---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I started out as a writer with an hour…"
description: "\"I started out as a writer with an hour removed from Kingdom of Heaven. You have to make one print for the entire world, and that's something that influ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dd/william-monahan-3226_cutting_i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-r_1201829.jpg"
---

#  I started out as a writer with an hour removed from…

![“I started out as a writer with an hour removed from Kingdom of Heaven. You have to make one print for the entire world, and that's something that influences the theatrical cuts of pictures to an enormous degree. It's a reality. You can't have one cut for the Sunni, and one for the Shia, and one…” quote by William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dd/william-monahan-3226_cutting_i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-r_1201829.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dd/william-monahan-3226_cutting_i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-r_1201829.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dd/william-monahan-3226_cutting_i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-r_1201829.jpg)

> “I started out as a writer with an hour removed from Kingdom of Heaven. You have to make one print for the entire world, and that's something that influences the theatrical cuts of pictures to an enormous degree. It's a reality. You can't have one cut for the Sunni, and one for the Shia, and one each for Tories, Whigs, vegetarians, one cut for the Cineplex, and one for literary intellectuals.”

[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.

A writer must craft a universally appealing story, balancing diverse audience expectations without fragmenting the narrative.

**In simple terms:** Write for everyone, not just one group.

Key Takeaway

Aim for inclusive storytelling.

Themes

storytelling audience balance universal appeal

Mood

thoughtful strategic

Type

advice insightful

When to use this quote

- film production
- marketing campaigns
- global releases
- cross‑cultural projects

Key Concepts

narrative design cultural sensitivity media strategy

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you maintain authenticity while appealing broadly?
- What compromises are acceptable in universal storytelling?

A Different Perspective

Balancing all perspectives may dilute artistic vision.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Kingdom of heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kingdom-of-heaven/) [Kingdoms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kingdoms/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Shia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shia/) [Theatrical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatrical/) [Vegetarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vegetarian/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [I don't care if you make a print on a bath mat, just as long as it is a good print.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-weston/i-don-t-care-if-you-make-a-print-on-a-bath-mat-just-as-long-as-it-is/)

[Edward Weston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-weston/)

> [Shia phobia or Sunni phobia...we never hear about this. They murder each other!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manfred-gerstenfeld/shia-phobia-or-sunni-phobia-we-never-hear-about-this-they-murder-each/)

[Manfred Gerstenfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manfred-gerstenfeld/)

> [I asked Shia: who is the guy that terrifies you the most? And he said Mads. So it was somebody we both really wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fredrik-bond/i-asked-shia-who-is-the-guy-that-terrifies-you-the-most-and-he-said/)

[Fredrik Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fredrik-bond/)

> [“Shia scholars would maintain that he had a clear intimation of mortality, and that he prefaced his declaration with these words: “The time approaches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/shia-scholars-would-maintain-that-he-had-a-clear-intimation-of/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [ I'll tell you whose view on \[Bashar\] Assad is the same as mine. It's Prime Minister \[Benjamin\] Netanyahu. Prime Minister Netanyahu has said Israel… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/i-ll-tell-you-whose-view-on-bashar-assad-is-the-same-as-mine-it-s/)

[Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/)

> [Comedians are always going to be in the showbiz middle class, you're not Brad Pitt; you're never going to be Sam Rockwell or Shia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/comedians-are-always-going-to-be-in-the-showbiz-middle-class-you-re/)

[Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/)

> [It is not coincidental that for so-called religious fundamentalists - whether they are Western or Eastern, Muslim or Christian - rigid male dominance and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riane-eisler/it-is-not-coincidental-that-for-so-called-religious-fundamentalists/)

[Riane Eisler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riane-eisler/)

> [I have nothing against Sean Penn. I don't even mind that he ended up divorcing Madonna. I mean, I still like Shia LaBeouf even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/i-have-nothing-against-sean-penn-i-don-t-even-mind-that-he-ended-up/)

[Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/)

> [I know of no wars started by anyone to impose lack of religion on someone else. We have lethal Sunni v Shia, Catholic against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-hoggart/i-know-of-no-wars-started-by-anyone-to-impose-lack-of-religion-on/)

[Simon Hoggart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-hoggart/)

> [There are some things that could hold it together, notably oil revenues. But at the moment, the much vaunted surge has had a measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/there-are-some-things-that-could-hold-it-together-notably-oil/)

[Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/)

> [I was so lucky to be working with amazing actors like Shia and Evan and James Buckley and Mads Mikkelsen and Rupert Grint and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fredrik-bond/i-was-so-lucky-to-be-working-with-amazing-actors-like-shia-and-evan/)

[Fredrik Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fredrik-bond/)

> [Unfortunately, the source of all this conflict between the Sunnis and Shia is some major powers that do not want religious unity amongst Muslims.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yousef-saanei/unfortunately-the-source-of-all-this-conflict-between-the-sunnis-and/)

