Writer Myths

7/31/2016

You’re a writer. Therefore, you are a depressed starving artist who survives on whiskey.

Right?

Myths. Stereotypes. Assumptions. The notion that not only are these things connected with writers, but that they are actually necessary for a person to be a good writer is harmful.

Seriously, why would we think it’s ok to tell a group of people that their life must be in danger in order for them to succeed at their passion?

Because if you are starving, your life is in danger. If you are depressed, your life is in danger. If you are an alcoholic, your life is in danger.

And let me tell you, those are not good conditions for creativity. Stress and fear destroy inspiration. If you’re worrying about where your next meal is going to come from or if you’re going to make it to tomorrow, you will not be focused on writing. It’s not possible.

So why the hell would we make people believe that they need this sort of turmoil to be a good writer? You must be an angry person to write such angry stuff. Your childhood must have been so messed up. Do you write drunk or stoned? Just stop. Otherwise, we’re producing three things:

Would-be-writers who believe they can’t write anything worthwhile because their life is just too damn happy.
Writers who actively seek out turmoil and danger in the misguided belief that it will strengthen their writing.
An incredible lack of respect for people who face these situations.

By presenting poverty, mental illness, and substance abuse in a positive light, as necessary for artistic success, we trivialize the battles of people who deal with those issues every single day.

Guess what? I am a writer. I live a comfortable life. I am happy. I have overcome challenges, and they have strengthened me—and certainly color my writing—but they are a part of who I am, a part of my journey and my story. They are not the reason I am a writer.

What do you think? Time to ditch the stereotypes?

17 Comments

Don Clark link

8/26/2016 05:25:15 pm

Great thoughts on a tricky subject. I feel (and hope) that the myth of the disturbed writer is going by the wayside. But, it doesn't help when so many of the brightest literary minds of the past -the classic's in other words- lost their lives due to mental illness/alcoholism/ substance abuse, etc. Hopefully, this misconception is coming to an end and the newest crop of writers won't fall prey to it.

Victoria Griffin link

8/31/2016 07:18:56 pm

Maybe the incredible amount of mentorship occurring among writers will help dispel the stereotypes. We're just now seeing generations of writers growing up with easy access to mentors by way of the internet. Hopefully, they will learn young that happiness and good health drive creativity much more efficiently than depression and angst—even of the teenage variety. :)

Tom Angel link

8/28/2016 01:17:01 pm

Good blog - just as there are always the same things that people say to writers - as seen on this blog:

https://tomhocknell.wordpress.com/2016/08/01/what-people-always-say-to-writers/

P Sean ONeal link

10/13/2016 07:20:15 am

I think those stereotypes came from a time and writers who happened to have some unfortunate flaws while at the same time impacting and changing the way people wrote and thought about writing. In particular I'm thinking of a personal favorite, Hemingway. But its a misconception that one has to be an alcoholic or depressed or have a messed up life to be a great writer. What made Hemingway great, in my opinion, were two things. First that he had lived. He'd gone out and really lived life, experienced it. He sought out new experiences and some pretty amazing one's at that. His life may have ended badly but when you think about it much of how he lived it was quite the adventure. The second thing I think is necessary to any writer is to care about something, find your passion. Creativity and inspiration flow from our passions. Mix that with a generous portion of life experiences and you'll have plenty to write about.

I can't imagine how I would write about things I'd never experienced. An article I was reading recently about the "Overview Effect" (if you've never heard the term it refers to an experience most astronauts report upon seeing the Earth from space for the first time and how it shifts their perception of... pretty much everything) and how some researchers are looking at trying to use VR to bring that experience to more people. Its one of those things that you can describe to someone but unless you've experienced it, well, its just one of those things. Or trying to write about a character coming to terms with the gut wrenching loss of someone they were madly in love with, how do you write that if you've never felt anything like that, never experienced it. But, good or bad, experiencing it doesn't mean becoming lost in it or staying there. I think Hemingway ended as he did because perhaps he'd seen too much and lost too much in his life. But at the same time it was that he had lived so much, experienced so much that let him write as he did. The alcoholism and depression were byproducts.

The most unhealthy thing for a writer, in my opinion, would be not feeling anything. Not caring about anything anymore. With no passion there'd be no creativity, no drive to write. The river of words would dry up into a barren desert of nothing.

