--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For me, film has been good because I'm…" description: "\"For me, film has been good because I'm able to work at top crack, working at something I love to do, in the only literary form in which you can still m..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/william-monahan-3226_able_for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-ab_255468.jpg" --- # For me, film has been good because I'm able to work at top… ![“For me, film has been good because I'm able to work at top crack, working at something I love to do, in the only literary form in which you can still make money. There are no famous novelists, not as novelists used to be famous.” quote by William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/william-monahan-3226_able_for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-ab_255468.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/william-monahan-3226_able_for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-ab_255468.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/william-monahan-3226_able_for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-ab_255468.jpg) > “For me, film has been good because I'm able to work at top crack, working at something I love to do, in the only literary form in which you can still make money. There are no famous novelists, not as novelists used to be famous.” [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Film offers a lucrative path for writers, unlike the declining fame of novelists today **In simple terms:** Film is a profitable literary form while novelists lose fame Key Takeaway Consider focusing on screenwriting if you want financial stability in storytelling Themes career writing industry economics Mood thoughtful pragmatic Type advice industry When to use this quote - screenwriting - publishing - career planning - financial goals Key Concepts media economics creative tradeoffs Questions to Reflect On - Is the financial trade‑off worth the creative compromise? - How might you balance artistic integrity with market demands? A Different Perspective Film success depends on many factors beyond just the medium ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Making money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-money/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Novelists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelists/) ## Related quotes > [It's great to make your own choices, but there's a price to pay. I could've made more money or been more famous. I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/it-s-great-to-make-your-own-choices-but-there-s-a-price-to-pay-i/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [“Manson’s law applies to both good and bad things in life. Making a million dollars could threaten your identity just as much as losing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-manson/manson-s-law-applies-to-both-good-and-bad-things-in-life-making-a/) [Mark Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-manson/) > [So I've decided to be a very rich and famous person who doesn't really care about money, and who is very humble but who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linus-torvalds/so-i-ve-decided-to-be-a-very-rich-and-famous-person-who-doesn-t/) [Linus Torvalds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linus-torvalds/) > [I would rather just be successful and have money than be famous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffree-star/i-would-rather-just-be-successful-and-have-money-than-be-famous/) [Jeffree Star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffree-star/) > [The good thing is that I have always had wonderful people around me. It's dangerous when you start earning a lot of money and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-cruz/the-good-thing-is-that-i-have-always-had-wonderful-people-around-me/) [Penelope Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-cruz/) > [There aren't many downsides to being rich, other than paying taxes and having relatives asking for money. But being famous, that's a 24 hour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-murray/there-aren-t-many-downsides-to-being-rich-other-than-paying-taxes-and/) [Bill Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-murray/) > [Poetry died as a commercial form and then it died as a serious art form. No one serious touches it. It used to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/poetry-died-as-a-commercial-form-and-then-it-died-as-a-serious-art/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [It feels good when it helps to get a good seat for a football game. But it never helped me make a good film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/it-feels-good-when-it-helps-to-get-a-good-seat-for-a-football-game/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Music has an immediate effect. If you want to go beyond that and look underneath, film is a good way of explaining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-copeland/music-has-an-immediate-effect-if-you-want-to-go-beyond-that-and-look/) [Stewart Copeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-copeland/) > [Never again work in the same conditions in whichyou made your first film. It's good to take risks, but not thatmuch risk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pedro-almodovar/never-again-work-in-the-same-conditions-in-whichyou-made-your-first/) [Pedro Almodovar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pedro-almodovar/) > [I believe that if your film is good, and if you are good, you will do well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anushka-sharma/i-believe-that-if-your-film-is-good-and-if-you-are-good-you-will-do/) [Anushka Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anushka-sharma/) > [I will do a film if there is a good scope for acting. I am looking for good scripts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritika-singh/i-will-do-a-film-if-there-is-a-good-scope-for-acting-i-am-looking-for/) [Ritika Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritika-singh/) > [You learn as much from doing a bad film as a good one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-moran/you-learn-as-much-from-doing-a-bad-film-as-a-good-one/) [Nick Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-moran/) > [People will watch your film only if it's good. Another star's flop won't make your film a hit. So my race is with myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allu-arjun/people-will-watch-your-film-only-if-it-s-good-another-star-s-flop-won/) [Allu