Drugs/Alcohol and Writing

[cowcatcher]

There are some great authors who are known for their drug and/or alcohol use. I don't think Hemingway would have been as good an author without that.
Do you think that drugs and/or alcohol open creativity and make for better literature?

 

[passenger]

You know, I'm thinking that's probably a good point......that they go together. I'm triggered back to thoughts of Edgar Allen Poe; I think that he was terribly addicted to something.
Guess I'm just not motivated enough to be so creative........so, IMO, not worth it.

 

[PGen98]

You know, I'm thinking that's probably a good point......that they go together. I'm triggered back to thoughts of Edgar Allen Poe; I think that he was terribly addicted to something.
Guess I'm just not motivated enough to be so creative........so, IMO, not worth it.

He was indeed, he was an alcoholic. A pretty poor one at that.

Addiction and creativity often go together, as the most creative souls were usually also among the most tortured souls out there, struggling with one demon or another.

 

[Black Angel]

There are some great authors who are known for their drug and/or alcohol use. I don't think Hemingway would have been as good an author without that.
Do you think that drugs and/or alcohol open creativity and make for better literature?

Yes.

It does.

Both THC and CBD have played an essential part in restoring my memory where creative projects are concerned.. as well as restoring my memory in general. The only reason I have been using it as often as I have was because of the pain I was in but in doing so, it reversed the memory loss I had from mold toxicity earlier this year.. In truth, everything I like about myself when sober, actually gets better when I am high.. I am pretty brainy in general, but when I am high, it is really scary.. and I get some of my best ideas when high and I have even improved upon the ideas I had when I was sober..

But I only consider that as a side perk because I primarily use it for pain. I try not to think about the other benefits because then I would be using it more often aside from pain management.. and it would be expensive as hell.

 

[Mendalla]

I'm triggered back to thoughts of Edgar Allen Poe; I think that he was terribly addicted to something.

And whatever good it did for his creativity, it also killed him in the end or at least set the stage for his untimely demise.

I think both can certainly play a role in creativity up to a point, but I would not go so far as to say they are necessary. Perhaps they do help some people. The question is whether the reward is worth the risk. Some of those creative writers who were addicts also lost chunks of their lives to their addictions. I've heard that Stephen King apparently doesn't remember writing one of his novels (maybe Cujo?) thanks to substance abuse. Needless to say, he cleaned up eventually and still puts out very creative stuff sans chemical assistance.

 

[Speaks]

There are some great authors who are known for their drug and/or alcohol use. I don't think Hemingway would have been as good an author without that.
Do you think that drugs and/or alcohol open creativity and make for better literature?

It depends on the person I think. If I smoke pot I’m useless unmotivated. I can’t smoke and write.