--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know many older writers who were very…" description: "\"I know many older writers who were very successful and whose books are now out of print, so you have to go to antiquarian booksellers to buy their fift..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bb/william-boyd-3581_book_i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very_2104897.png" --- # I know many older writers who were very successful and… ![“I know many older writers who were very successful and whose books are now out of print, so you have to go to antiquarian booksellers to buy their fifth or eighth novel or whatever it is.” quote by William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bb/william-boyd-3581_book_i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very_2104897.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bb/william-boyd-3581_book_i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very_2104897.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bb/william-boyd-3581_book_i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very_2104897.png) > “I know many older writers who were very successful and whose books are now out of print, so you have to go to antiquarian booksellers to buy their fifth or eighth novel or whatever it is.” [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) ## 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 notes that successful older writers often become obscure, urging readers to seek out rare books through antiquarian dealers. **In simple terms:** Older successful writers can become obscure; find them via rare‑book sellers. Key Takeaway Explore forgotten works through antiquarian booksellers. Themes literature obscurity preservation collecting Mood nostalgic curious reflective Type expository informative reflective When to use this quote - library research - personal reading - academic study Key Concepts cultural memory book collecting historical value Questions to Reflect On - Why do some successful authors fade from public view? - What value do you find in rediscovering forgotten literature? A Different Perspective Rare books may be expensive or hard to locate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Antiquarian Booksellers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antiquarian-booksellers-4222783/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Booksellers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/booksellers/) [Booksellers Buy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/booksellers-buy-4222784/) [Buy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buy/) [Eighth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eighth/) [Fifth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fifth/) [Go](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/go/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Many](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/many/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/now/) [Older](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older/) [Older Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older-writers-1955066/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [Print](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/print/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [Were](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/were/) [Whatever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whatever/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) [Whose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whose/) [Writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers/) [Writers Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers-successful-3845685/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) ## Related quotes > [Don't be discouraged if you think you're not a great writer because terrible writers are successful in Hollywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-seltzer/don-t-be-discouraged-if-you-think-you-re-not-a-great-writer-because/) [David Seltzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-seltzer/) > [I think television keeps on being a place where writers can go, and if they're successful, they can have their way, and they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-l-brooks/i-think-television-keeps-on-being-a-place-where-writers-can-go-and-if/) [James L. Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-l-brooks/) > [A lot of the time you have older writers who think that every teenager says 'dude' all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-hampshire/a-lot-of-the-time-you-have-older-writers-who-think-that-every/) [Emily Hampshire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-hampshire/) > [I was always very curious as a young man about why older writers who I met seemed so indifferent to what was going on,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/i-was-always-very-curious-as-a-young-man-about-why-older-writers-who/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [My family was big on sharing. I guess it was just the way I was brought up. Or maybe, I read those fairy tales…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/my-family-was-big-on-sharing-i-guess-it-was-just-the-way-i-was/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [It's a myth that older writers can't write for younger audiences. Shakespeare wasn't 15 when he wrote Romeo and Juliet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-keenan-wynn/it-s-a-myth-that-older-writers-can-t-write-for-younger-audiences/) [Tracy Keenan Wynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-keenan-wynn/) > [I really like older writers, perhaps because they take me out of my element. I don't have a great deal of interest in reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-really-like-older-writers-perhaps-because-they-take-me-out-of-my/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [“Discovering dedicated mystery booksellers was a bit like going to heaven without having to die first”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-mcdermid/discovering-dedicated-mystery-booksellers-was-a-bit-like-going-to/) [Val McDermid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-mcdermid/) > [Some of you...have never read a Patrick O'Brian novel. I beseech you to start now. Start with Master and Commander, which should be available…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-myers/some-of-you-have-never-read-a-patrick-o-brian-novel-i-beseech-you-to/) [Kevin Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-myers/) > [Speak of the appetite for drink; or of a bon-vivant's relish for dinner! What are these mere animal throes and ragings compared with those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/speak-of-the-appetite-for-drink-or-of-a-bon-vivant-s-relish-for/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [I never think about genre when I work. I've written fantasy, science fiction, supernatural fiction, and am now working on a suspense novel. Genres…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hand/i-never-think-about-genre-when-i-work-i-ve-written-fantasy-science/) [Elizabeth Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hand/) > [“Booksellers in the gross are taken for little better than a pack of knaves and atheists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dunton/booksellers-in-the-gross-are-taken-for-little-better-than-a-pack-of/) [John Dunton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dunton/) > ["Out of Print" is bookseller speak for "We can't be hedgehogged".