--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For myself, I haven't been content to…" description: "\"For myself, I haven't been content to carry on producing books that merely strain against the conventions - as I've grown older, and realised that ther..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/will-self-2296_book_for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-car_2021327.png" --- # For myself, I haven't been content to carry on producing… ![“For myself, I haven't been content to carry on producing books that merely strain against the conventions - as I've grown older, and realised that there aren't that many books left for me to write, so I've become determined that they should be the fictive equivalent of ripping the damn corset off…” quote by Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/will-self-2296_book_for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-car_2021327.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/will-self-2296_book_for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-car_2021327.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/will-self-2296_book_for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-car_2021327.png) > “For myself, I haven't been content to carry on producing books that merely strain against the conventions - as I've grown older, and realised that there aren't that many books left for me to write, so I've become determined that they should be the fictive equivalent of ripping the damn corset off altogether and chucking it on the fire.” [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author expresses frustration with conventional writing, aiming to create radical, transformative work that breaks all norms. **In simple terms:** Rejects conventional writing. Key Takeaway Create daring, unconventional literature. Themes creativity rebellion literature Mood defiant provocative Type literary artistic When to use this quote - novel writing - experimental art - publishing industry Key Concepts postmodernism artistic freedom Questions to Reflect On - What defines literary rebellion? - How can you balance innovation with readability? A Different Perspective Radical style may alienate readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-left-1657691/) [Conventions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conventions/) [Corset Altogether](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corset-altogether-3663547/) [Damn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damn/) [Damn Corset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damn-corset-448456/) [Determined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determined/) [Fire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fire/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Many](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/many/) [Myself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myself/) [Producing Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/producing-books-3663546/) [Realised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realised/) [Ripping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ripping/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Strain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strain/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“I think we're dating now" "Come on...I got you naked. You wore a damn corset. And don't get me started on the sponge bath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/i-think-we-re-dating-now-come-on-i-got-you-naked-you-wore-a-damn/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) > [The idea of being productive, the idea of producing many books is going to lead you toward you becoming a better and better writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/the-idea-of-being-productive-the-idea-of-producing-many-books-is/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [Say I lived until 80 and read a book a month seriously, that means I was looking at 480 books left in my life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amor-towles/say-i-lived-until-80-and-read-a-book-a-month-seriously-that-means-i/) [Amor Towles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amor-towles/) > [“When I get a little money, I buy books. If any is left, I buy food and clothes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erasmus/when-i-get-a-little-money-i-buy-books-if-any-is-left-i-buy-food-and/) [Erasmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erasmus/) > [“When I have a little money, I buy books; and if I have any left, I buy food and clothes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desiderius-erasmus-roterodamus/when-i-have-a-little-money-i-buy-books-and-if-i-have-any-left-i-buy/) [Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desiderius-erasmus-roterodamus/) > [I fell into the books, and left myself there for safekeeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-fell-into-the-books-and-left-myself-there-for-safekeeping/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Picture books are for everybody at any age, not books to be left behind as we grow older.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-browne/picture-books-are-for-everybody-at-any-age-not-books-to-be-left-2/) [Anthony Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-browne/) > [I've discovered writers by reading books left in airplane seats and weird hotels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-child/i-ve-discovered-writers-by-reading-books-left-in-airplane-seats-and/) [Lee Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-child/) > [...there are so many books left to read. For that reason alone it is worth going on living. Books make me happy, the help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-lix-j-palma/there-are-so-many-books-left-to-read-for-that-reason-alone-it-is/) [Félix J. Palma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-lix-j-palma/) > [All of us can think of a book... that we hope none of our children or any other children have taken off the shelf.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-paterson/all-of-us-can-think-of-a-book-that-we-hope-none-of-our-children-or/) [Katherine Paterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-paterson/) > [When I think of all the books still left for me to read, I am certain of further happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-renard/when-i-think-of-all-the-books-still-left-for-me-to-read-i-am-certain/) [Jules Renard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-renard/) > [“I'm not courting death; I've far too many books left to read.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-sinclair/i-m-not-courting-death-i-ve-far-too-many-books-left-to-read/) [Alison Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-sinclair/) > [“I suspect that the real attraction was a large library of fine books, which was left to dust and spiders since Uncle March died.