--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: From time to time, as if heaven-sent to…" description: "\"From time to time, as if heaven-sent to annoy, someone will ask me if I'm self-disciplined when it comes to my work. I usually look witheringly at them..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/will-self-2296_annoying_from-time-to-time-as-if-heaven-sent-to-a_3090699.png" --- # From time to time, as if heaven-sent to annoy, someone… ![“From time to time, as if heaven-sent to annoy, someone will ask me if I'm self-disciplined when it comes to my work. I usually look witheringly at them and snarl, 'What do you think?' I mean, how do you imagine anyone writes a quarter of a million words a year for publication?” quote by Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/will-self-2296_annoying_from-time-to-time-as-if-heaven-sent-to-a_3090699.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/will-self-2296_annoying_from-time-to-time-as-if-heaven-sent-to-a_3090699.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d3/will-self-2296_annoying_from-time-to-time-as-if-heaven-sent-to-a_3090699.png) > “From time to time, as if heaven-sent to annoy, someone will ask me if I'm self-disciplined when it comes to my work. I usually look witheringly at them and snarl, 'What do you think?' I mean, how do you imagine anyone writes a quarter of a million words a year for publication?” [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. Producing massive word counts is a self‑imposed challenge that defies conventional expectations of discipline. **In simple terms:** Writing a quarter‑million words a year is a radical act. Key Takeaway Embrace unconventional productivity. Themes writing discipline creativity productivity self‑expectation Mood determined reflective Type literary motivational When to use this quote - novel writing - academic publishing - daily word goals - creative marathons Key Concepts flow theory self‑efficacy Questions to Reflect On - What does productivity mean to you? - How do you balance speed with depth? A Different Perspective Such output may sacrifice quality for quantity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The boys are so well-rounded, they're so self-disciplined, there is so much camaraderie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-pietersen/the-boys-are-so-well-rounded-they-re-so-self-disciplined-there-is-so/) [Kevin Pietersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-pietersen/) > [I try to be self-disciplined with my thoughts. It’s our thoughts that matter most, and all the rest falls into line behind that: if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-try-to-be-self-disciplined-with-my-thoughts-it-s-our-thoughts-that/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [Children can become self-reliant and self-disciplined by being free to do what they want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-bean/children-can-become-self-reliant-and-self-disciplined-by-being-free/) [Orson Bean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-bean/) > [“Habits are the tools by which we build self-disciplined lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-l-leigh/habits-are-the-tools-by-which-we-build-self-disciplined-lives/) Katherine L. Leigh > [To be disciplined is to follow in a good way. To be self disciplined is to follow in a better way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corita-kent/to-be-disciplined-is-to-follow-in-a-good-way-to-be-self-disciplined/) [Corita Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corita-kent/) > [“The secret to your future is hidden in your daily routine. You have to be self—disciplined to spend your time wisely.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-moore/the-secret-to-your-future-is-hidden-in-your-daily-routine-you-have-to/) [Michelle Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-moore/) > [“Love is a self-disciplined action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-houge/love-is-a-self-disciplined-action/) [Adam Houge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-houge/) > [“doesn’t matter when or where you need it – it may be in your work environment or simply part of an informal related task…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wyatt/doesn-t-matter-when-or-where-you-need-it-it-may-be-in-your-work/) [William Wyatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wyatt/) > [Conscientious people are self-disciplined, hard workers who spend the least amount of time on Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-morin/conscientious-people-are-self-disciplined-hard-workers-who-spend-the/) [Amy Morin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-morin/) > [Is a question, that every humanbeing, must ask him self. What will you do these morning ? Were will you be ?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nafiu-ibrahim/is-a-question-that-every-humanbeing-must-ask-him-self-what-will-you/) Nafiu Ibrahim > [If I give more to myself, I can ask more from myself. Self-regard isn't selfish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/if-i-give-more-to-myself-i-can-ask-more-from-myself-self-regard-isn-t/) [Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/) > [Sometimes I just ask me self why? Why do I hang out with the people I do? Why do I let them use me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheyenne-delacruz/sometimes-i-just-ask-me-self-why-why-do-i-hang-out-with-the-people-i/) [Cheyenne DeLaCruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheyenne-delacruz/) > [After the past relationship, I often ask my self will I ever love, trust, or even feel again the way I felt for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quinton-riley/after-the-past-relationship-i-often-ask-my-self-will-i-ever-love/) [Quinton Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quinton-riley/) > [Before you^say something Bad to^others ask your-self^why are^you the only one saw^the badness and-->](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junior-d-r-l-testament/before-you-say-something-bad-to-others-ask-your-self-why-are-you-the/) Junior Dè Rèál Testament > [I never regret anything. Because every little detail of you're life is what made you into who you are at this moment. