Why Don't Writers Snap?

Hedgetrimmer · Apr 2, 2010

I preface this post with the following disclaimer:

In no way whatsoever do I encourage, condone or accept physical violence as a viable means of personal expression.

Still, I can't help but wonder why I've never heard of a writer going nuts on the publishing industry. Whether it be a writer trying to land an agent or trying to find a publisher; a writer who is convinced a publishing house stole his book idea and passed it on to someone in their stable; a writer bringing in steady but meager profits over the years but then suddenly dumped by agent or publisher; a writer who has received one-too-many bad reviews. I mean, there are many reasons why writers could potentially lose it and just snap. Yet they never do.

Work place violence is pretty common these days, and while this isn't exactly the same, there is room for comparison. One could even make the argument that the writer might, in theory, be more inclined to snap than the factory worker. After all, sitting alone listening to the voices talking in your head, writing it all down, rewriting and rewriting and then sending it out hoping some complete strangers may like it (and doing this for years)--well, some people would call that pretty nutty, just one step already from going completely bonkers.

Of course I hope I never hear of this happening, but at the same time I wonder why I never do. Any thoughts?

CheshireCat · Apr 2, 2010

Writers traditionally drown their troubles in drink.

scarletpeaches · Apr 2, 2010

Hedgetrimmer said:
One could even make the argument that the writer might, in theory, be more inclined to snap than the factory worker. After all, sitting alone listening to the voices talking in your head, writing it all down, rewriting and rewriting and then sending it out hoping some complete strangers may like it (and doing this for years)--well, some people would call that pretty nutty, just one step already from going completely bonkers.

This isn't a signal to the world that I'm going insane.

This is what I do to stop that happening.

M.R.J. Le Blanc · Apr 2, 2010

Because writers learn to grow a thick skin.

There are writers who bitch about trying to land an agent or publisher; I've found that the majority of them are more willing to point the finger at a 'broken system' as opposed to their own work. Basically, they're unwilling to accept that they may need improvement. It's an old song-and-dance, and nobody cares anymore. Stolen ideas are mythical almost, it doesn't happen as often as people think or would like to believe. And I can't see a publisher keeping an author who can't come up with their own stories and must be given one. There have been authors who have gone batshit over bad reviews, but again nobody really cares (unless they're looking for amusement).

In other words, much of what you suggested isn't worth a real author's time to 'snap' over. And those that do either have no idea about the business, or are too thin-skinned to deal with the realities of it. Everyone laughs, shakes their head, then moves on.

Hedgetrimmer · Apr 2, 2010

CheshireCat said:
Writers traditionally drown their troubles in drink.

Oh, boy. That statement reminds me of another thread.

Hedgetrimmer · Apr 2, 2010

scarletpeaches said:
This isn't a signal to the world that I'm going insane.

This is what I do to stop that happening.

I hear ya. :Thumbs:

Sage · Apr 2, 2010

Well, I've tried, but I just can't get my fingers to work properly.

sarahcypher · Apr 2, 2010

Myself, I've snapped so many times I've gotten flexible. Que sera sera.

Shadow_Ferret · Apr 2, 2010

I'd say because writing is cathartic and writers give voice to their angst in their work.

M.R.J. Le Blanc said:
Because writers learn to grow a thick skin.

Where is that class and how much does it cost? Because rejections today still hurt as much as they did when I first started out.

Hedgetrimmer · Apr 2, 2010

Shadow_Ferret said:
I'd say because writing is cathartic and writers give voice to their angst in their work.

You and SP are hitting on the same thing, and I have to agree. I started thinking about all this after reading one of N. Bransford blog posts about some writer showing up in his office demanding to see him. Janet Reid also blogged about some of the creepy stuff she's received in the mail. So while I do agree that writing can be a good form of therapy, there are still plenty of cuckoos out there who just aren't receiving it.

SWest · Apr 2, 2010

In terms of the Writing Job--there's nobody else around here to blame but "Me" if things go wrong. And my Writing Job is totally separate from anything else I do for money, so again, nobody to blame.

It wouldn't be super-sane for me to blame my writing failures on anyone else involved in the process post-composition. If I worked in an office with an annoying person who interfered with (or could be cast as interfering with) my work and well-being at work, that's a whole'nother thing.

The mentally unbalanced have an easier time blaming people in their immediate working environment. Any violence about this work would have to be against myself (not that writers and other artists don't go this route).

And, maybe, writing is the way that certain High Functioning folks deal with all the stuff that goes wrong in their other lives.

Stunted · Apr 2, 2010

I think it also probably takes a more crazy thought process to get a gun and go to a publishing house, where you may only know a handful of people, just to go shooting it up than it does to bring a gun somewhere you go every day full of people you hate.

mscelina · Apr 2, 2010

Writers don't snap?

:roll:

Two words for you: The Shining.

As to why I don't snap on the publishing industry--well, it's because I'm reasonably certain my magnum opus won't get published if I terrify every agent and editor in New York. Besides, drowning my rejections in drink is such an Algonquin kind of thing and very, very cultured.

*hic!*

Pass the scotch, wouldcha?

Kitty27 · Apr 2, 2010

I am nuts to begin with. How can you drive an already crazy person insane?

You can't.

As for the rejections,etc, I feel that writers know the game before they get in. When any of what you mentioned happens,why snap over it? You already knew what to expect going in. This isn't a game for the thin skinned or snivelers. Have yourself a good cry,a stiff drink,or whatever you do,then keep it moving.

