to glue the kidney, navy, and pinto bean into mosaics, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-powell/retired-missionaries-taught-us-arts-crafts-each-july-at-bible-camp/) [Lynn Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-powell/) ## More by Pam Houston > [Give me a labyrinth to walk and I can usually free my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/give-me-a-labyrinth-to-walk-and-i-can-usually-free-my-mind/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [When a book is in its final stages, I've just got to be home, looking at it seventeen hours a day, and that's fine.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/when-a-book-is-in-its-final-stages-i-ve-just-got-to-be-home-looking/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [I've been to a lot of school and read a lot of thick books, but at my very core there's a made-for-TV-movie mentality I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/i-ve-been-to-a-lot-of-school-and-read-a-lot-of-thick-books-but-at-my/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [Life gives us what we need when we need it; receiving what it gives us is a whole other thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/life-gives-us-what-we-need-when-we-need-it-receiving-what-it-gives-us/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [Cheryl Strayed is a courageous, gritty, and deceptively elegant writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/cheryl-strayed-is-a-courageous-gritty-and-deceptively-elegant-writer/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [Sometimes no matter how well you prepare, no matter how conservative your decision making, no matter how few Y chromosomes are along on your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/sometimes-no-matter-how-well-you-prepare-no-matter-how-conservative/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [Stillness is a harder concept for me than ecstasy, but I can imagine it best when I am fully present and paying strict attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/stillness-is-a-harder-concept-for-me-than-ecstasy-but-i-can-imagine/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [“I still don't see how it would make me feel any better to think of the pain in my hip and spine as anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/i-still-don-t-see-how-it-would-make-me-feel-any-better-to-think-of/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [My parents were travelers. Every time my parents got ten dollars ahead they went somewhere. That's what they did. So I got the bug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/my-parents-were-travelers-every-time-my-parents-got-ten-dollars-ahead/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [“Find yourself a place in the universe,' she said, 'a place where the dirt feels like goodness under your feet. Take the right picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/find-yourself-a-place-in-the-universe-she-said-a-place-where-the-dirt/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [I'm always out looking for weird, beautiful things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/i-m-always-out-looking-for-weird-beautiful-things/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [I always think, when I'm in motion, writing seems like the most natural thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/i-always-think-when-i-m-in-motion-writing-seems-like-the-most-natural/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [I'm about going out in the world and noticing stuff, and going home and writing it down, and putting it next to other stuff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/i-m-about-going-out-in-the-world-and-noticing-stuff-and-going-home/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [“And even though I knew in my head there’s nothing a man can do that a woman can’t, I also knew in my heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/and-even-though-i-knew-in-my-head-there-s-nothing-a-man-can-do-that-a/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [Traveling is my priority, because it drives the writing, so I teach around the travel, and sometimes the travel is the teaching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/traveling-is-my-priority-because-it-drives-the-writing-so-i-teach/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) [Explore all 61 Pam Houston quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) ## More Assignment quotes > [Do not delegate an assignment and then attempt to manage it yourself - you will make an enemy of the overruled subordinate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wess-roberts/do-not-delegate-an-assignment-and-then-attempt-to-manage-it-yourself/) [Wess Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wess-roberts/) > [I am honored to be chosen to serve on the Education and Labor committee. This assignment will give me the opportunity to work on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-steel/i-am-honored-to-be-chosen-to-serve-on-the-education-and-labor/) [Michelle Steel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-steel/) > [“When a man begins to do that which is assigned to him, it becomes as if he is more endowed and favoured than his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ogwo-david-emenike/when-a-man-begins-to-do-that-which-is-assigned-to-him-it-becomes-as/) [Ogwo David Emenike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ogwo-david-emenike/) > [Just how we fit into the plans of the Great Architect and how much he has assigned us to do we do not know,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-andrews-millikan/just-how-we-fit-into-the-plans-of-the-great-architect-and-how-much-he/) [Robert Andrews Millikan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-andrews-millikan/) > [“The sum of our relationship with God enables us to take the next step, climb the next mountain, and do the next part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-kauffman/the-sum-of-our-relationship-with-god-enables-us-to-take-the-next-step/) [Katy Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-kauffman/) > [Even with an assignment, I take over, I find a freedom and make the idea my own, and that's where you get the sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-d-ambrosio/even-with-an-assignment-i-take-over-i-find-a-freedom-and-make-the/) [Charles D'Ambrosio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-d-ambrosio/) > [“Your assignment is to love everyone, accepting all that happens to you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-kempis/your-assignment-is-to-love-everyone-accepting-all-that-happens-to-you/) [Thomas à Kempis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-kempis/) > [They told me I didn't understand the assignment, I told them they didn't understand life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/they-told-me-i-didn-t-understand-the-assignment-i-told-them-they-didn/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [“This is probably just his new assignment, getting close to you so he can use you for information about the Council." "Actually, I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-hawkins/this-is-probably-just-his-new-assignment-getting-close-to-you-so-he/) [Rachel Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-hawkins/) > [One effectively submitted assignment doesn't required the imaginative reference, does it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tivea/one-effectively-submitted-assignment-doesn-t-required-the-imaginative/) [Tivea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tivea/) > [“How good is it to remember one's insignificance: that of a man among billions of men, of an animal amid billions of animals; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/how-good-is-it-to-remember-one-s-insignificance-that-of-a-man-among/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“Your assignment is a pre-cursor to someone else’s assignment. In the same breath, someone else’s assignment is a pre-cursor to yours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-s-mashego/your-assignment-is-a-pre-cursor-to-someone-else-s-assignment-in-the/) [D.S. Mashego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-s-mashego/) > [“Your calling is your life assignment”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/your-calling-is-your-life-assignment/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [“Your assignment from God is not to change your spouse, but to love, follow, assist, and minister to them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-george/your-assignment-from-god-is-not-to-change-your-spouse-but-to-love/) [Elizabeth George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-george/) > [I work on words, mostly, toward them being poetry or short stories, and then some of those become songs. They all find their place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-harvey/i-work-on-words-mostly-toward-them-being-poetry-or-short-stories-and/) [P. J. Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-harvey/) [Browse all 155 Assignment quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assignment/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Sometimes I'm writing for magazines on assignment, but the university has to be patient with me. 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