Over at Electric Literature, Joseph Rositano contemplates the relationship between writing and mental health. Though he admits that creative writing has been associated with “mental abnormality” for centuries (the number of writers who committed suicide isn’t small), it’s still difficult to explain why this particular discipline—as opposed to painting or science, which also have the “‘tortured genius’ stereotype”—is so frequently associated with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
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People who like to write often spend great lengths of time alone thinking about what fictitious people would say. These dialogues over and over in our heads can come alive after a certain amount of time I think. I remember during an extensive day or two writing a short story in the mindset of a trapped tiger wanting to escape and kill people I felt the same way. I had spent the day working on the voice in a small room. By the end of it I felt like my character, I wanted to get out, I wanted to raise hell, I wanted freedom. This happens when we work with voice because it’s usually a voice separate from our own. Could this separation from ourselves lead to the stereotypical “voices” schizophrenia patients experience? You got me there, I’m no psychologist but either way from now on I’m writing with three layers of tinfoil around my head.
I’ve heard people say an open, slightly insane mind leads to creativity. I think creativity leads to a more open slightly insane way of thinking. Not insane, that’s the wrong word but different. So if you ever see me walking down the street, shouting about a mosquito lord invading my kingdom while desperately clutching a frayed fly swatter, just know I’m probably working on something very deep and meaningful at home and thats why I look a little tweaked.
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