Quite a few writers are bat shiot crazy. To sit in a room,writing about imaginary people and places,occasionally giggling,crying,or talking to your characters indicates a certain degree of nutty. But a safe nutty.

I'm sure there are some real nuts who take every rejection personally or just cannot handle the fact that success isn't instant. These folks were already cuckoo for cocoa puffs in the bad way before they ever started writing.

MattW · Apr 2, 2010

Writers are what happens when non-violent people snap.

Cyia · Apr 2, 2010

Writers:

live in their own worlds
talk to imaginary people
listen to the voices in their head
forget to eat and drink on occasion while working
forget to shower far too frequently while working
have to exist in a reality apart from the "Real World" of their family and friends
frequently talk to their computer/WIP as though both are sentient and capable of answering
have imaginary friends called "muses" that can direct their productivity
fantasize about people doing things that society deems reprehensible - then they share those fantasies with others
actually volunteer to get shot down by submitting queries
ask "what if" and "but why" faster and more often than a four-year old
have a mysterious "zone" which they inhabit during times of intense concentration that renders them deaf, dumb, and blind to anything not directly in front of them on a back-lit screen (no one else is allowed in this zone at any time)
find the sound of clacking keys to be a type of therapy
inhale far too much toner for their own good
randomly and often change their mood to match their WIP, baffling very concerned family members (who really hope that green stuff on their robe is guacamole and not mold.)

leahzero · Apr 2, 2010

We would, but we're too worried that we'd make a grammatical error in the manifesto we leave in the wake of our destruction. That, and we're waiting for our beta readers to get back to us on whether what we said about being better than all of you shills, not needing the approval of a hotshot publisher for our work of genius, this country going to the dogs, etc. was clear.

dgiharris · Apr 2, 2010

Its not that writers don't go postal. Its just that they are smart enough to not get caught :Thumbs:

All those hours of thinking and writing about murder and mayhem sure come in useful
:idea:

...

...

:

Mel...

Linda Adams · Apr 2, 2010

Cyia said:
Writers:

live in their own worlds

talk to imaginary people

listen to the voices in their head

forget to eat and drink on occasion while working

forget to shower far too frequently while working

have to exist in a reality apart from the "Real World" of their family and friends

frequently talk to their computer/WIP as though both are sentient and capable of answering

have imaginary friends called "muses" that can direct their productivity

fantasize about people doing things that society deems reprehensible - then they share those fantasies with others

actually volunteer to get shot down by submitting queries

ask "what if" and "but why" faster and more often than a four-year old

have a mysterious "zone" which they inhabit during times of intense concentration that renders them deaf, dumb, and blind to anything not directly in front of them on a back-lit screen (no one else is allowed in this zone at any time)

find the sound of clacking keys to be a type of therapy

inhale far too much toner for their own good

randomly and often change their mood to match their WIP, baffling very concerned family members (who really hope that green stuff on their robe is guacamole and not mold.)

My father--a veteran of talking to himself--always said it only became a problem if you got into an argument with yourself and lost.

aadams73 · Apr 2, 2010

I wasn't nuts before I started writing, and that hasn't changed.

Midnight Star · Apr 2, 2010

Cyia said:
Writers:

live in their own worlds

talk to imaginary people

listen to the voices in their head

forget to eat and drink on occasion while working

forget to shower far too frequently while working

have to exist in a reality apart from the "Real World" of their family and friends

frequently talk to their computer/WIP as though both are sentient and capable of answering

have imaginary friends called "muses" that can direct their productivity

fantasize about people doing things that society deems reprehensible - then they share those fantasies with others

actually volunteer to get shot down by submitting queries

ask "what if" and "but why" faster and more often than a four-year old

have a mysterious "zone" which they inhabit during times of intense concentration that renders them deaf, dumb, and blind to anything not directly in front of them on a back-lit screen (no one else is allowed in this zone at any time)

find the sound of clacking keys to be a type of therapy

inhale far too much toner for their own good

randomly and often change their mood to match their WIP, baffling very concerned family members (who really hope that green stuff on their robe is guacamole and not mold.)

Is it a good thing or a bad thing that I have done/am doing every one of those things?

I've become close to snapping at times. I've thrown stuff up against the wall and yelled at those who don't deserve it when dissatisfied with my WIP (maybe that's due to my lingering anger issue problemo). I am just now starting to realize how crazy I am and it scares me, but in a writer's world, I guess I'm totally normal.

Slushie · Apr 2, 2010

I snap all the time. It's how I get my servants' attention.

Claudia Gray · Apr 2, 2010

I don't think writers are fundamentally saner than other professions, to put it lightly. But most workplace violence takes place in a setting that the assailant is very familiar with. Most writers are not very familiar with agents' offices or homes, publishing house layouts, or even the city of New York. People who would have to fly there are thereby deprived of their firearms. Also, just the fact that there's significant travel time involved to reaching any of the above (for non-New Yorkers) sets up an automatic cool-down period. I'd be willing to wager that other industries that don't have set workplaces have similarly low levels of workplace violence.

Ken · Apr 2, 2010

... I pegged my 5th grade teacher in the back of the head with a spitball after she gave be a C- on an essay assignment. Not sure if that counts?

Birol · Apr 2, 2010

When writer's snap, they're drugged until they can't hear the voices anymore. The threat of that is enough to keep most of us in line.

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