That is usually the first advice given to aspiring writers and for good reason. You can only be at ease with that which you know best. It’s possible to write what you don’t know, i.e. murder mysteries, sci- fi that sort of thing, but to have something come from the heart it must be personal. Which also means painful. My writing is dark these days for good reason- I’ve had so much personal grief lately and it has put me in a very dark place. Two deaths within the last year and a nasty fall in April resulting in a broken hip have done it! The broken hip has helped reinvigorate my writing, because, hey, I’ve been on a walker, going no where. As I am not used to a sedentary life, I’ve been bored out of my my mind. Knitting, writing and tv watching have filled many an hour for me. When I reviewed my past reading- The Plague in 14 th century Europe, Asleep- the sleeping sickness of the 19th century, as well as a few gory murder mysteries ( my guilty pleasure), it is no wonder my writing has focused on death, disease and uncomfortable-ness.
Writing exposes us and like a good murder mystery , we leave trace evidence of ourselves behind. A piece I wrote last winter about my brother’s death was very difficult to write for just that reason. In writing about him, I laid my soul out for all to see and that is never pleasant. Or easy.
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