'Write drunk; edit sober' - Hemingway

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Coop720

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This cropped up in another thread of mine so I thought it would be an interesting discussion point.

Do you ever use any thing that puts you 'under the influence' to write?

For me alcohol or sleep deprivation sometimes brings out a much more passionate writer (sometimes for the best).

Any stories/tips for opening up that third eye?
 

Anninyn

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Hemingway was an alcoholic, though.

I usually write 'in my right mind' as too much of an influence makes my work incoherent. But sometimes when it's just not flowing for whatever reason, a glass of wine or the equivalent lubricates it. It's never my best work, but it often has passion, intensity and bravery.

I do not advice writing when actually DRUNK drunk. What comes out when I do that is mush.
 

seun

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I look at it this way: I wouldn't come into my 9-5 pissed and expect to do my job better than I do sober so why should I expect to do my other job of being a writer if I've had a few shandies first?
 

Scribble Orca

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Sleep deprivation might make me write more, but not generally carefully.

I finished my novel in a very sleep deprived state - not from staying up to finish, but over the four nights it took to nail the last chapters, I kept dreaming of my characters - and they were in the middle of the harrowing climax. So was I - even while sleeping!

A glass of wine might put me in the mood to write - editing definitely has to be done sober. And refreshed!
 

KellyAssauer

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For me to say that I write in my right mind... would be both presumptuous and overstepping. However, initial writing or free writing or capturing ideas on the fly can come at anytime, while rewrites and edits demand a clear head. Soooo, sure, alcohol, sleep deprivation, meditation, and many other things can often initiate creativity for me, but narrowing it down to one or two mood altering influences just isn't me. I think I'm more reactive in that I'll allow a host of influences instead of pro-actively looking for that one magic pill. =)
 

onesecondglance

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I get many of my best ideas when I'm tired, but I can't concentrate well enough to write then. I'm much more productive during office hours, which is a bit of a bind given I have a job I'm supposed to be doing.
 

Bufty

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I don't think Hemmingway was suggesting you need to be drunk to write well - I think he's suggesting you remember to be sober when you edit the genius stuff you thought you were writing when drunk.


Enter - Drinking while writing - in the site specific Google search box to the bottom left of the page and you'll find links to when this topic was raised before. ETA - BUT please don't bring long-dead threads back to life by posting in them.
 
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KellyAssauer

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Enter - Drinking while writing - in the site specific Google search box to the bottom left of the page and you'll find links to when this topic was raised before.

-with the caveat of-
Please don't raise any long dead "zombie" threads!

=)
 

skink

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I tend to do both ends of the spectrum - sometimes getting drunk can free up the writing, and I'm with Kerouac that red wine is best for maintaining a functioning level of inebriation without tipping over into a paralytic state.
I also find, like Haruki Murakami, that running is a great tonic. Your mind drifts into a state of non-thinking that allows the subconscious to work on problems.
I often get my best ideas while running, and do my best writing when pissed.
 

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I get good ideas while I'm doing mindless things - sleeping (I've started keeping a notebook by the bed), exercising, gardening, and, most often, showering. To the point that if I get stuck on something I'm writing, I have a nap or a shower and generally am able to get back to work afterward.

So I can see the connection with drinking - anything to shut up the conscious, analytical part of my brain. I'll have a couple glasses of wine over an evening of writing sometimes, but drunk wouldn't work for me. It would be too far out of control.
 

leahzero

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I don't think Hemmingway was suggesting you need to be drunk to write well - I think he's suggesting you remember to be sober when you edit the genius stuff you thought you were writing when drunk.

That's an interesting way to spin it. I like.

"Drunk" could mean anything that lowers inhibitions and silences the fussy little inner editor.

I do think some of my best writing comes during a state of lowered inhibition, whether that's from lack of sleep, emotional vulnerability, whatever.

