--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I originally wanted to be F. Scott…" description: "\"I originally wanted to be F. Scott Fitzgerald, but failed.\" — Whit Stillman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/554/whit-stillman-16157_failed_i-originally-wanted-to-be-f-scott-fitzge_2995847.jpg" --- # I originally wanted to be F. Scott Fitzgerald, but failed. ![“I originally wanted to be F. Scott Fitzgerald, but failed.” quote by Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/554/whit-stillman-16157_failed_i-originally-wanted-to-be-f-scott-fitzge_2995847.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/554/whit-stillman-16157_failed_i-originally-wanted-to-be-f-scott-fitzge_2995847.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/554/whit-stillman-16157_failed_i-originally-wanted-to-be-f-scott-fitzge_2995847.jpg) > “I originally wanted to be F. Scott Fitzgerald, but failed.” [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Aspiring to emulate a famous writer but feeling failure reflects personal artistic disappointment. **In simple terms:** Wanting to be a famous writer but feeling failed. Key Takeaway Accept personal style; compare to idols. Themes ambition identity literature failure self‑esteem Mood reflective hopeful Type creative motivational When to use this quote - writing workshops - personal journals - mentor feedback Key Concepts creative identity role models self‑acceptance Questions to Reflect On - What defines success for you as a writer? - How can you honor influences without imitation? A Different Perspective Comparisons can stifle originality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failed/) [Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitzgerald/) [Fitzgerald Failed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitzgerald-failed-4731324/) [Originally Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/originally-wanted-4137351/) [Scott fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scott-fitzgerald/) [Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted/) ## Related quotes > [I'd like to do Nicole Diver in F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'Tender Is the Night,' if that ever gets made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosamund-pike/i-d-like-to-do-nicole-diver-in-f-scott-fitzgerald-s-tender-is-the/) [Rosamund Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosamund-pike/) > ['The Great Gatsby,' by F. Scott Fitzgerald, remains the most perfect novel that has ever come out of the United States. Everything in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-delaney/the-great-gatsby-by-f-scott-fitzgerald-remains-the-most-perfect-novel/) [Frank Delaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-delaney/) > [F. Scott Fitzgerald thought that prolonging his adolescence would protect his talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/f-scott-fitzgerald-thought-that-prolonging-his-adolescence-would/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [“I fell in love with her courage, her sincerity and her flaming self respect and it’s these things I’d believe in even if the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robyn-schneider/i-fell-in-love-with-her-courage-her-sincerity-and-her-flaming-self-3/) [Robyn Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robyn-schneider/) > [I read a lot of F. Scott Fitzgerald. I love 'Tender is the Night,' and its atmosphere of doomed romance. He was one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/i-read-a-lot-of-f-scott-fitzgerald-i-love-tender-is-the-night-and-its/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“Urging others to read F. Scott Fitzgerald, if not a reactionary act, was not something one could do in 1968.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/urging-others-to-read-f-scott-fitzgerald-if-not-a-reactionary-act-was/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Scott Fitzgerald is a sound you like to hear at certain times of the day, say at four in the afternoon and again late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfrid-sheed/scott-fitzgerald-is-a-sound-you-like-to-hear-at-certain-times-of-the/) [Wilfrid Sheed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfrid-sheed/) > [Scott Fitzgerald was mortally afraid of lightning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/scott-fitzgerald-was-mortally-afraid-of-lightning/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [With great lawyers you have discussed lepers and crooks, you've been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/with-great-lawyers-you-have-discussed-lepers-and-crooks-you-ve-been/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [I worship F. Scott Fitzgerald and I love his writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/i-worship-f-scott-fitzgerald-and-i-love-his-writing/) [Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/) > [I love her and that's the beginning of everything. - F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald-2/i-love-her-and-that-s-the-beginning-of-everything-f-scott-fitzgerald/) [F Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald-2/) > [“Well, I can’t describe her exactly—except to say that she was beautiful. She was—tremendously alive. —F. Scott Fitzgerald”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrystal-evans-hurst/well-i-can-t-describe-her-exactly-except-to-say-that-she-was-2/) [Chrystal Evans Hurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chrystal-evans-hurst/) > [F. Scott Fitzgerald is the first of the last generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/f-scott-fitzgerald-is-the-first-of-the-last-generation/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [“let the story go, and still clutched F. Scott Fitzgerald’s This Side of Paradise in my arms as if to let it go would”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-white/let-the-story-go-and-still-clutched-f-scott-fitzgerald-s-this-side-of/) [Karen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-white/) > [“hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you are not, I hope you have the strength to start all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/hope-you-live-a-life-you-re-proud-of-if-you-find-that-you-are-not-i/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) ## More by Whit Stillman > [I think it's really good and helpful to have the people you most admire in some other discipline than what you work in. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-think-it-s-really-good-and-helpful-to-have-the-people-you-most/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [For me, the present is a golden era. That's the greatest golden era. Right now. I just like pining for lost times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/for-me-the-present-is-a-golden-era-that-s-the-greatest-golden-era/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [I decided the moment I graduated from college that I would never wear blue jeans again. And I have never worn blue jeans again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-decided-the-moment-i-graduated-from-college-that-i-would-never-wear/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [I think Austin is read more now than Charles Dickens, and Dickens was much more popular in his day. She endures because of her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-think-austin-is-read-more-now-than-charles-dickens-and-dickens-was/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [I find it really disturbing to be watching a lot of the medium that I'm trying to work in. I prefer to be doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-find-it-really-disturbing-to-be-watching-a-lot-of-the-medium-that-i/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [ I think a lot of \["Cosmopolitans"\] is marked by \[Jerome David\] Salinger. Salinger wouldn't allow his works to be adapted for film after his… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-think-a-lot-of-cosmopolitans-is-marked-by-jerome-david-salinger/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [I explained to Amazon that I don't like outlining or projecting what something's going to be. I like to allow a story to arise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-explained-to-amazon-that-i-don-t-like-outlining-or-projecting-what/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [I would say on the other side of the equation that there were really some massive sales and massive enthusiasm for some films that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-would-say-on-the-other-side-of-the-equation-that-there-were-really/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [It becomes a lot better for the actors when we're 'shooting, shooting, shooting,' instead of waiting around in a trailer for something to happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/it-becomes-a-lot-better-for-the-actors-when-we-re-shooting-shooting/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [Find someone hypersocial and crazy and try not to follow them to their doom, but to make friends with their nicer friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/find-someone-hypersocial-and-crazy-and-try-not-to-follow-them-to/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [It's terrible to write what are essentially comedies for people with no sense of humor. Everyone thinks they have a sense of humor, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/it-s-terrible-to-write-what-are-essentially-comedies-for-people-with/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [I've had no money, absolutely, from my family. They paid for a good education - or schools that purported to be a good education…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-ve-had-no-money-absolutely-from-my-family-they-paid-for-a-good/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [For me, there's a bad year of getting started on something. You write bad stuff and it's awkward to throw it out, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/for-me-there-s-a-bad-year-of-getting-started-on-something-you-write/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [There's some people who are just very dynamic about social life, and it can be some pretty crazy stuff, but you end up meeting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/there-s-some-people-who-are-just-very-dynamic-about-social-life-and/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [“Charlie Black: Fourierism was tried in the late nineteenth century… and it failed. Wasn’t Brook Farm Fourierist? It failed. Tom Townsend: That’s debatable. Charlie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/charlie-black-fourierism-was-tried-in-the-late-nineteenth-century-and/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) [Explore all 40 Whit Stillman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) ## More Failed quotes > [ I failed, I think, seven \[or\] eight times before I finally got my first \[championship\]. It was just, you know, just about me growing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/i-failed-i-think-seven-or-eight-times-before-i-finally-got-my-first/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [I recognize I am essentially a failed human being in the sense that I can't possibly live up to the expectations of an Almighty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-recognize-i-am-essentially-a-failed-human-being-in-the-sense-that-i/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [The very first company I started failed with a great bang. The second one failed a little bit less, but still failed. The third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-levchin/the-very-first-company-i-started-failed-with-a-great-bang-the-second/) [Max Levchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-levchin/) > [I wanted to be a huge star and I have failed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-otway/i-wanted-to-be-a-huge-star-and-i-have-failed/) [John Otway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-otway/) > [When the enemy is driven back, we have failed, and when he is cut off, encircled and dispersed, we have succeeded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-suvorov/when-the-enemy-is-driven-back-we-have-failed-and-when-he-is-cut-off/) [Alexander Suvorov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-suvorov/) > [“Humility is what you strive for when you've failed at everything else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephan-pastis/humility-is-what-you-strive-for-when-you-ve-failed-at-everything-else/) [Stephan Pastis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephan-pastis/) > [Paradox: how do we know what we have failed to see because we have no language to express it, thus we cannot know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/paradox-how-do-we-know-what-we-have-failed-to-see-because-we-have-no/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I almost failed out of high school. I nearly gave in to the deep anger and resentment harbored by everyone around me... Whatever talents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-vance-2/i-almost-failed-out-of-high-school-i-nearly-gave-in-to-the-deep-anger/) [J. D. Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance-2/) > [Actually, I failed drama in high school because of nerves. I wasn't able to memorize the words. I had complete stage fright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/constance-marie/actually-i-failed-drama-in-high-school-because-of-nerves-i-wasn-t/) [Constance Marie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/constance-marie/) > [“WASHINGTON—Citigroup Inc. failed to get Federal Reserve”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/washington-citigroup-inc-failed-to-get-federal-reserve/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I tried to go to college; I just picked a trade, did a plumbing test - and failed. And then I thought, 'I may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-campbell/i-tried-to-go-to-college-i-just-picked-a-trade-did-a-plumbing-test/) [Luke Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-campbell/) > [When I started out I was a failed actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/when-i-started-out-i-was-a-failed-actor/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“Somehow it had come to pass that this man was her whole world, and she had failed to take his measure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/somehow-it-had-come-to-pass-that-this-man-was-her-whole-world-and-she/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Before I was a champion, I failed, and I was afraid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-long/before-i-was-a-champion-i-failed-and-i-was-afraid/) [Chris Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-long/) > [Alternative services would mean that there would be services available to compete with Google, Facebook, Amazon, Dropbox, Skype, etc., and they would be run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikko-hypponen/alternative-services-would-mean-that-there-would-be-services/) [Mikko Hypponen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikko-hypponen/) [Browse all 907 Failed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failed/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I originally wanted to be F. 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