This is not a real post but I wanted to pass this along: an article by Olivia Laing in today's Guardian about women writers and alcohol. In her fantastic recent book, The Trip to Echo Spring, Laing looks at the link between writing and alcohol among six famous male writers, and she's a strong critic of the myth that drink helps people be creative. It's probably going to irritate some people, but it's sure worth a read.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jun/13/alcoholic-female-women-writers-marguerite-duras-jean-rhys
Laing was interviewed for public radio network in the USA and was asked why she hadn't included women writers in her book. She answered "that book needs to be written" and that it was too close to home for her as her mother was an alcoholic. I don't have a link to that interview but it is worth finding. Thanks for you blog, I've been sober for over a year and am enjoying everything about my life so much more than before. I'd like to suggest "Todays Step", a website for people in recovery and it's not at all religious in nature!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the interview tip, Laur. I'll look it up for sure. I really liked Laing's book. She writes so well and with such understanding and compassion about alcoholism, but she's got enough distance form it that she never glorifies the drink. I do hope she writes the next book if she can.
DeleteThanks for reading and for saying hi. Thanks for the site you mention, too. And big congrats to you on being sober for over a year. It's wonderful to hear you say it's great. I'm finding much the same, and I'm so happy about that! Take care. xo