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
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:)