--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If anyone ever wonders why there's…" description: "\"If anyone ever wonders why there's nothing coming from me, it's not my fault. I'm doing the work. No, I haven't deteriorated or gone insane. Suddenly, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/tanith-lee-3374_book_if-anyone-ever-wonders-why-there-s-nothi_3029549.jpg" --- # If anyone ever wonders why there's nothing coming from me… ![“If anyone ever wonders why there's nothing coming from me, it's not my fault. I'm doing the work. No, I haven't deteriorated or gone insane. Suddenly, I just can't get anything into print. And apparently I'm not alone in this. There are people of very high standing, authors who are having…” quote by Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/tanith-lee-3374_book_if-anyone-ever-wonders-why-there-s-nothi_3029549.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/tanith-lee-3374_book_if-anyone-ever-wonders-why-there-s-nothi_3029549.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb3/tanith-lee-3374_book_if-anyone-ever-wonders-why-there-s-nothi_3029549.jpg) > “If anyone ever wonders why there's nothing coming from me, it's not my fault. I'm doing the work. No, I haven't deteriorated or gone insane. Suddenly, I just can't get anything into print. And apparently I'm not alone in this. There are people of very high standing, authors who are having problems. So I have been told. In my own case, the more disturbing element is the editor-in-chief who said to me, "I think this book is terrific. It ought to be in print. I can't publish it -- I've been told I mustn't." The indication is that I'm not writing what people want to read, but I never did.” [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative work may be suppressed by gatekeepers, yet persistence is key. **In simple terms:** Publishers can block work. Key Takeaway Persist despite rejection. Themes creativity gatekeeping perseverance Mood determined reflective Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - writing process - industry politics - mental health - networking Key Concepts publishing industry authorial voice Questions to Reflect On - How do you stay true to your voice? - What strategies help you navigate publishing obstacles? A Different Perspective Market demands can limit artistic freedom. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Chiefs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chiefs/) [Doing The Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing-the-work/) [Elements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elements/) [Not alone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/not-alone/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“He asked about the newspaper strike, and true to form, he couldn't understand why both parties didn't simply communicate with each other and solve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-asked-about-the-newspaper-strike-and-true-to-form-he-couldn-t/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [Hank Williams, Hank Jr. and myself, if you check your history, you'll see that they've always played in rowdy environments. Part of that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-williams-iii/hank-williams-hank-jr-and-myself-if-you-check-your-history-you-ll-see/) [Hank Williams III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-williams-iii/) > [Have you noticed that when peole go to grocery stires theyll tell the check out chick their life problems but when they get told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m/have-you-noticed-that-when-peole-go-to-grocery-stires-theyll-tell-the/) M > [Mental acuity of any kind comes from solving problems yourself, not from being told how to solve them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-lockhart/mental-acuity-of-any-kind-comes-from-solving-problems-yourself-not/) [Paul Lockhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-lockhart/) > [Having no problems is the biggest problem of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taiichi-ohno/having-no-problems-is-the-biggest-problem-of-all/) [Taiichi Ohno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taiichi-ohno/) > [The driving force behind doing everything that I've been doing as a stand-up is having problems with authority and not liking to be told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/the-driving-force-behind-doing-everything-that-i-ve-been-doing-as-a/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [“If having problems feels like a problem to you, it may not be the problems themselves, but the way you think about them that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-goodier/if-having-problems-feels-like-a-problem-to-you-it-may-not-be-the/) [Steve Goodier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-goodier/) > [The problem is not that there are problems. 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The answer is to make more money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-are-having-problems-with-money-the-answer-isn-t-cutting-back/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [When you grow up and you start having all these problems and your little sister gets pregnant, you're dealing with all these money problems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chamillionaire/when-you-grow-up-and-you-start-having-all-these-problems-and-your/) [Chamillionaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chamillionaire/) > [I think there's a great beauty to having problems. That's one of the ways we learn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbie-hancock/i-think-there-s-a-great-beauty-to-having-problems-that-s-one-of-the/) [Herbie Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbie-hancock/) > [I can't see Jeremy Clarkson having very many serious problems in his working life in the long run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-may/i-can-t-see-jeremy-clarkson-having-very-many-serious-problems-in-his/) [James May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-may/) > [“The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem. —THEODORE RUBIN,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-kaufman/the-problem-is-not-that-there-are-problems-the-problem-is-expecting/) [Josh Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-kaufman/) > [“The problem is not that you have problems; the problem is that you see having problems as a problem.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-makalu/the-problem-is-not-that-you-have-problems-the-problem-is-that-you-see/) Maurice Makalu ## More by Tanith Lee > [No one more cynical than an idealist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/no-one-more-cynical-than-an-idealist/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [The humble were the elect of God. Did not the priests teach so, in their gemmed, kingly robes, from their towering pulpits?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/the-humble-were-the-elect-of-god-did-not-the-priests-teach-so-in/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Having told of so much beauty, how is it possible to tell of her? There are no words left on the earth in any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/having-told-of-so-much-beauty-how-is-it-possible-to-tell-of-her-there/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [As a child, my mother told me lots of fairy stories, many her own invention. She, too, tended to reverse the norm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/as-a-child-my-mother-told-me-lots-of-fairy-stories-many-her-own/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Often misunderstood, Dionysus is far more than a wine deity. He is the Breaker of Chains, who rescues not only the flesh but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/often-misunderstood-dionysus-is-far-more-than-a-wine-deity-he-is-the/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [In the usual way I submitted manuscripts to publishers. This was not so much a feeling that I should be published as a wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/in-the-usual-way-i-submitted-manuscripts-to-publishers-this-was-not/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [Whatever the hell I am, I am Me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/whatever-the-hell-i-am-i-am-me/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [If they had said my writing wasn't good enough, fair enough, that's an opinion. But to say it's too complex is to insult the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/if-they-had-said-my-writing-wasn-t-good-enough-fair-enough-that-s-an/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Louisa beheld the grounds and house with the calm pleasure of one who has seen nothing, been nowhere, expects everything, and has little imagination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/louisa-beheld-the-grounds-and-house-with-the-calm-pleasure-of-one-who/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Live and let love. Love and let go. Go live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/live-and-let-love-love-and-let-go-go-live/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [Pirates have always fascinated me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/pirates-have-always-fascinated-me/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“All the Scarabae—all but one—were crowded in the garden. They watched her. Their grim old faces gave away nothing. Like elderly kiddies at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/all-the-scarabae-all-but-one-were-crowded-in-the-garden-they-watched/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“She did this not out of fear of him, but out of pity. Because she had come to see the ultimate terrible truth behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/she-did-this-not-out-of-fear-of-him-but-out-of-pity-because-she-had/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [Writing is writing, and stories are stories. Perhaps the only true genres are fiction and nonfiction. And even there, who can be sure?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/writing-is-writing-and-stories-are-stories-perhaps-the-only-true/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Tanaquil gently toed the peeve. "I'll unfasten the window. Jump out to the lower roof and run." "Stay and bite," said the peeve.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/tanaquil-gently-toed-the-peeve-i-ll-unfasten-the-window-jump-out-to/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) [Explore all 131 Tanith Lee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) ## 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": "If anyone ever wonders why there's nothing coming from me, it's not my fault. I'm doing the work. No, I haven't deteriorated or gone insane. Suddenly, I just can't get anything into print. And apparently I'm not alone in this. There are people of very high standing, authors who are having problems. So I have been told. In my own case, the more disturbing element is the editor-in-chief who said to me, \"I think this book is terrific. It ought to be in print. 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