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/i-suspect-that-the-real-attraction-was-a-large-library-of-fine-books/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desiderius-erasmus/when-i-get-a-little-money-i-buy-books-and-if-any-is-left-i-buy-food/) [Desiderius Erasmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desiderius-erasmus/) > [I insist on knowing the names, on being interested only in books left ajar, like doors; I will not go looking for keys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andr-breton/i-insist-on-knowing-the-names-on-being-interested-only-in-books-left/) [Andre Breton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andr-breton/) ## More by Will Self > [As for critical writing about modernism, its moments of lucidity are but fulgurations illuminating the dark and incomprehensible landscape of its subject's unabashed difficulty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/as-for-critical-writing-about-modernism-its-moments-of-lucidity-are/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [“As my voice died away I became conscious of the voice of another woman two tables away. I couldn't hear what she was saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/as-my-voice-died-away-i-became-conscious-of-the-voice-of-another/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [That tertiary education is under a sustained assault by a political and - it often seems - social consensus that equates all education with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/that-tertiary-education-is-under-a-sustained-assault-by-a-political/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [I'm an anarchist. I'm implacably opposed to heirarchical systems of power and control. I also mistrust crowds, as they often operate according to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/i-m-an-anarchist-i-m-implacably-opposed-to-heirarchical-systems-of/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [What fiction offers us is an intimacy shorn of the messy contingencies of human existence - gender, race, class or age. Those moments of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/what-fiction-offers-us-is-an-intimacy-shorn-of-the-messy/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [I'd rather fiddle with my phone for precious seconds than neglect an apostrophe; I'd rather insert a word laboriously keyed out than resort to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/i-d-rather-fiddle-with-my-phone-for-precious-seconds-than-neglect-an/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [I'm very happy for whatever plaudits might come the way of my work, but I never ever sit down to write x with y…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/i-m-very-happy-for-whatever-plaudits-might-come-the-way-of-my-work/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [As a writer, I'm not convinced that we are the best equipped to understand how we go about the business of literary production.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/as-a-writer-i-m-not-convinced-that-we-are-the-best-equipped-to/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [“I explained to him - as I withdrew the cup, ripped open the sachet and dunked the tea bag - that tea was an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/i-explained-to-him-as-i-withdrew-the-cup-ripped-open-the-sachet-and/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [There is something mysteriously powerful that can happen when young, inchoate minds come into contact with older and more worldly ones in a spirit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/there-is-something-mysteriously-powerful-that-can-happen-when-young/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [It would seem that I, who never could make much sense of physics when I was at school, have now gained a strong sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/it-would-seem-that-i-who-never-could-make-much-sense-of-physics-when/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [Drug use and procrastination often go hand in tourniquet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/drug-use-and-procrastination-often-go-hand-in-tourniquet/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [“…with the morbid realisation that his sexual being was a dull thing, a lifeless thing, a mass-produced marionette with chipped paint and fraying strings”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/with-the-morbid-realisation-that-his-sexual-being-was-a-dull-thing-a/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [A creative life cannot be sustained by approval any more than it can be destroyed by criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/a-creative-life-cannot-be-sustained-by-approval-any-more-than-it-can/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [I don't think in terms of that bizarre tautology 'value for money' in my literary and journalistic work - and nor will I in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/i-don-t-think-in-terms-of-that-bizarre-tautology-value-for-money-in/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) [Explore all 172 Will Self quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) ## 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": "For myself, I haven't been content to carry on producing books that merely strain against the conventions - as I've grown older, and realised that there aren't that many books left for me to write, so I've become determined that they should be the fictive equivalent of ripping the damn corset off altogether and chucking it on the fire.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Will Self" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-carry-on-producing-books-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-carry-on-producing-books-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/will-self-2296_book_for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-car_2021327.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/will-self-2296_book_for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-car_2021327.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/will-self-2296_book_for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-car_2021327.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For myself, I haven't been content to carry on producing books that merely strain against the conventions…” — Will Self", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Will Self", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For myself, I haven't been content...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-carry-on-producing-books-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/for-myself-i-haven-t-been-content-to-carry-on-producing-books-that/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```