Shitty Life = Great Fiction?

[S-Des]

Everybody has tragedy in their lives and it would be incredibly arrogant of me to assume my pain was any worse than someone else's. I do use it for inspiration in my stories (to build tension). When I can, I use actual events from my life (both because they ring true to the reader and sometimes I just need to talk about it and get it out). However, sadness and misery without some kind of joy would be kind of pointless. I agree with Charley's sentiment, growing up and using all of your experiences (plus doing research to learn more) will make you a much more complete writer and more interesting to the average reader.

 

[DanseMacabre]

Do I know you?

My dear lady, not at all. However, I feel as if I know you through your heartfelt stories. You deserve your acclaim, and I am at your service.

S-Des, I agree wholeheartedly. Without balance, there is chaos.

 

[Aurora Black]

My dear lady, not at all. However, I feel as if I know you through your heartfelt stories. You deserve your acclaim, and I am at your service.

Thank you.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

An unhappy person is prone to examine things and search for a way out of their unhappiness in a way that a satisfied person is not. That doesn't mean that every great writer was always unhappy, but I would bet that everyone of them went through a period of unhappiness early on that gave them that curious and analytical 'outsider' mindset that allowed them to see things that more well-adjusted people just never noticed.

Of course, writers aren't alone among artists in being largely unhappy. The same is true for painters, musicians (especially popular musicians. It's well known that classical musicians are more well-adjusted and live longer lives than pop or jazz musicians), comedians, and actors.

It's good to ask just what kind of happiness writers suffer from as well, becauise I think it's a matter of quality as well as quantity. I mean, these aren't people who are discontented because they didn't get a pony when they were 12, or made bad mariages in their adult years. or lost all their money and develoiped bad teeth in their 30's. Their unhappiness usually arises from a loss of affection or feeling of alienation that happened early in childhood. That not only provides the impetus for them to develop the unconscious habit of questioning what went wrong--a habit they bring to their work--but gives them a sense of exclusion from society at large. It's that 'outsider' position that gives them their vantage point from which to make their observations.

Also, I really think you have to be driven to write to make it in the field of literature. It's not a field any sane person goes into for the money.

You certainly don't have to be unhappy to make it as an author. I don't know that Stephen King or J.K. Rowling had unhappy childhoods, and from what I understand Michael Crichton is as happy as a clam. But as good as these people are, they don't write big-L Literature, fiction that sheds light on the human experience and meaning of life and all that. That kind of stuff seems largely confined to people who've been wounded in some way and spend the rest of their lives more or less consumed with figuring out what went wrong and looking at other people and wondering how they got it right.

Just my opinion.

 

[Aurora Black]

But as good as these people are, they don't write big-L Literature, fiction that sheds light on the human experience and meaning of life and all that. That kind of stuff seems largely confined to people who've been wounded in some way and spend the rest of their lives more or less consumed with figuring out what went wrong and looking at other people and wondering how they got it right.

Just my opinion.

That's what I wanted to know, Doc. Whether or not the authors who write real Literature are somehow scarred from the harsh events in their lives, causing them to write the way they do.

 

[rgraham666]

I can't help but wonder if that 'outsider' mentality existed before they were scarred, and is in a large part a cause of it.

As far as I can remember I've always been different from most of the people around me. And most of the people around me disliked me for it. It's made most of my life a rather painful thing.

Dr_m's right about trying to figure out how to get things right through writing. It's one of the main reasons I write.

 

[Aurora Black]

Dr_m's right about trying to figure out how to get things right through writing. It's one of the main reasons I write.

Me too, Rob.

 

[DanseMacabre]

I see writing as a way to exorcise my painful demons.