While writers usually lie to millions of folks – it is what fiction is by definition, they are usually more honest amongst their own inner circle of writers. You don’t get to that spot easily. You spend ups and downs, you show your acceptance and they show theirs. Over time, life reveals people to you. Then, we few, we happy few, we Band of Brothers…(sorry, I break off easily into Henry V for no reason at all). But I digress…
Medicines that Affect Your Brain
They may lie to their spouses, friends, dates, roommates, etc, but when it comes right down to it, stoned and drunk people are thinking very little of their next book idea, and even less about actually writing something on it. Recreationally, they may turn to such things as an excuse to chase the Green Genie or to release their imagination, most of the time they are pissed off they don’t have ideas they think are actually good enough to justify they hard work of writing them down – so they get drunk.
That does not mean that their aren’t stars who are awesome stoned, I wonder what Morrison would have been like if he had been sober? Stephen King was a master novelist with or without drinks and drugs. Would Cujo have been better if he could remember having written most of it? I am only speaking of novelists for the most part here, not performance art, poetry, and other things that I think actually were created to do while high.
In my own experience, I have been on Morphine and Percoset for some time now, legally, through doctors and pain specialists. First, for two months waiting to excise my dead bones. The pain from the bones was too much for me to get things done. With the pain killers, the pain was dulled enough I could write, but my memory came and went on small items. (Wow, I wrote that same scene in TWO chapters back to back, not just one…) Now, I have had my dead upper femur, joint and hip removed. I am still on post op morphine and percoset and I have to tell you – Choice A – pain from Hell you would take anything to stop, Choice B – still a lot of pain but bizarre bad dreams, sweats, and a general lack of ideas that when written on paper, form a sentence.
I am recovering, thanks to God, your prayers, well wishers, my wife who takes care of me and my wonderful doctors, so I hope this recovery time is short. I have lucid times totalling about 6 hours per day in which I get my contract work done, but not much on my own fun stuff. I grew up in the drug scene in California in the 60s and 70s but did not participate much. For a few years around college I drank too much but that was about it. Still, then and now, I know many who choose the “lifestyle”. Those who take me into their confidence have all so far agreed that they usually get high to avoid stressing on trying to write when they are stuck. Very few get their ideas in a clowded state.
The Troubled Artist
I think this myth is a correlation mistaken as a causal relationship. Forgive me my economics… To make it clearer – Study shows that drinking diet sodas makes people fatter! We see that crap all the time. Then, if they even print it, you find the study. 1,200 people were interviewed. Those who said they drank more diet sodas were 40% fatter than those that did not. That is a correlation mistaken as a causal relationship. I have no doubt that fat people drink more diet soda. They refuse themselves the sweeter cola because they are fat! My hypothesis for the same data is that fat people, trying to maintain or lose weight, choose to drink diet sodas. It is physically impossible to provide a human body an object containing zero calories and expect it to gain weight.
I think a lot of Artists and Novelists who are outstanding live ‘troubled lives”. I would say that half of people working as dishwashers at bad restaurants lead “troubled” lives. I would guess nearly 100% of prostitutes or people starving in Africa live “troubled lives.” So why then are there not agents and publishers seeking out those people to write them books? I think it is simple correlation. Most people lead troubled lives, some happen to be authors and poets (I mean by some arguments only around 2,000 novelists at any time are living off their book income). I reject that troubles make you write better – because you “know.” Unless you sing or write the Blues, and then any fool knows it is the truth.
Again, within the inner circle of published authors, you are more likely to hear about illness, surgeries, dying loved ones, kids or parents with problems, money issues, cars that stopped working, looking for a job, housing issues, etc. I have not once heard one say, I am so glad I have all these troubles, because my writing is showing so much more emotional depth now. Usually, the say, “that project is on hold for days, months, years, because of…hope I can get back on it… may never finish it…
My Writing Mode
Sitting in front of the computer screen, an ice cold Diet Pepsi (because I am fat I guess), a good mood, a clear head, my three dogs lying on my feet or the feet of my wife next to me on her own computer. That is hitting on all cylinders for me. Pain, troubles, drugs, drama are all the opposite of what let’s me write.
I had a post much earlier on this blog on those who die too young due to the “troubled lifestyle”. River Phoenix, Whitney Houston, Amy Winehouse, Heath Ledger, Michael Jackson and on and on. As a tip from a fellow writer. It won’t help your writing. If you want to write dark stuff, you will experience enough in this world and see enough to have plenty of material.
Michael Bradley - Time Traveler 