[Yousef Saanei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yousef-saanei/)

> [ Until quite recently I've been wholly cut off from \[the Shias\] because their tenets forbid them to look upon an unveiled woman and my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-bell/until-quite-recently-i-ve-been-wholly-cut-off-from-the-shias-because/)

[Gertrude Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-bell/)

> [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/)

[Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/)

> [I always love watching those natural actors like Bill Cosby, Raven-Symone and Shia LaBeouf - just effortless actors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-latimore/i-always-love-watching-those-natural-actors-like-bill-cosby-raven/)

[Jacob Latimore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-latimore/)

## 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/)

> [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-able-to-work-at-top-crack/)

[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/)

[Explore all 136 William Monahan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/)

## More Cutting quotes

> [“I locked the door and turned on the water to fill the tub. I made it so hot that I had to get in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-crandall/i-locked-the-door-and-turned-on-the-water-to-fill-the-tub-i-made-it/)

[Susan Crandall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-crandall/)

> [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/)

[Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/)

> [Since I worked with Danny Boyle before on Slumdog Millionaire, we have great success and everything. So, when I first got the script and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-rahman/since-i-worked-with-danny-boyle-before-on-slumdog-millionaire-we-have/)

[A. R. Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-rahman/)

> [A man has a right to use a saw, an axe, a plane, separately; may he not combine their uses on the same piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-man-has-a-right-to-use-a-saw-an-axe-a-plane-separately-may-he-not/)

[Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/)

> [I didn't understand Southland Tales script at all! Is there a single word to describe it? Cacophony? It's celebrity meets pornography meets politics -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-grant/i-didn-t-understand-southland-tales-script-at-all-is-there-a-single/)

[Beth Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-grant/)

> [Confidence comes from cutting yourself some slack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tess-daly/confidence-comes-from-cutting-yourself-some-slack/)

[Tess Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tess-daly/)

> [The nineteenth century lynching mob cuts off ears, toes, and fingers, strips off flesh, and distributes portions of the body as souvenirs among the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ida-b-wells/the-nineteenth-century-lynching-mob-cuts-off-ears-toes-and-fingers/)

[Ida B. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ida-b-wells/)

> [There ain't no such thing as black Muslims. That's how they tried to cut off all my brothers in the rest of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/there-ain-t-no-such-thing-as-black-muslims-that-s-how-they-tried-to/)

[Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/)

> [ We have no clear ideas of the agency of \[demonic\] spirits, nor is it necessary. The Scripture says little to satisfy our curiosity; but… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/we-have-no-clear-ideas-of-the-agency-of-demonic-spirits-nor-is-it/)

[John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/)

> [The child who ran weeping to you with a cut finger is now brought home, smiling gamely, with a broken collarbone and incredible contusions-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/the-child-who-ran-weeping-to-you-with-a-cut-finger-is-now-brought/)

[Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/)

> [Somewhere somebody must have some sense. Men must see that force begets force, hate begets hate, toughness begets toughness. And it is all a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somewhere-somebody-must-have-some-sense-men-must-see-that-force/)

[Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/)

> [“I hate the way you talk to me And the way you cut your hair I hate the way you drive my car I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-hate-the-way-you-talk-to-me-and-the-way-you-cut-your-hair-i-hate/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [God holds each of us by a string. When we sin, we cut the string. But God ties it up again, making a knot.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meister-eckhart/god-holds-each-of-us-by-a-string-when-we-sin-we-cut-the-string-but/)

[Meister Eckhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meister-eckhart/)

> [What's the difference between obsolete and cutting edge? Obsolete works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-negroponte/what-s-the-difference-between-obsolete-and-cutting-edge-obsolete-works/)

[Nicholas Negroponte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-negroponte/)

> [Geometry, which should only obey Physics, when united with it sometimes commands it. If it happens that the question which we wish to examine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/geometry-which-should-only-obey-physics-when-united-with-it-sometimes/)

[Jean le Rond d'Alembert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/)

Browse all 6,010 Cutting quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I started out as a writer with an hour removed from Kingdom of Heaven. You have to make one print for the entire world, and that's something that influences the theatrical cuts of pictures to an enormous degree. It's a reality. You can't have one cut for the Sunni, and one for the Shia, and one each for Tories, Whigs, vegetarians, one cut for the Cineplex, and one for literary intellectuals.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Monahan"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-removed-from-kingdom-of-heaven/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Cutting"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-removed-from-kingdom-of-heaven/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dd/william-monahan-3226_cutting_i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-r_1201829.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dd/william-monahan-3226_cutting_i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-r_1201829.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dd/william-monahan-3226_cutting_i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-r_1201829.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I started out as a writer with an hour removed from Kingdom of Heaven. You have to make one print for 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": "I started out as a writer...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-removed-from-kingdom-of-heaven/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-started-out-as-a-writer-with-an-hour-removed-from-kingdom-of-heaven/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
