Writing Under the Influence

[Max]

Seems like an appropriate question for the Quill and Feather Pub.

Just wondering, do any of you drink when you write? As in alcohol, because I'm, aware that for many, coffee is a must.

When you looked at the work later, after the effects of alcohol had worn off, what'd you think of your work?

Ever written when you were smashed?

Full disclosure, I've not written when smashed. I've had a beer or two, but my work ethic seems to change when I've had a couple. At least, when I'm in the company of other writers and we should be engaged in a write-in.

[Post-Doctorate D]

Having never been drunk, no.

But, I have written when very tired.  I remember one time in the middle of the night or so, I had a great story idea and wrote it down on a scrap of paper.  When I later found that scrap of paper, it was completely illegible.  I have no idea what I wrote down.  None.  I'm guessing it was probably the only million dollar idea I'll ever have.

[LD]

Tried it once, not drunk, but relaxed.  And it didn't turn out well.  Couldn't focus.

[RCoots]

I edit with wine in hand at times. Don't usually write. I have tried to write after taking a muscle relaxer. NOT GOOD. Couldn't focus long enough to make my fingers work.

[Lex]

Smashed? No. A little tipsy/buzzed? Yes, on maybe a handful of occasions.


I don't think it affected the writing, but it did shut my inner critic up.

[Kate Elizabeth]

I was taking sinus medication, plus cough syrup, and I was trying to write a sex scene.  I remember giggling a lot, but not much else.  Surprisingly, it ended up being pretty good.

[A. N. Onymous]

One of my best and clearest characters came from an Endone(morphine), dream after surgery once. Back when I was drinking, I would write and I can't say that it hindered me as such. Maybe that's because I suck sober or drunk? Many a classic writer wrote while smashed or drugged.

[guest153]

I write in the mornings after I've had my shower and coffee, so probably wouldn't be a good idea to write under the influence. Especially because I have a day job, and something tells me "drunken rambling" wouldn't be counted as a lecture by the university.


But I used to write at night and I would sometimes do so with a scotch in hand. It takes a few drinks before I even feel a buzz so it didn't have a huge impact on my writing. In general, I just found it hard to focus after a long day of work.

[Shoe]

It's a bad idea for most unless you're always drunk and have no choice.


Most famous authors who who drank pretty much throughout the day and night couldn't write sober (Cheever was one. Carver up to a point. He sobered up near the end.). Hemingway said he never wrote drunk, but I'm quite sure with his prodigious drinking he was hungover as hell during his morning writing sessions.


Many great writers were also famous alcoholics, but I wasn't use booze as a strategy to find your muse.

[bookworm]

I write sometimes while exhausted. I find my critic is a lot quieter then.

[Max]

I kept trying to remember what made me think of this post.

Bars where authors write.

https://lithub.com/a-visual-tour-of-35-literary-bars-and-cafes-from-around-the-world/

https://www.ranker.com/list/pictures-of-old-bars-where-writers-hung-out/lyra-radford

Silly as this may sound, I may put together a checklist of bars (or maybe places) where writers wrote. Make that my travel bucket list. I love traveling.

[CoraBuhlert]

I sometimes have a glass of wine or two when I write, but any more and I start making weird typos.

[RPatton]

Sometimes I'll have a drink. Never intoxicated, though. And I don't say to myself, I'm writing and drinking tonight. It's more, I have a drink and something loosens and I get past something that's been blocking my words.


I wouldn't say my writing is better or worse, or even different. My editor can't tell the difference either. I would think if I was drunk, it would be a different story.

[Val Savage]

Never. I'm a bad example, though. Hardly ever drink. I'd rather eat a brownie. But I wouldn't consume edibles and write either. All I'm qualified for at that point is watching American Dad and going to sleep, but it's always fun to see other people's processes. I saw a video once of Lil Wayne working in a studio. He lit up, listened to a beat, started rapping over it, repeated the rap over and over, changing it little by little until he got it right. Never wrote a single word down.

