--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To be honest, when I was writing these…" description: "\"To be honest, when I was writing these stories a million years ago, I never thought about movies at all one way or another. It would have seemed almost..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/stan-lee-1586_being-honest_to-be-honest-when-i-was-writing-these-st_869139.jpg" --- # To be honest, when I was writing these stories a million… ![“To be honest, when I was writing these stories a million years ago, I never thought about movies at all one way or another. It would have seemed almost miraculous for these things to be movies someday. To me, they were just comic books that I hoped would sell so I could keep my job.” quote by Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/stan-lee-1586_being-honest_to-be-honest-when-i-was-writing-these-st_869139.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/stan-lee-1586_being-honest_to-be-honest-when-i-was-writing-these-st_869139.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/stan-lee-1586_being-honest_to-be-honest-when-i-was-writing-these-st_869139.jpg) > “To be honest, when I was writing these stories a million years ago, I never thought about movies at all one way or another. It would have seemed almost miraculous for these things to be movies someday. To me, they were just comic books that I hoped would sell so I could keep my job.” [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Lee reflects that his early comic writing was driven by practical needs, not cinematic ambition, viewing comics as a job rather than future movies **In simple terms:** He wrote comics for income, not expecting them to become films Key Takeaway Recognize that humble beginnings can lead to unexpected outcomes Themes creativity humility career Mood reflective pragmatic Type inspirational observational When to use this quote - writing for livelihood - career planning - media adaptation - creative ambition - industry expectations Key Concepts comic industry media evolution authorial intent Questions to Reflect On - What practical motivations shape your creative work? - How might today’s media evolve beyond its original intent? A Different Perspective He underestimated comics' potential for cinematic transformation ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ago Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ago-thought-934331/) [Being honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-honest/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Comic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic/) [Comic book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic-book/) [Comic books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic-books/) [Honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honest/) [Insightful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insightful/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Millions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/millions/) [Miraculous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miraculous/) [Movie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movie/) [Movies Someday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movies-someday-934329/) [One way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-way/) [Sells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sells/) [Someday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/someday/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Things Movies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-movies-351549/) [Thought Movies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-movies-934330/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/) ## Related quotes > [For me, one of the really cool things about this is that throughout these movies, there have been - and I enjoyed it this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-gregg/for-me-one-of-the-really-cool-things-about-this-is-that-throughout/) [Clark Gregg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-gregg/) > [I was going to make movies. I was the one in the family who was always rolling the video camera, making movies of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-jonas/i-was-going-to-make-movies-i-was-the-one-in-the-family-who-was-always/) [Joe Jonas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-jonas/) > [I'd love to build a company that will continue to make movies well beyond me someday. And I'd like to help start something great,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-d-love-to-build-a-company-that-will-continue-to-make-movies-well/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [In New York I'd go to the movies three or four times a week. Here I've upped it to six or seven, mainly because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/in-new-york-i-d-go-to-the-movies-three-or-four-times-a-week-here-i-ve/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [I thought movies were handed down by God. I knew that theater was made by people because I saw the people in front of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-gerwig/i-thought-movies-were-handed-down-by-god-i-knew-that-theater-was-made/) [Greta Gerwig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-gerwig/) > [When I was a kid, I thought movies just came from air. I thought they just appeared.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/when-i-was-a-kid-i-thought-movies-just-came-from-air-i-thought-they/) [Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/) > [I would be more frightened as a writer if people thought my movies were like science fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-labute/i-would-be-more-frightened-as-a-writer-if-people-thought-my-movies/) [Neil LaBute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-labute/) > [Four years ago, who ever thought this would have happened?