by L.C.

Created on: May 02, 2009

The old adage generally goes "Draw what you see, write what you know." I like to stick with this proverb, as it is certainly a piece of wise advice. Simply put, writing what you know will enhance your creative writing because it will add authority to the text. Your facts will be solid, and you will be sure to have a better grasp on any events, emotions, actions, or other important elements.

This holds particularly true to stories written in the past. If you have studied at length the Renaissance, then you will have no trouble writing about the different inventions, clothing, mannerisms, laws, and other such things of the period. On the other hand, if you know absolutely nothing about the Renaissance and simply begin to write without doing any research, you might stick in cars when there weren't any, and make up laws that didn't exist at the time. This is a big problem, because unless your goal is to write about the Renaissance but deliberately change the technological advances or laws, then your readers will most definitely pick up on the lack of factual accuracy.

Writing about various events and emotions might make it so that you'll need to know what you're writing about. For example, if you've never suffered through a divorce, you might have a certain amount of difficulty truly capturing the feelings of the character. This will make it so that readers who have been divorced won't be able to connect with said character, because they'll feel that their reaction to the event isn't realistic. The same holds true when writing about countries you have never visited. You might describe the weather as deathly hot, because in your mind it is, while the citizens know that in fact it is quite cool during most months. You have now lost much of your credibility as a writer, and the realism of the story has dropped considerably.

There are, of course, ways to get around this. Many will argue that it isn't necessary to always write what you know. After all, does JK Rowling know how it feels to go to a castle called Hogwarts, learn magical spells, and be hunted down by an evil wizard named Voldemort? I'm assuming she doesn't. However, she has carefully taken the time to make the situation as plausible as possible, so that the reader can suspend their disbelief and simply go with the plot, and become immersed in the story. At the same time, she most likely knows how it feels to go through some of the things that Harry and his friends have during the series. For example, she has said that she can relate to Hermione on several levels, as they are both similar in their studying and reading habits. This therefore allows her to write what she knows.

Research is also important when writing a novel. I've worked with writers who spent more time researching about the Age of Enlightment than actually writing about it, or who have looked up more facts about Darwin than they ever inserted into their novel. This allows them to better manipulate the world they are creating, as they are fully aware of everything that composes it. The more realistic a text, the better. When a writer really knows what they are writing about, it shows, because the facts are accurate, it is realistic, and the readers can relate. Naturally, all of these things are very important to any writer, so having a firm grasp on the subject one is writing about is a key step in the writing process.

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