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/out-of-print-is-bookseller-speak-for-we-can-t-be-hedgehogged/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [ Neither men, nor gods, nor booksellers' shelves permit ordinary poets to exist. \[Lat., Mediocribus esse poetis Non homines, non di, non concessere columnae.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/neither-men-nor-gods-nor-booksellers-shelves-permit-ordinary-poets-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [“To librarians, booksellers, and collectors there is nothing limited in the subject of books about books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leona-rostenberg/to-librarians-booksellers-and-collectors-there-is-nothing-limited-in/) [Leona Rostenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leona-rostenberg/) ## More by William Boyd > [Sometimes limbo is a tolerable place to be stuck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/sometimes-limbo-is-a-tolerable-place-to-be-stuck/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“Here at its extremities the terrified transients gathered, gazing out at the vast refulgent ocean for some sign of security.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/here-at-its-extremities-the-terrified-transients-gathered-gazing-out/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“We all possess, like it or not, the people we know, and are possessed by them in turn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/we-all-possess-like-it-or-not-the-people-we-know-and-are-possessed-by/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“Old Testament prophets. ‘You savvy dis fetish thing?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/old-testament-prophets-you-savvy-dis-fetish-thing/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [Human beings are interested in the human condition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/human-beings-are-interested-in-the-human-condition/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“A warm sunny evening, the plash and gurgle of the waves in the rock pools, the rush of the cold gin. I thought for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/a-warm-sunny-evening-the-plash-and-gurgle-of-the-waves-in-the-rock/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [I have this lock of hair that keeps falling across my forehead. It drives me mad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/i-have-this-lock-of-hair-that-keeps-falling-across-my-forehead-it/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [With film, you have very limited tools to convey subjectivity - voiceover, the camera's point of view, good acting - but even the very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/with-film-you-have-very-limited-tools-to-convey-subjectivity/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“any man over forty who deliberately combs his hair forward in a child’s fringe has something suspect about him,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/any-man-over-forty-who-deliberately-combs-his-hair-forward-in-a-child/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [There are things in life we don't understand, and when we meet them, all we can do is let them alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/there-are-things-in-life-we-don-t-understand-and-when-we-meet-them/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“All great artists are doubters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/all-great-artists-are-doubters/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“Feelings of depression; feelings of frustration; feelings of emptiness in the face of all this randomness - done down by the haphazard, yet again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/feelings-of-depression-feelings-of-frustration-feelings-of-emptiness/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“I am a total stranger, you see. Total.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/i-am-a-total-stranger-you-see-total/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [There is a disconnect between the film Bond and the literary Bond which is their contemporaneity. I don't suffer from that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/there-is-a-disconnect-between-the-film-bond-and-the-literary-bond/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [“So much for my great vendetta, so much for the tireless hunt for my betrayer. Isn't this how life turns out, more often than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/so-much-for-my-great-vendetta-so-much-for-the-tireless-hunt-for-my/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) [Explore all 125 William Boyd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) ## 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": "I know many older writers who were very successful and whose books are now out of print, so you have to go to antiquarian booksellers to buy their fifth or eighth novel or whatever it is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Boyd" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very-successful-and-whose-books/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very-successful-and-whose-books/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bb/william-boyd-3581_book_i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very_2104897.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bb/william-boyd-3581_book_i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very_2104897.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bb/william-boyd-3581_book_i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very_2104897.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I know many older writers who were very successful and whose books are now out of print, so you have to go…” — William Boyd", "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": "William Boyd", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I know many older writers who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very-successful-and-whose-books/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/i-know-many-older-writers-who-were-very-successful-and-whose-books/#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 } } ] } ```