[Michelle Louring]

I have been proper drunk only twice in my life. One of those times, fueled purely on vodka, I wrote 7 A4 pages by hand on a short story. When I read it the next day, not only did the story make sense, there was not a single spelling mistake. I might actually be a better writer when hammered.
I would like to add that it took me 3 tries to get into the bathroom after I finished writing that night, because I kept walking into the doorframe 

[Jeff Tanyard]

I have been proper drunk only twice in my life. One of those times, fueled purely on vodka, I wrote 7 A4 pages by hand on a short story. When I read it the next day, not only did the story make sense, there was not a single spelling mistake. I might actually be a better writer when hammered.
I would like to add that it took me 3 tries to get into the bathroom after I finished writing that night, because I kept walking into the doorframe 

 
 

[Robin]

I'm teetotal so I have no idea if alcohol would help my creativity, but probably not. I keep a big bottle of mineral water by side when I write so I keep hydrated.


Exciting aren't I? 

[idontknowyet]

I'm teetotal so I have no idea if alcohol would help my creativity, but probably not. I keep a big bottle of mineral water by side when I write so I keep hydrated.


Exciting aren't I? 

We should start a club. Though I really don't like the taste of mineral water. Just plain filtered ice water for me.

[Robin]

I'm teetotal so I have no idea if alcohol would help my creativity, but probably not. I keep a big bottle of mineral water by side when I write so I keep hydrated.


Exciting aren't I? 

We should start a club. Though I really don't like the taste of mineral water. Just plain filtered ice water for me.

Ha! I like the idea of a club 

[kathompson]

I've written a bit while drinking; not drunk, just a nice pleasant buzz. I don't think the quality of my writing improved or suffered, but I did learn that when I'm writing something tense, if I take a sip, I tend to hold it in my mouth for a while.

Fireball is not your friend if it sits on your tongue for a couple minutes. 

[R. C.]

Words of truth not uttered by Ernest Hemingway ---- Write drunk, edit sober.


Cheers,
Ruairí

[LilyBLily]

Never been drunk. Sampled a fair amount of classy wine and champagne, but...meh. Also, I never had any interest in the lifestyle of the drinker as portrayed by many media. Smoky bars make my eyes hurt.

[Rob Martin]

Tried it a couple of times, but according to reports, when I'm buzzed my ADHD kicks in with a vengeance and I can't get anything accomplished. This is further supported by reading what I wrote under the influence. It started off well, but quickly devolved into characters asking questions like," I wonder how many pixels are in the letter 'K'?" and "If we attempt to solve for Pi. Pi? Pie? Hmm, pie. Oh, I wonder if there's any apple pie left in the fridge. Apples. I love apples. Apple. Apple? Hey, do I need a new computer?" On the plus side, I generally managed 3-4k words during those sessions.

[Rick Partlow]

I don't know if I've ever written inebriated, but I once wrote the better part of a chapter after I took an Ambien, and I don't remember writing any of it.  It wasn't bad, but there were a lot of misspellings.

[Anarchist]

This thread reminds me of the "drugged spider" study...





I wonder if the spider thought to himself, "I'm totally making an awesome web!"

Real or not, it still makes me chuckle.

[dgcasey]

Never been drunk, so I wouldn't know and being 60-years-old now, it doesn't seem like something I should start. I've seen the point of drinking, so I never started. Kind of like smoking. I can remember smoking two cigarettes in my life and both of them were before I was twelve.

[Max]

This thread reminds me of the "drugged spider" study...





I wonder if the spider thought to himself, "I'm totally making an awesome web!"

Real or not, it still makes me chuckle.

Same. Thank you!

[Jeff Tanyard]

I don't know if I've ever written inebriated, but I once wrote the better part of a chapter after I took an Ambien, and I don't remember writing any of it.  It wasn't bad, but there were a lot of misspellings.