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-brees/four-years-ago-who-ever-thought-this-would-have-happened/) [Drew Brees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-brees/) > [“If you had left to go train an hour ago when you first thought of it, you would be done by now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-bramble/if-you-had-left-to-go-train-an-hour-ago-when-you-first-thought-of-it/) [Andre Bramble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-bramble/) > [Years ago, I thought old age would be dreadful, because I should not be able to do things I would want to do. Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-astor/years-ago-i-thought-old-age-would-be-dreadful-because-i-should-not-be/) [Nancy Astor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-astor/) > [As I say, I have never in all these years thought of the matter in quite this way; but then it is perhaps in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/as-i-say-i-have-never-in-all-these-years-thought-of-the-matter-in/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [It is now the fall of my second year in Paris. I was sent here for a reason I have not yet been able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/it-is-now-the-fall-of-my-second-year-in-paris-i-was-sent-here-for-a/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“She had thought she had come to terms with the passing of that dream, but five years wasn’t as long ago as she sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsay-buroker/she-had-thought-she-had-come-to-terms-with-the-passing-of-that-dream/) [Lindsay Buroker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsay-buroker/) > [Most of my last 30 years have been like that. Results and manifestations of things I'd dreamed of as a young kid and wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hopkins/most-of-my-last-30-years-have-been-like-that-results-and/) [Anthony Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hopkins/) > [A decade ago, I never thought I would be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/incubus/a-decade-ago-i-never-thought-i-would-be/) [Incubus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/incubus/) ## More by Stan Lee > [I think the way you become a good storyteller is to read a lot of stories and evaluate them in your own mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-think-the-way-you-become-a-good-storyteller-is-to-read-a-lot-of/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [I enjoy the fact that we have these mobile comics now, which are sort of a cross between a comic book and an animated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-enjoy-the-fact-that-we-have-these-mobile-comics-now-which-are-sort/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [To tell you the truth, I never thought of myself as much of a success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/to-tell-you-the-truth-i-never-thought-of-myself-as-much-of-a-success/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [I am so impressed with people who can really make a big movie, a good movie. The amount of work that goes into it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-am-so-impressed-with-people-who-can-really-make-a-big-movie-a-good/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [MARVEL IS A CORNUCOPIA OF FANTASY, A WILD IDEA , A SWASHBUCKLING ATTITUDE , AN ESCAPE FROM THE HUMDRUM AND PROSAIC. IT'S A SERENDIPITOUS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/marvel-is-a-cornucopia-of-fantasy-a-wild-idea-a-swashbuckling/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [Your humans slaughter each other because of the color of your skin, or your faith or your plitics -- or for no reason at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/your-humans-slaughter-each-other-because-of-the-color-of-your-skin-or/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [That's what everybody tells me. "I would've had a great comic-book collection, but my mother made me throw them away." But when I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/that-s-what-everybody-tells-me-i-would-ve-had-a-great-comic-book/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [I have always tried to have a message, not to be a preacher, but a message that shows it's better to be a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-have-always-tried-to-have-a-message-not-to-be-a-preacher-but-a/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [ I was in the beginning when \[comic book superheroes\] started, but not anymore. Now I expect it. I've gotten very used to it. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-was-in-the-beginning-when-comic-book-superheroes-started-but-not/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [I always felt the 'X-Men,' in a subtle way, often touched upon the subject of racism and inequality, and I believe that subject has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-always-felt-the-x-men-in-a-subtle-way-often-touched-upon-the/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [Every kid loves fairy tales, stories of witches and giants and magicians. Then, when you get a little older you can't read fairy tales…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/every-kid-loves-fairy-tales-stories-of-witches-and-giants-and/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [Wherever we find news, excitement, mystery and adventure, there, too, we find the newspaper reporter. Always on the alert for something new, ready to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/wherever-we-find-news-excitement-mystery-and-adventure-there-too-we/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [I hated teenagers in comics because they were always sidekicks. And I always felt if I were a superhero, there's no way I'd pal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-hated-teenagers-in-comics-because-they-were-always-sidekicks-and-i/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [The