Does anyone drink when they write?

A

Angelshare1

Well-known member
Serious question. I was posting on a different message board about screenplay syntax and I mentioned that I was hungover. I got a bit tongue lashing from someone who said it wouldn't make me a better writer, bad for my health, not creative, ect, ect. So I was wondering if this was common. (I've heard in literature, there's been 1 or 2 writers that have had a drink or two. :laugh:)

So sometimes I do drink and write. I don't write to drink or anything like that. If I'm having a few and have a good idea, I'll sit down and start writing. I find that I am afraid to put words on the page sometimes because it's difficult to go back and edit your own work. Almost like it's permanent once it's written. Having a few and then writing seems to get my mind off of how it will look on the screen and usually I go back to read it and I like what I've done. My actors certainly like the dialogue that's usually more in depth than the quick cuts that we need to incorporate into writing these days.

So I don't want to hear any comments from non-drinkers. The "i don't need alcohol to enjoy life" crowd can sit this one out. Just wondering if anyone else drinks and writes.
 
I used to find that jotting ideas down while under the influence yielded good ideas about half of the time. One time, it was the thesis for a major paper on Julius Caesar that, if I do say so myself, was unique and clever.

But actual writing? That's why there's coffee.

Now ideas come while I'm running or taking a shower.
 
Ya, I'll sit down with a friend or two, have a few beers and we'll all jot down ideas that we come up with. Honestly i find my idea success rate to be about the same doing this compared to if I wasn't enjoying a beverage so the whole thing is "meh" for me.

But for actual writing, I'll indulge in other things (coffee) instead of a drink.
 
I occasionally like to brainstorm while having a couple of drinks. I am ADD and I find that a few cocktails lower my inhibitions and allows fresh ideas (from ridiculous to brilliant) flow out from my sub-conscious before they are squashed by the conscious mind. I had some major revealations with a story I'm working, that forced me to completely revise my antagonist. I am still working that angle now.

Its simple. Write down your ideas, review them later when you are in the right frame of mind, and see if they have merrit. :cheesy:

My advice and $5.00 will get you a Latte @ Starbucks.
 
Not to derail this thread, but I'm curious if anyone practices transcendental meditation and, if so, if it contributes to idea-generating. David Lynch swears by it.
 
A writer writes, to be sure; but so does a writer drink (and/or otherwise expand his mind). To deny this is to deny the history of literature. Of course there are exceptions to every rule; but come on, we all know the tales of the great scribes and their infamous vice(s) of choice..

Like it or not writers and booze are forever linked.
 
I like drinking while writing (not too heavily though, otherwise I wake up with drool all over my notepad - eep!), my colleagues and I usually sit around and have a few while we discuss ideas - have had some fairly decent success from collaborating like this. like some mentioned it's about 50/50 for any decent ideas coming from drinking and writing by myself. I do, however, have insane amounts of ideas come to mind when I'm doing physical activity (biking, running, etc) - unfortunately I don't bike or run with pen and paper so I'm forced to remember them as best I can until I get home. I have meditated a few times and never had any clarity of mind come from it that inspired me to write (nothing good ever happens the first time though, right?).

-Adam
 
CallaghanFilms said:
A writer writes, to be sure; but so does a writer drink (and/or otherwise expand his mind). To deny this is to deny the history of literature. Of course there are exceptions to every rule; but come on, we all know the tales of the great scribes and their infamous vice(s) of choice..

Like it or not writers and booze are forever linked.
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Drinking is definitely not my choice. But, I have a certain something that puts me in a serious zone EVERY time, at three to four hour stints.

It definitely cannot be smoked.

LOL
 
Richard J. Johnson said:
I do drink when I write....and edit, and Color Correct, and read, and watch TV, and shoot, and score...well you get the picture:beer:
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HAHA I was about to write that, you beat me to it! I was going to say, "Of course I drink while I write, but then again I drink while I do anything so writing isn't something special." haha.

I would hesitate to say that I never drink while writing... maybe it has happened, I love drinking and it's healthy for you, actually. People who don't drink cannot hope to enjoy the health that people who do drink can have, but that is in moderation, and we all know that's very low. Two drinks a day for guys, one for gals ;) But it's bad for your health never to drink, and never let anyone tell you otherwise. Those people are mistaken and unhappy and they cry themselves to sleep at night. ;) I think while outlining, I sometimes drink, because outlining is absolutely not a process you can force. It MUST come naturally. It could take me hours to come up with a few scene ideas, and I may rewrite them in outlining later still.

The actual writing, however, I stick to caffeine like the other guys said, coffee, energy drinks, FRS (natural energy), etc.
 
If it work, it work. But I have a problem with trust in something to write: some ron, smoke, some music, etc. What if, for any reason, this cane is missing?
I think every cane is a bad habit to write, but I have tons of rituals myself.
 
I usually either have a powerade, or an energy drink. Anything that helps me stay awake really, coffee is another good choice of mine.
 
Jordan_S said:
Not to derail this thread, but I'm curious if anyone practices transcendental meditation and, if so, if it contributes to idea-generating. David Lynch swears by it.
Click to expand...

meh.. i don't really buy into that stuff. although i'm sure that meditation of some sort is healthy, i doubt that there's a secret formula for inspiration. haven't tried it myself.

on the topic of writing and booze and such, here's an excerpt of a poem by 11th century Persian Poet Omar Khayyam:

O cleric, we are more active than you,
even so drunk, we are more attentive than you,
You drink the blood of men, we drink the blood of grapes,
Be fair, which one of us is more bloodthirsty?
Click to expand...
 
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