WRITING ADVICE #3

Send your writing-related questions to: itsottessab@gmail.com. Each week I'll pick a question at random and answer it here.

Hi Ottessa, 

I feel like I can’t stay away from writing about sad, dark, and twisted shit. Even when I start with something lighter (like the other day I was deliberately trying to write lighter, I wrote about pizza, and still ended up making it about cremation somehow) I end up somewhere else. 

Sure, I have a natural tendency towards that kind of stuff. I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong with that. But when does it become sensationalized? Am I unintentionally writing for shock? How do I keep myself from going so blue / is there even a point in trying that in the first place? 

Thanks, 

Greta Gascan

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Dear Greta,

Yes and no.

Yes: There is always something to be gained from trying to restrain yourself. (Frankie Goes to Hollywood said it best:)