experience of reading a printed comic book will never change, but now, thanks to the digital age, there are many different ways to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/the-experience-of-reading-a-printed-comic-book-will-never-change-but/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [I'm just somebody who tries to write things that entertain people. And if I can do it in a way that makes them prefer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/i-m-just-somebody-who-tries-to-write-things-that-entertain-people-and/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) [Explore all 224 Stan Lee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) ## More Being honest quotes > [We have a fear of facing ourselves. That is the obstacle. Experiencing the innermost core of our existence is very embarrassing to a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-have-a-fear-of-facing-ourselves-that-is-the-obstacle-experiencing/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [I have often spoken of integrity as the most important of these values, realizing that integrity – and personal integrity, at that – is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/verghese-kurien/i-have-often-spoken-of-integrity-as-the-most-important-of-these/) [Verghese Kurien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/verghese-kurien/) > [I had never done anything with blue screen before, or prosthetics, or anything like that. Lord of the Rings was like stepping into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/i-had-never-done-anything-with-blue-screen-before-or-prosthetics-or/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [Let's be honest, if the Democrats didn't support ignoring our nation's immigration laws, there is no way they could win the presidency or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nugent/let-s-be-honest-if-the-democrats-didn-t-support-ignoring-our-nation-s/) [Ted Nugent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nugent/) > [I think what saved me is me being honest. I think I somewhow had the courage to do something and say something that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-degeneres/i-think-what-saved-me-is-me-being-honest-i-think-i-somewhow-had-the/) [Ellen DeGeneres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-degeneres/) > [An actor has to evaluate his own abilities and be honest with himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-newman/an-actor-has-to-evaluate-his-own-abilities-and-be-honest-with-himself/) [Paul Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-newman/) > [The cultural integration of psychedelics won't happen overnight, and the question of young people is perhaps the most difficult involved. The first step is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-doblin/the-cultural-integration-of-psychedelics-won-t-happen-overnight-and/) [Rick Doblin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-doblin/) > [I'm a person of change and I must be honest to my artistry and my creativity. That's part of the word 'jazz'... it's an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-ferguson/i-m-a-person-of-change-and-i-must-be-honest-to-my-artistry-and-my/) [Maynard Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-ferguson/) > [I'm going to be honest, I would love for Flava Flav to be president. It would bring a lot of excitement to the country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dj-khaled/i-m-going-to-be-honest-i-would-love-for-flava-flav-to-be-president-it/) [DJ Khaled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dj-khaled/) > [The buildings that were in question, they said in the same report, which was - actually, it wasn't even a bad story, to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/the-buildings-that-were-in-question-they-said-in-the-same-report/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I guess it has to be healthy, you have to be honest with yourself and I think that's when ego is okay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-amoruso/i-guess-it-has-to-be-healthy-you-have-to-be-honest-with-yourself-and/) [Sophia Amoruso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-amoruso/) > [ The opening for solid waste is very small \[in the space ship\]. It's not toilet-bowl size. And aim is critical. To be honest with… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-mullane/the-opening-for-solid-waste-is-very-small-in-the-space-ship-it-s-not/) [Mike Mullane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-mullane/) > [We had 90 percent rates, but nobody paid them. And so you had all these exemptions, exclusions, shelters, all this kind of stuff. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-santorum/we-had-90-percent-rates-but-nobody-paid-them-and-so-you-had-all-these/) [Rick Santorum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-santorum/) > [I think, as a filmmaker, it's important to be honest with yourself at all times in terms of what's working and what's not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-wingard/i-think-as-a-filmmaker-it-s-important-to-be-honest-with-yourself-at/) [Adam Wingard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-wingard/) > [We live in a world in which the only utopian visions arrive in commercial breaks: magical visions of an impossibly hospitable world, peopled by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/we-live-in-a-world-in-which-the-only-utopian-visions-arrive-in/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) [Browse all 1,333 Being honest quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-honest/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To be honest, when I was writing these stories a million years ago, I never thought about movies at all one way or another. 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