But that writing also depends on solid plotting and visualizing that was done while alert and clear-headed. Without that framework, it's a lot of pretty, poetic prose that goes nowhere.
 

ccarver30

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That's an interesting way to spin it. I like.

"Drunk" could mean anything that lowers inhibitions and silences the fussy little inner editor.

I do think some of my best writing comes during a state of lowered inhibition, whether that's from lack of sleep, emotional vulnerability, whatever.

But that writing also depends on solid plotting and visualizing that was done while alert and clear-headed. Without that framework, it's a lot of pretty, poetic prose that goes nowhere.

I try to turn off my editor (LOL) but I just can't do it.
I love to go write at Starbucks with a mocha or caramel latte- the noisier, the better. Haven't done that it many a moon though. :(
 
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I've written drunk. And yes, it was published.

Being pissed doesn't change the quality of my writing at all. It just stops me giving a shit while I write it.
 

KellyAssauer

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I do think some of my best writing comes during a state of lowered inhibition, whether that's from lack of sleep, emotional vulnerability, whatever.

Not to derail... but what the heck is it with those minutes in the morning when I'm first waking and that tiny little period of time at night when I am besieged with ideas? I can't keep up with them!!
 
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Not to derail... but what the heck is it with those minutes in the morning when I'm first waking and that tiny little period of time at night when I am besieged with ideas? I can't keep up with them!!
I get that too. It's because you're on the edge of sleep and your conscious mind is beginning to drop off.
 

Alpha Echo

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I get many of my best ideas when I'm tired, but I can't concentrate well enough to write then. I'm much more productive during office hours, which is a bit of a bind given I have a job I'm supposed to be doing.

This.

I do occasionally do both - edit and write - while drinking. But I get to a point during both where I need to stop. If I'm getting drunk, that is. But sipping on wine while I write or edit is not uncommon (though I don't do so all the time. I just depends on the time of day).
 

seun

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Not to derail... but what the heck is it with those minutes in the morning when I'm first waking and that tiny little period of time at night when I am besieged with ideas? I can't keep up with them!!

Yep, count me in, too. I fall asleep, promising myself I'll remember the ideas the next day. I rarely do.
 

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Alcohol could do wonders for writing if it gets you in a really emotional state, but it's funny because a lot of rappers today use marijuana to write lyrics for their songs.

So being under the influence does have some creative element to it, but I don't find that alcohol works best because there's the obvious fact that it's a depressant and may not channel the best in you.
 

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All of my stories owe a little something to the barley, the hops and the grape. I've drank my way through some first drafts, rolling on the floor, acting out scenes, typing like I'm playing the frigging piano. Endless cigerattes and swimming pools of booze.

The one non-fiction book that I wrote under a pen-name stone-cold sober following a detox at a buddhist temple has sold more than my drunken ramblings. So I guess the drugs don't work.
 

OctoberLee

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I don't think I ever wrote anything worth reading when sloshed, but I frequently have a beer or a glass of wine when I sit down to write. Evening = a beer, morning = a pot of coffee :D hm maybe I should compare my upper writing to my downer writing
 

shadowwalker

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I look at the "write while drunk" thing kinda like I do the "drive while drunk" - a lot of people think they can. The messy cleanup afterwards makes me figure it's not really worth it.
 
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I've never killed anyone writing drunk, though. And like I said before, what I have written drunk was published. Didn't take much editing, either.
 

Layla Nahar

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I think it's ok to get intoxicated for the sake of getting intoxicated if one is aware of the risks. But to use intoxication as a means to something other than getting intoxicated increases the likelihood of forming a habit. Apologies if sounding like a fuddy-duddy/Debbie Downer. I'm all for it, I think it can be fun and can be a learning experience*, but there are a lot of risks and it's easy to ignore or gloss over them. And even those who accept and try to be aware of the risks might miss the one(s) that pertain especially to their own situation.

*"When you get the message, hang up the phone." Alan Watts
 
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