--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It just sort of happened. I wrote like…" description: "\"It just sort of happened. I wrote like what I'd always read and what was in the movies... I'm sure popular music is supposed to be like this.\" — Warren..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/709/warren-zevon-7349_happened_it-just-sort-of-happened-i-wrote-like-wh_968511.png" --- # It just sort of happened. I wrote like what I'd always… ![“It just sort of happened. I wrote like what I'd always read and what was in the movies... I'm sure popular music is supposed to be like this.” quote by Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/709/warren-zevon-7349_happened_it-just-sort-of-happened-i-wrote-like-wh_968511.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/709/warren-zevon-7349_happened_it-just-sort-of-happened-i-wrote-like-wh_968511.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/709/warren-zevon-7349_happened_it-just-sort-of-happened-i-wrote-like-wh_968511.png) > “It just sort of happened. I wrote like what I'd always read and what was in the movies... I'm sure popular music is supposed to be like this.” [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He describes his songwriting as a natural, unplanned process influenced by existing media and genre expectations. **In simple terms:** Songwriting felt spontaneous, shaped by what he read and saw in movies. Key Takeaway Embrace influences but seek personal voice. Themes creativity influence authenticity Mood reflective introspective Type artistic process When to use this quote - writing songs - film scoring - creative brainstorming Key Concepts artistic process cultural osmosis Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance inspiration with originality? - What role does media play in shaping your style? A Different Perspective May lack deliberate craftsmanship, leading to generic output. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Popular music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/popular-music/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) ## Related quotes > [“Of course it happened. 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A lot of music is fun for today, but it isn't supposed to be timeless;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robbie-robertson/some-music-is-supposed-to-be-disposable-that-s-ok-a-lot-of-music-is/) [Robbie Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robbie-robertson/) > [Music is also supposed to be fun. On this record, (titled 'III'), I really had the desire again to jump back into some good-time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-nichols/music-is-also-supposed-to-be-fun-on-this-record-titled-iii-i-really/) [Joe Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-nichols/) > [Music is supposed to be entertaining and if it touches you emotionally, so much the better. Sometimes you do it to save your own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-clark/music-is-supposed-to-be-entertaining-and-if-it-touches-you/) [Guy Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-clark/) > [It was my dad’s idea that music is supposed to be more than simply about entertainment and making a living, but about being of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziggy-marley/it-was-my-dad-s-idea-that-music-is-supposed-to-be-more-than-simply/) [Ziggy Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziggy-marley/) > [When I was 21, I wanted to write like Kafka. But, unfortunately for me, I wrote like a script editor for 'The Simpsons' who'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/when-i-was-21-i-wanted-to-write-like-kafka-but-unfortunately-for-me-i/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [I always wrote like rock 'n' roll. And I always listen to rock 'n' roll as poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-smith/i-always-wrote-like-rock-n-roll-and-i-always-listen-to-rock-n-roll-as/) [Patti Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-smith/) > [Used to be in the old days, only the pulp writers wrote like machines. Now everybody is expected to be literary John Henrys. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/used-to-be-in-the-old-days-only-the-pulp-writers-wrote-like-machines/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [It would be a thousand pities if women wrote like men, or lived like men, or looked like men, for if two sexes are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/it-would-be-a-thousand-pities-if-women-wrote-like-men-or-lived-like/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [I wrote from the time I was four. It was my way of screaming and yelling, the primal scream. I wrote like a junkie,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-k-fisher/i-wrote-from-the-time-i-was-four-it-was-my-way-of-screaming-and/) [M. F. K. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-k-fisher/) > [“But they wrote like little old men and little old ladies, all purseymouthed and ooo, don't slip on that icy patch, Mildred.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/but-they-wrote-like-little-old-men-and-little-old-ladies-all/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [As a teenager, I read a lot of H.P. Lovecraft, so I wrote like H.P. Lovecraft. And in my 20s, I read a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/as-a-teenager-i-read-a-lot-of-h-p-lovecraft-so-i-wrote-like-h-p/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## More by Warren Zevon > [At least I've had one foot in a very normal kind of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/at-least-i-ve-had-one-foot-in-a-very-normal-kind-of-life/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [I wish I sang better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/i-wish-i-sang-better/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [I don't like piano solos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/i-don-t-like-piano-solos/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [“Cachet — isn’t that like panache, but sitting down?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/cachet-isn-t-that-like-panache-but-sitting-down/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [I saw a Werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/i-saw-a-werewolf-with-a-chinese-menu-in-his-hand/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [I'm not a big jazz fan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/i-m-not-a-big-jazz-fan/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [I'd like to go back to Paris someday and visit the Lourve museum, get a good running start, and hurl myself at the wall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/i-d-like-to-go-back-to-paris-someday-and-visit-the-lourve-museum-get/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [But I can't say that I didn't like John Hammond's performances often better than the originals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/but-i-can-t-say-that-i-didn-t-like-john-hammond-s-performances-often/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [I don't learn so good, no matter how good the teacher is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/i-don-t-learn-so-good-no-matter-how-good-the-teacher-is/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [Well, first of all, let me say that I might have made a tactical error in not going to a physician for 20 years.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/well-first-of-all-let-me-say-that-i-might-have-made-a-tactical-error/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [I don't get depressed and I don't get bored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/i-don-t-get-depressed-and-i-don-t-get-bored/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [ “We love to buy books because we believe we're buying the time to read them. \[ Inside Out (VH1)\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/we-love-to-buy-books-because-we-believe-we-re-buying-the-time-to-read/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [My first album is like a terrible John Hammond album, with drums.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/my-first-album-is-like-a-terrible-john-hammond-album-with-drums/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [Speaking as one who has abused privilege a long time, I tell you, it's great to be alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/speaking-as-one-who-has-abused-privilege-a-long-time-i-tell-you-it-s/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) > [Little old lady got mutilated late last night, werewolves of London, again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-zevon/little-old-lady-got-mutilated-late-last-night-werewolves-of-london/) [Warren Zevon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) [Explore all 92 Warren Zevon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-zevon/) ## More Happened quotes > [“It was about damn time something happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/it-was-about-damn-time-something-happened/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... 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I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [The truth is I've just never had any kind of plan at all for my career, which is probably not a very flattering thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ty-burrell/the-truth-is-i-ve-just-never-had-any-kind-of-plan-at-all-for-my/) [Ty Burrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ty-burrell/) > [The Parthenon is really only a farmyard over which someone put a roof; colonades and sculptures were added because there were people in Athens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-parthenon-is-really-only-a-farmyard-over-which-someone-put-a-roof/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [How come I end up where I started How come I end up where I belong... 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