--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first writing I did was short short…" description: "\"The first writing I did was short short stories for a newspaper syndicate for which I was paid five dollars a piece on publication.\" — Theodore Sturgeon" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c3/theodore-sturgeon-4560_dollars_the-first-writing-i-did-was-short-short_514903.jpg" --- # The first writing I did was short short stories for a… ![“The first writing I did was short short stories for a newspaper syndicate for which I was paid five dollars a piece on publication.” quote by Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c3/theodore-sturgeon-4560_dollars_the-first-writing-i-did-was-short-short_514903.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c3/theodore-sturgeon-4560_dollars_the-first-writing-i-did-was-short-short_514903.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c3/theodore-sturgeon-4560_dollars_the-first-writing-i-did-was-short-short_514903.jpg) > “The first writing I did was short short stories for a newspaper syndicate for which I was paid five dollars a piece on publication.” [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early writing career involved producing short stories for a newspaper syndicate at a modest pay. **In simple terms:** Started writing short stories for a syndicate. Key Takeaway Early experience was low‑pay but formative. Themes writing career beginnings literature Mood reflective inspirational Type historical biographical When to use this quote - freelance writing - building a portfolio - learning the market Key Concepts syndication early career financial constraints Questions to Reflect On - What motivated you to keep writing? - How did low pay shape your later work? A Different Perspective Limited financial reward may undervalue skill development. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dollars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dollars/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Five](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/five/) [Newspaper Syndicate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/newspaper-syndicate-4355342/) [Newspapers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/newspapers/) [Paid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paid/) [Piece Publication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piece-publication-4355343/) [Pieces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pieces/) [Publication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/publication/) [Short stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-stories/) [Short story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-story/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Syndicate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/syndicate/) [Syndicate Paid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/syndicate-paid-4355341/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-did-562252/) ## Related quotes > [I did not consider that I would lead a literary life. 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I left at 15.. I started to write becase I was taken off a ship from Germany when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr-2/why-did-you-start-to-write-i-left-at-15-i-started-to-write-becase-i/) [Hubert Selby Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr-2/) ## More by Theodore Sturgeon > [As far as Im concerned, I didnt dream - ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/as-far-as-im-concerned-i-didnt-dream-ever/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [For years, I thought I simply didn't dream. I felt left out. Everybody else had a thing I didn't have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/for-years-i-thought-i-simply-didn-t-dream-i-felt-left-out-everybody/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [I learned how to live on five and sometimes ten dollars a week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/i-learned-how-to-live-on-five-and-sometimes-ten-dollars-a-week/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [“She was perhaps seventeen when it happened. She was in Central Park, in New York. It was too warm for such an early spring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happened-she-was-in-central-park-in/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [“Anger was foreign to him; he had only felt it once before. 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So I wrote it as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/once-i-had-all-the-facts-in-i-found-i-didn-t-have-the-immoral-courage/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [It should consist of short, sharply focused sentences, each of which is a whole scene in itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/it-should-consist-of-short-sharply-focused-sentences-each-of-which-is/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Logic and truth are two very different things, but they often look the same to the mind that's performing the logic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/logic-and-truth-are-two-very-different-things-but-they-often-look-the/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Science fiction, outside of poetry, is the only literary field which has no limits, no parameters whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/science-fiction-outside-of-poetry-is-the-only-literary-field-which/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Create a world in which these things do or do not exist, or in which they are extended in some way. Test reality against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/create-a-world-in-which-these-things-do-or-do-not-exist-or-in-which/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [“Living things aren't finished, you see. Everything they have ever been in contact with, each thought they have had, each person they have known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/living-things-aren-t-finished-you-see-everything-they-have-ever-been/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Fiction is very important to me. It's what I do, it's what I do with my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/fiction-is-very-important-to-me-it-s-what-i-do-it-s-what-i-do-with-my/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [I teach writing courses and first of all, I teach my students what prosody is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/i-teach-writing-courses-and-first-of-all-i-teach-my-students-what/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) [Explore all 102 Theodore Sturgeon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) ## More Dollars quotes > [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/) > [This welfare for wealthy companies wastes taxpayer dollars, harms the environment, and makes a mockery of the recent reductions in federal social spending programs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/this-welfare-for-wealthy-companies-wastes-taxpayer-dollars-harms-the/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [I love being in Malibu. It's so cool there, and the water is just, it's nice and, and I love the beach. And I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-evancho/i-love-being-in-malibu-it-s-so-cool-there-and-the-water-is-just-it-s/) [Jackie Evancho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-evancho/) > [The greatest charity you can contribute to is yourself. Instead of spending a dollar to help feed hungry children, why not spend that dollar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-greatest-charity-you-can-contribute-to-is-yourself-instead-of/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [If I had a million dollars, I just wouldn't just completely set back. 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We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/as-far-as-japan-is-concerned-i-want-to-help-all-of-our-allies-but-we/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Some day I'll write a book and call it 'How I Got the Nickname Pumpsie' and sell it for one dollar, and if everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pumpsie-green/some-day-i-ll-write-a-book-and-call-it-how-i-got-the-nickname-pumpsie/) [Pumpsie Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pumpsie-green/) > [I'm part of a team that raises millions of dollars and raises awareness of HIV and AIDS all over the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-evangelista/i-m-part-of-a-team-that-raises-millions-of-dollars-and-raises/) [Linda Evangelista](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-evangelista/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. 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