When I was in Glasgow for Worldcon, I shared a few pictures on my Instagram account. Among them were shots of the full Scottish breakfast I got to use as fuel for the day.
Someone commented on the post that I should “eat less and write more.” I’m sure the person who left that comment had no ill intent and meant it as a compliment of sorts, but it still rubbed me the wrong way just a little bit.
What I do—what all writers I know do as well—is informed and fueled by our lives. We synthesize our personal experiences and perspectives and turn them into fiction. In order to do that well, we have to, you know, live our lives. I do most of my work in a room by myself with just me and the screen or the notebook in front of me. Whenever I don’t work, I need to step out into life and refill those experience bars again, and I also like to meet old friends and eat good food because those are the sort of things that sustain me and keep me at my desk the rest of the time. In fact, whenever I go without them too long, I feel my writing dropping in quality because it’s not healthy to live almost exclusively in your own head and let those socialization and experience bars go down to nothing. The trip to Glasgow was, in fact, only my second trip of the entire year, and the only one that was work-related. I got to see writer friends I hadn’t seen since before the pandemic, and it was a much-overdue event for my mental health.
When you tell me to cut out enjoying that part of my life and go back to my office, you irritate me and spoil my enjoyment, and you make me pull back from sharing my life in public in order to avoid getting irritated and having my joy spoiled. It’ll also make my work less enjoyable in the long run because I’ll eventually suffer a creative slump or burnout if I am locked in the office by myself all year. Neither of those outcomes are in any way positive for either you or me.
I guess what I am trying to get across is this—writers are not vending machines, so please don’t treat your favorite authors as such, even if it implies that you love our writing so much that you’d rather we never did anything else so you can get your fictional treats more quickly. We need time to restock so you won’t be stuck with the stale novella in slot C5 that’s been put there without much care by a tired and overworked brain. Please think before you comment, and let us have a life outside of work as well without making us feel bad for it.
All of the above and one more! Although I‘d love to read more of your books, waiting for them is worthwhile. Don‘t let the trolls get to you. Live your life as you think best.
That’s a shame someone would be so rude. You make amazing books and im on the last book of palladium wars. Ive reread all pf your books except for this last one 3 times. Luke Daniel’s kills the audio recordings. I just realized as I was going through your blog, you were in washington just shortly after I arrived in Bremerton during her decommission for emerald city comic con . Will you be coming to any conventions out west again? I hope you do more conventions I want to get all your book signed. I hold you in high regard right next to R.A. Salvatore in world building and story telling.
That was a truly awesome post. Thank you for humanizing yourself.
I now have more patience for GRRM.
I get it. People will write, or say, things that they would never say in a face-to-face conversation when insulated by a computer or cell phone. If that person had run into you during that breakfast, having met you for the first time, they probably wouldn’t have had the nerve to say that to you. Maybe they would have given it some thought beforehand and concluded it might be impolite. That thought process is absent at the keyboard and cell phone. Perhaps not in that particular instance, but in most cases, pressing ‘send’ or ‘comment’ amounts to ‘and take THAT, HAH!!!’. It amounts to the ‘letter balls’ phenomenon found throughout all forms of social media. Closely related to ‘phone balls’ which has been around a lot longer. So, if you do stop sharing it will be understandable, although I hope it doesn’t come to that.
Oof. I felt that. Also, what commenters like that never understand is how hard creatives are on themselves about output, so reading that kind of thing can often reinforce horrific negative self-talk. That mindset is damaging and dangerous and I know this kind of post is hard to write, but thank you for standing up and pointing out when someone has crossed the line.
So, you were in Scotland.
Please tell me that you did partake of Haggis.
I would be more worried if you were at Worldcon and writing.
Relaxing, networking, enjoying foreign cuisines (if I ever make it to Scotland Haggis will be my first meal), and reconnecting with friends is a must. So good for you.
I do have question for you.
Should Hecate be pronounced with 2 syllables as in Shakespearean plays or 3 syllables as in mythology.
In third book every time he pronounced Hecate it was like fingernails on a chalkboard for me.
Just wondering
Life is to be lived. Don’t let rocks from the occasional troll sabotage that for you.
Completely agree with you. We all need time out so we can be recharge.