But that's just my two bits. I'm gonna go have a glass of good whiskey now, only cause I like the stuff though. :-D

10/16/2016 03:58:29 pm

Thank you for the thoughtful comment! I agree on both points. Many of us writers are introverts and tend to miss many experiences because of it. I know that's something I'm working on myself because you're absolutely right. You have to live to write.

I hadn't heard of attempts to transfer the "Overview Effect" by virtual reality. I'll have to keep an eye on that! I can definitely see how that could change people's perspective.

George McNeese link

10/17/2016 06:28:34 pm

It's definitely time to ditch the stereotypes. As much as I have read author profiles, I fail to see how being alcoholic, starving, or depressing could be a boon to writing.

I admit I have struggles with depression, but nowhere has that contributed to better writing. Now I do write when I'' depressed, but it's mostly to air out the issues I have. As far as starving, that is not an issue. What's more of an issue is that I can eat too much. I need to change my diet drastically, but not to the point where I'm starving. And as for being alcoholic, that's never been a struggle. And never will.

1/8/2017 03:23:26 pm

Perhaps writing is impacted by these things, just as it's impacted by all experiences. But I don't believe anyone can say they make writing easier! And they are definitely not necessary experiences.

J.S. Pailly link

11/27/2016 12:22:14 pm

I may have bought into these stereotypes at some point. It was only after I started putting my health and happiness first that my writing really stared to flourish.

1/8/2017 03:24:44 pm

It seems like writers in particular often neglect self-care, but the mind and body won't perform for us unless we take care of them!

yvette link

12/27/2016 11:36:08 pm

I love this Victoria. It is so true, and I've heard stereotypes like these quite often. The funny thing is that I am very much a whiskey drinker so that one is hard for me to shoot down - but by no means do I need it to write and certainly too much of it will be detrimental for sure to the process!

1/8/2017 03:26:05 pm

Ok, I do love some whiskey! But there's a big difference between drinking and being an alcoholic. I can't imagine trying to focus on writing while dealing with that sort of dependency.

Caroline A. Slee link

1/23/2017 10:49:00 pm

It's so absolutely time to ditch the stereotypes! Writers are people who write - in every mood, moment, and stage of life. No alcohol, starvation, or depression required. Thank you for posting!

Daniel Mattia link

6/5/2017 08:34:23 pm

I think a lot of these inaccurate myths, assumptions, and stereotypes stem from a relation of creative people to issues of dependence, addiction, and mental health problems. That said, correlation does not equal causation and even if studies show that creative people are more prevalent to have issues such as these, that doesn't mean that all writers are REQUIRED to have these issues, nor are they less a writer.

As someone who does in fact deal with depression on a daily basis, I can attest to the fact that it has a very negative effect on my ability to be a functioning writer, nevermind a wholly functional human. Like you said, my experiences certainly color my writing, but that doesn't mean they're a requirement for me to *be* a writer.

I think there's a lot of people out there who inaccurately assume writers must be wannabe Hunter S. Thompsons and Ernest Hemingways, but there is no one "model" for being a writer.

A writer writes. Everything else is chaff.

Hans

6/8/2017 06:03:28 am

Very touchy subject, to be honest.
Sure, you can not expect a writer to be a senticed alci, addicted to everything possible, victimised by church, army and the devil.
We would have no life.
But... if you do, it gives you a possibility to add an realistic depth.
Imagination, empathy and research can learn you a lot, but , for instance, I came across a lot of lung-specialist who admitted that they don't know how it feels to fight for each breath.
If you were ever in any of those horrible situations, you know if a writer did proper research, or was Just quickly filling his page.

6/25/2017 03:02:29 pm

Sometimes, writing can be used as pressure relieve, when you have gone through hell and back.

Veronica Hosking link

2/7/2018 12:46:50 pm

Isn’t that what writers tears whiskey is for? I want to know who their marketing person is? The ploy worked on me, but I cannot find it. So I’ll have to remain a sober poet.

Lloyd Lofthouse link

3/31/2018 08:46:41 pm

I read that the author of "The Lovely Bones" Alice Sebold was working toward her MFA in writing when she decided she hadn't suffered and/or struggled enough in life to be able to write about it so she dropped out and moved to New York City where she eventually was mugged and raped. Then she wrote the 2002 novel about a teenager girl who was raped and murdered.

I wonder if she went out looking to be mugged or raped. I hope not.

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