--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I dunno, when I started writing really I…" description: "\"I dunno, when I started writing really I was like, filling out applications and stuff real early. Last name first, first name last, sex... occasionally..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e20/tom-waits-916_application_i-dunno-when-i-started-writing-really-i_1685216.jpg" --- # I dunno, when I started writing really I was like, filling… ![“I dunno, when I started writing really I was like, filling out applications and stuff real early. Last name first, first name last, sex... occasionally, stuff like that. Then I was writing letters, filling out forms, writing on bathroom walls...” quote by Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e20/tom-waits-916_application_i-dunno-when-i-started-writing-really-i_1685216.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e20/tom-waits-916_application_i-dunno-when-i-started-writing-really-i_1685216.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e20/tom-waits-916_application_i-dunno-when-i-started-writing-really-i_1685216.jpg) > “I dunno, when I started writing really I was like, filling out applications and stuff real early. Last name first, first name last, sex... occasionally, stuff like that. Then I was writing letters, filling out forms, writing on bathroom walls...” [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) ## 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 involved bureaucratic forms, then evolved to personal letters and graffiti. **In simple terms:** Started with forms, moved to personal writing. Key Takeaway Embrace evolution from structure to creativity. Themes creativity writing personal growth Mood nostalgic introspective Type memoir reflective When to use this quote - school - career - artistic projects Key Concepts self-discovery expression Questions to Reflect On - How did structure shape your voice? - When did you feel truly free writing? A Different Perspective Formal constraints may limit spontaneity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Application](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/application/) [Bathroom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bathroom/) [Bathroom wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bathroom-wall/) [Filling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/filling/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Forms Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forms-writing-997487/) [Lasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasts/) [Letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/letters/) [Like Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-writing-250073/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Sex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sex/) [Started Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/started-writing-238165/) [Stuff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stuff/) [Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-letters/) [Writing Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-really-237011/) ## Related quotes > [I don't have much interest in writing if there are not opportunities to crack open the inherited forms. The writing I love to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lidia-yuknavitch/i-don-t-have-much-interest-in-writing-if-there-are-not-opportunities/) [Lidia Yuknavitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lidia-yuknavitch/) > [Like most art forms, writing is part instinct and part craft. The craft part is the part that can be taught, and that can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/like-most-art-forms-writing-is-part-instinct-and-part-craft-the-craft/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [There are many forms of writing that are common, but also very formulaic, such as annual reports or economic studies. In those areas, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-m-parker/there-are-many-forms-of-writing-that-are-common-but-also-very/) [Philip M. Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-m-parker/) > [There are things that you can't do - like writing letters to a part of yourself. To your feet or hair. Or heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/there-are-things-that-you-can-t-do-like-writing-letters-to-a-part-of/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I'm known for being quite gobby, but also, I'm quite old fashioned in the sense that I like writing letters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-perkins/i-m-known-for-being-quite-gobby-but-also-i-m-quite-old-fashioned-in/) [Sue Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-perkins/) > [I just happen to be from the generation that, like a lot of my older friends, started out writing letters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-just-happen-to-be-from-the-generation-that-like-a-lot-of-my-older/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [I started writing when I was around 6. I say 'writing,' but it was really just making up stuff! I started writing and doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-hayes/i-started-writing-when-i-was-around-6-i-say-writing-but-it-was-really/) [Hunter Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-hayes/) > [The first time I go out to Nashville, ever (at this point I had only heard the rumors about what it's like) I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-grimes/the-first-time-i-go-out-to-nashville-ever-at-this-point-i-had-only/) [Curtis Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-grimes/) > [“I was here but now I'm gone I left my name to carry on Those who liked me Liked me well Those who didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-crane/i-was-here-but-now-i-m-gone-i-left-my-name-to-carry-on-those-who/) [E.M. Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-crane/) > [“If it dies, it's biology; if it blows up, it's chemistry; if it doesn't work, it's physics!" As quoted from grafitti on a bathroom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wilkes/if-it-dies-it-s-biology-if-it-blows-up-it-s-chemistry-if-it-doesn-t/) [John Wilkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wilkes/) > [The house became full of love. Aureliano expressed it in poetry that had no beginning and no end. He would write it on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/the-house-became-full-of-love-aureliano-expressed-it-in-poetry-that/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [“Tough times brought out the bad side of people, it seemed, and this internet was like some giant bathroom wall where you could just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-dee/tough-times-brought-out-the-bad-side-of-people-it-seemed-and-this/) [Jonathan Dee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-dee/) > [“We sit against the tiles of the bathroom wall with our legs sprawled out in front of us, passing the brain back and