Writing the real.

One of the lecturers in my graduate program used to tell students to “go to the hot stove.” I have always avoided writing about myself because it felt like cheating. If I can’t make up believable fictional characters without them being me or someone I know, then I didn’t feel like I was successful as a writer.

That’s bullshit. That was my own flawed thinking, and flawed it was.

In order to write believable characters there is always going to be a piece of yourself or someone you know, otherwise the writing often falls flat. So write what you know. Write bravely. Fearlessly. Writing without concern about what other people might think. Write what is true to you. Your truth may not be someone else’s truth, but that is what makes life and writing interesting. We all have different perspectives. Own yours.