I realised last night that writing is good for my mental health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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This is a statement that a lot of writers will find odd, so let me explain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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After a bad retail experience while doing my grocery shopping amid the chaos of Christmas Eve, I felt anxious, and was considering abandoning my plans for the evening. Lately, though, I’ve found that I hold myself to the standards of the characters in my books, and they would definitely have faced the fear and gone ahead; so I did too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Which is funny, because I’m very aware that the characters in my books are drawn out of elements of myself. So I used a part of myself to motivate myself to be better than I am. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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I write noblebright fantasy, which means that my leading characters exhibit courage, perseverance, and kindness to a greater degree than most real people (though certainly there are real people like that). In using them as my model, I’m strengthening the best aspects of myself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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But it doesn’t just work that way. I’ve heard that horror writers are generally extraordinarily nice people, and I suspect that it’s because they draw out the darker parts of themselves into the light, externalise them so that they’re no longer driven by them unawares – and perhaps so that they have a clear model to steer away from, as I have one to steer towards in my more noble characters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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So, in summary: pay attention to the voices in your head. It can improve your mental health. <\/p>\n\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I realised last night that writing is good for my mental health.
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