forth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/we-sit-against-the-tiles-of-the-bathroom-wall-with-our-legs-sprawled/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [But I've read that soda kills you and Jesus saves On a bathroom wall where I saw your name Youre the best I ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-i-ve-read-that-soda-kills-you-and-jesus-saves-on-a-bathroom-wall/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I never really endeavored to hide anything, but there were times I chose not to relegate my history to the back page of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-never-really-endeavored-to-hide-anything-but-there-were-times-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Tom Waits > [Most of us have the residue of thousands of songs in our ears, that if you end up songwriting, I think you're mostly smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/most-of-us-have-the-residue-of-thousands-of-songs-in-our-ears-that-if/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Bill Hicks - blowtorch, excavator, truthsayer, and brain specialist. He will correct your vision. Others will drive on the road he built.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/bill-hicks-blowtorch-excavator-truthsayer-and-brain-specialist-he/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Don't plant your days they turn into weeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/don-t-plant-your-days-they-turn-into-weeds/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [“T’ain’t no sin to take off your skin, and dance around in your bones.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/t-ain-t-no-sin-to-take-off-your-skin-and-dance-around-in-your-bones/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [“an all time favorite: "The large print giveth, the small print taketh away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/an-all-time-favorite-the-large-print-giveth-the-small-print-taketh/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'll tell you all my secrets but I lie about my past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-ll-tell-you-all-my-secrets-but-i-lie-about-my-past/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [For a songwriter, you don't really go to songwriting school; you learn by listening to tunes. And you try to understand them and take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/for-a-songwriter-you-don-t-really-go-to-songwriting-school-you-learn/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'm trying to learn how to write faster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-trying-to-learn-how-to-write-faster/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [The world is a hellish place, and bad writing is destroying the quality of our suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/the-world-is-a-hellish-place-and-bad-writing-is-destroying-the/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'm always looking for sounds that are pleasing at the time. The sound of a helicopter is really annoying until you're drowning, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-always-looking-for-sounds-that-are-pleasing-at-the-time-the-sound/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I was born in the back seat of a Yellow Cab in a hospital loading zone and with the meter still running. I emerged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-was-born-in-the-back-seat-of-a-yellow-cab-in-a-hospital-loading/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [There's not much difference between what I appear to be on stage and what I am. I think people like that, that I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/there-s-not-much-difference-between-what-i-appear-to-be-on-stage-and/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Most of the things you absorb you will ultimately secrete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/most-of-the-things-you-absorb-you-will-ultimately-secrete/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [The devil knows the Bible like the back of his hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/the-devil-knows-the-bible-like-the-back-of-his-hand/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I bark my voice out through a closed throat, pretty much. It's more, perhaps, like a dog in some ways. It does have its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-bark-my-voice-out-through-a-closed-throat-pretty-much-it-s-more/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) [Explore all 328 Tom Waits quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) ## More Application quotes > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/) [Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/) > [Technology means the systematic application of scientific or other organized knowledge to practical tasks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/technology-means-the-systematic-application-of-scientific-or-other/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [I've been in real estate for a long time and I always try to stay on the edge. I'm really excited about the partnership…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mc-hammer/i-ve-been-in-real-estate-for-a-long-time-and-i-always-try-to-stay-on/) [MC Hammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mc-hammer/) > [If we blow ourselves up we will do it by misapplication of science; if we manage to keep from blowing ourselves up, it will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/if-we-blow-ourselves-up-we-will-do-it-by-misapplication-of-science-if/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“...why don't you take a picture of yourself next to a fucking job application? How about that?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-wolf/why-don-t-you-take-a-picture-of-yourself-next-to-a-fucking-job/) [Josh Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-wolf/) > [Everything for us is a system. We don't think about it discretely as just as a piece of hardware, or discretely as an application...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hosain-rahman/everything-for-us-is-a-system-we-don-t-think-about-it-discretely-as/) [Hosain Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hosain-rahman/) > [To each eye, perhaps, the outlines of a great civilization present a different picture. In the wide ocean upon which we venture, the possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-burckhardt/to-each-eye-perhaps-the-outlines-of-a-great-civilization-present-a/) [Jacob Burckhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-burckhardt/) > [Without application of the mind; there is no drive for taking affirmative action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-mercado/without-application-of-the-mind-there-is-no-drive-for-taking/) [Joseph Mercado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-mercado/) > [“Having no applicable skills, in any possible area whatsoever, effectively makes me the master of redundancy. 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