Write What you Know vs Write What you Don’t

by Quinn Edwards

Most of us will remember an English class, sometime in early high school, where our ears rang with the words, ‘write what you know’. But does this statement actually stand up under criticism? Should we write what we know, or should we write what we don’t?

One reason the statement is so popular, particularly for beginning writers, is that writing what you know grounds stories in reality. It makes them believable for a reader. However, it has the side-effect that it can turn stories into meandering autobiographies, devoid of that spark of imagination. On the other hand, when you don’t write from experience, when you write from reading, and research and imagination, incredible stories can be given life. And yet, there is a tendency for these stories to miss that realistic grounding that can suspend a reader’s disbelief.

So what do the authors say? As with any topic, opinion is divided. Nathan Englander relates ‘write what you know’ to emotions, quoting, ‘have you known happiness? Have you ever been truly sad? Have you ever longed for something? That’s the idea: if you’ve known longing, then you can write longing. And that’s the knowing behind write what you know.’ Ursula Le Guin argues that there is too loose a definition of know, saying, ‘I write about imaginary countries, alien societies on other planets, dragons, wizards, the Napa Valley in 22002. I know these things. I know them better than anybody else possibly could, so it’s my duty to testify about them. All this rule needs is a good definition of know.’ Dan Brown, an author famous for his depth of research, states, ‘You should write something that you need to go and learn about. Make the writing process a learning process for you.’

Is there a definitive answer? Perhaps not. Perhaps it’s all about finding that balance between experienced feelings and that combination of reading, research and imagination, to create an exciting story that still suspends a reader’s disbelief. Zoë Heller puts it elegantly, ‘You can mine your own life, yes. But you can also sympathetically observe other people’s experiences. You can read and research. And you can use your imagination. What good writers know about their subjects is usually drawn from some combination of these sources.’