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simpleman/i-never-regret-anything-because-every-little-detail-of-you-re-life-is/) Simpleman ## 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 Annoying quotes > [Why couldn't Jesus command us to obsess over everything, to try to control and manipulate people, to try not to breathe at all, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/why-couldn-t-jesus-command-us-to-obsess-over-everything-to-try-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [The trouble is. . .that everybody sneers at restrictions and demands freedom, till something annoying happens; then they demand angrily what has become of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/the-trouble-is-that-everybody-sneers-at-restrictions-and-demands/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [At Epcot Center the Disney corporation has focused its attention on two things greatly in need of Disneyfication: the tedious future and the annoying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/at-epcot-center-the-disney-corporation-has-focused-its-attention-on/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [The book it reminded me of most is Henry Miller’s The Books in My Life. Like Miller, Shields manages to convey his affection for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-alexis/the-book-it-reminded-me-of-most-is-henry-miller-s-the-books-in-my/) [Andre Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-alexis/) > [When you're standing around for an hour doing stand up it's no big deal but when you're standing around watching a show for an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-rogan/when-you-re-standing-around-for-an-hour-doing-stand-up-it-s-no-big/) [Joe Rogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-rogan/) > [Belief is a good thing in principle, but an annoying thing in human beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/belief-is-a-good-thing-in-principle-but-an-annoying-thing-in-human/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [Shut the fuck up ur so annoying and you think your the shit lmao sit the fuck down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/shut-the-fuck-up-ur-so-annoying-and-you-think-your-the-shit-lmao-sit/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only kind of freedom that the mob can imagine is freedom to annoy and oppress its betters, and that is precisely the kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-kind-of-freedom-that-the-mob-can-imagine-is-freedom-to-annoy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Die, enemies of Ra!" Sekhemet yelled. "Perish in agony!" "She's almost as annoying as you," I told Horus. "Impossible," Horus said. "No one bests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/die-enemies-of-ra-sekhemet-yelled-perish-in-agony-she-s-almost-as/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [My middle finger is used when words aren't enough for people to understand that they're annoying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-middle-finger-is-used-when-words-aren-t-enough-for-people-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [...Be grateful for what you have to be thankful for instead of complaining about the little things that annoy you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/be-grateful-for-what-you-have-to-be-thankful-for-instead-of/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [Would you want people walking up to you and pointing at your d--k? I can't believe I'm still talking about this. But I've worn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/would-you-want-people-walking-up-to-you-and-pointing-at-your-d-k-i/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I ceased in the year 1764 to believe that one can convince one’s opponents with arguments printed in books. It is not to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/i-ceased-in-the-year-1764-to-believe-that-one-can-convince-one-s/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [WikiLeaks is irritating and annoying for Germany, but not a threat. From an international perspective, I see their actions as totally irresponsible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-de-maiziere/wikileaks-is-irritating-and-annoying-for-germany-but-not-a-threat/) [Thomas de Maiziere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-de-maiziere/) > [It doesn't annoy me but I think of myself as a presenter who is gay, rather than a gay presenter. It's a subtle distinction,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-davis/it-doesn-t-annoy-me-but-i-think-of-myself-as-a-presenter-who-is-gay/) [Evan Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-davis/) Browse all 1,217 Annoying quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "From time to time, as if heaven-sent to annoy, someone will ask me if I'm self-disciplined when it comes to my work. I usually look witheringly at them and snarl, 'What do you think?' 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