Arjun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allu-arjun/) > [That's the power of film. If it's good, it can somehow make you feel connected to even the farthest thing from your own experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-gosling/that-s-the-power-of-film-if-it-s-good-it-can-somehow-make-you-feel/) [Ryan Gosling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-gosling/) ## More by William Monahan > [“I put no stock in religion. By the word religion I have seen the lunacy of fanatics of every denomination be called the will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-put-no-stock-in-religion-by-the-word-religion-i-have-seen-the/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [When I was a kid in London there was just something about the light and there's something about the way London went onto film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/when-i-was-a-kid-in-london-there-was-just-something-about-the-light/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [I think the only real referent for anybody writing drama is probably Hamlet. You have the most extreme tragic drama, this sort of blood-boltered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-think-the-only-real-referent-for-anybody-writing-drama-is-probably/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [If you need someone to come out of the sewer with a wire you don't hire someone who needs laborious collective instruction. You let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/if-you-need-someone-to-come-out-of-the-sewer-with-a-wire-you-don-t/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [In reviewing films, people get quite liberal about saying "the script" this and "the script" that, when they've never read the script any more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/in-reviewing-films-people-get-quite-liberal-about-saying-the-script/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [The era I love most is the Federal period, just after the Revolution and the formation of the United States. The birth of America…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/the-era-i-love-most-is-the-federal-period-just-after-the-revolution/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [You know a shooter when you see it. At least the creative people do. If a picture isn't obvious in the first draft you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/you-know-a-shooter-when-you-see-it-at-least-the-creative-people-do-if/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [If you see, as I do, in edited film, you're going to end up as a director.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/if-you-see-as-i-do-in-edited-film-you-re-going-to-end-up-as-a-director/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [I wanted to do London Boulevard because I saw the potential of a story about two people who need each other desperately, who love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-wanted-to-do-london-boulevard-because-i-saw-the-potential-of-a/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [Dialogue is used to reveal not what we want to say, but what we are trying to hide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/dialogue-is-used-to-reveal-not-what-we-want-to-say-but-what-we-are/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [Poetry died as a commercial form and then it died as a serious art form. No one serious touches it. It used to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/poetry-died-as-a-commercial-form-and-then-it-died-as-a-serious-art/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [Casting is all about availability, as much as anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/casting-is-all-about-availability-as-much-as-anything-else/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [London matters to me because it's the center of what I do for a living and has been since Tudor times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/london-matters-to-me-because-it-s-the-center-of-what-i-do-for-a/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [I was always entirely about work, about getting where I am now. If I'm not working I'm thinking about it, though at some point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-was-always-entirely-about-work-about-getting-where-i-am-now-if-i-m/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [It's interesting to think that my children know more about the process than many mature critics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/it-s-interesting-to-think-that-my-children-know-more-about-the/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) [Explore all 136 William Monahan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/) [Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) Greg Perry > [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/) [Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/) > [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/) [Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) Browse all 17,257 Able quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For me, film has been good because I'm able to work at top crack, working at something I love to do, in the only literary form in which you can still make money. There are no famous novelists, not as novelists used to be famous.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Monahan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-able-to-work-at-top-crack/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Able" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-able-to-work-at-top-crack/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/william-monahan-3226_able_for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-ab_255468.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/william-monahan-3226_able_for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-ab_255468.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/william-monahan-3226_able_for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-ab_255468.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For me, film has been good because I'm able to work at top crack, working at something I love to do, in the…” — William Monahan", "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 Monahan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For me, film has been good...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-able-to-work-at-top-crack/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-able-to-work-at-top-crack/#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 } } ] } ```